bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Induction of Humoral Immune Response by 66 kDa Protein and Amplification of Gene present by using Polymerase Chain Reaction
Authors: Devi Nisha , Banal H. S.
Published: August 2021

Malaria is one of the most dreaded vector borne disease caused by apicomplexan parasite, of the genus Plasmodium. In the present study the gene which encodes 66kDa protein in rodent malaria parasite, Plasmodium berghei, was cloned. Rodent malaria parasite, Plasmodium berghei (NK-65), was found lethal to white Swiss mice (BALB/c). The immunogenicity and protective efficacy of purified 66 kDa protein was evaluated both in vitro and in vivo. Mice immunized with 66 kDa protein induced a strong humoral immune response, revealing role of 66 kDa in malaria control. Genomic DNA of P. berghei was isolated from cell free parasite. Genomic DNA serves as a template for isola on of gene encoding 66 kDa protein. Further, the gene was amplified by using polymerase chain reaction. The amplified DNA fragment of 1717 bp was extracted from agarose gel and puri ed. The purified gene was ligated to a cloning vector for cloning procedure by TA-cloning mechanism. Results of this study provide evidence that 66 kDa protein is highly immunogenic during experimental infec on in rodents and such an gen will be a suitable candidate malaria vaccine.
Comparative Evaluation of IL-16 mRNA level and rs1131445 polymorphism of IL-16 gene in Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells of patients with Inflammatory Bowel Diseases
Authors: Alinaghi Samaneh , Chaleshi Vahid , Ghavami Shaghayegh Baradaran , Balaii Hedieh , Azimzadeh Pedram , Kadijani Azade Amini , Nourian Mahyar , Shahrokh Shabnam , Asgharian Ali Mohammad , Aghdaei Hamid Asadzadeh , Z Ali Mohammad Reza
Published: August 2021

Aberrant immune response in a gene cally susceptible host is acknowledged in the pathogenesis of In ammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD) including Crohn’s disease (CD) and Ulcerative colitis (UC). Here we aimed to evaluate IL-16 mRNA level, as the immune component and rs1131445 polymorphism of IL- 16 gene, as the gene c susceptibility component of IBD development in PBMC sample. A total of 97 IBD patients (13 CD and 84 UC) and 100 healthy controls were included. Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells (PBMCs) were extracted. Polymorphism evaluation was performed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) followed by restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) and the results were confirmed by sequencing method. Comparative Real- time PCR method was used for IL-16 mRNA assessment. A 3.92-fold increase was observed in the expression level of IL-16 in PBMC of IBD patients compared to the controls (p<0.0001). IL-16 expression was not signi cantly di erent in di erent IBD forms and pathological phases. Distribu on of rs1131445 polymorphism was not significantly different between controls and pa ents (P=0.825). Distribu on of CC genotype was signi cantly higher in CD patients (P=0.016). Although IL-16 mRNA level was considerably lower in CC genotype, this difference was not statistically significant (p=0.537). Lower IL-16 mRNA level was observed in CC genotype of rs1131445 SNP which was not in accordance with the expectations and needs to be further investigated. These data suggest that IL-16 level could be considered as a prognostic marker in Iranian IBD patients.
Polymorphism and Genetic Diversity among Cassava Cultivars based on ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 Sequences of rDNA
Authors: Nadjiam Djirabaye , Guisse Aliou , SembÃ©ne MbackÃ© , Mbaye Fatimata
Published: August 2021

Cassava is an important crop in the southern area of the Chad and it is char- acterized by many cultivars. But these cultivars have never been evaluated at the molecular level. Therefore, the objective of this study was to analyze their genetic diversity and their phylogenetic relationships. After DNA extraction, amplification and sequencing, the nucleotide sequences of the ITS1- 5.8S-ITS2 region of the ribosomal DNA of 12 selected cultivars have been analyzed. The Neighbor-Joining method, Maximum Parsimony, Maximum Likelihood and the Bayesian approach allowed studying the ancestral links. The identified nucleotide sequences have 542 bp. The targeted genes showed 468 conserved sites and 59 polymorphic sites. The nucleotide frequency was 18.64% for Adenine, 14.01% for Thymine, 34.46% for Cytosine and 32.89% for Guanine. The (G + C) content was 67.35% compared to 32.65% for the (A+T). The substitution rate was in favor of the transversions (67.46%) against the transitions (32.54%). The analysis revealed high haplotype diversity (Hd=0.954) and low nucleotide diversity (π=0.026) with an average number of pairwise nucleo de di erences (k=14.045). On the all popula on, 9 haplotypes, including 6 individual and 3 double, were identified. Gene c di eren a on is medium (FST=0.314) with a low number of migrants (Nm=0.55) and a medium genetic distance (0.028). Phylogenetic analysis based on the Bayesian approach revealed three groups of cul vars with the existence of two strongly supported clades. The cultivars studied are characterized by demographic stability or moderate population growth.They will be incorporated in the breeding program in order to limit their genetic erosion and to select the interesting characters.
Morphological and phylogenetic evidence for two new species of Russula subg. Heterophyllidia from Guangdong Province of China
Authors: Chen Bin , Song Jie , Chen Yanliu , Zhang Jinhua , Liang Junfeng
Published: August 2021

Two new species of Russula subg. Heterophyllidia from Guangdong Province of China were described and illustrated based on morphological characters, and their identity supported by molecular phylogeny. R. luofuensis is morphologically characterized by a grayish yellow to brownish orange pileus center with a purplish gray to grayish magenta margin, a surface that is cracked and broken into small golden-brown patches, subglobose to broadly ellipsoid basidiospores with warts fused in short or long chains and a suprapellis composed of hyphal extremities with inflated, ellipsoid or globose cells and attenuated terminal cell. R. subbubalina is distinguished by the blanched almond to dark salmon pileus that is cracked with age, subglobose to broadly ellipsoid basidiospores with wart fused in short or long chains and frequently connected by line connections, a suprapellis with hyphal ends composed of inflated or ellipsoid cells and attenuated terminal cell, and pileocystidia that are mainly clavate and sometimes with round or ellipsoid appendage. The phylogenetic analyses based on ITS-nrLSU-mtSSU-TEF1 dataset were performed using maximum likelihood and Bayesian analysis. In terms of morphological features and molecular data, the former species belongs to subsect. Virescentinae, whereas the latter comes under subsect. Heterophyllinae.
Refining the picture: new records to the lichen biota of Italy
Authors: Nascimbene Juri , Gheza Gabriele , Hafellner Josef , Mayrhofer Helmut , Muggia Lucia , Obermayer Walter , Thor Göran , Nimis Pier Luigi
Published: August 2021

Based on the analysis of both historical and recent collections, this paper reports an annotated list of taxa which are new to the lichen biota of Italy or of its administrative regions. Specimens were identified using a dissecting and a compound microscope; routine chemical spot tests and standardized thin-layer chromatography (TLC or HPTLC). The list includes 225 records of 153 taxa. Twenty taxa are new to Italy, the others are new to one or more administrative regions, with 15 second records and 5 third records for Italy. Some of the species belong to recently-described taxa, others are poorly known, sterile or ephemeral lichens which were largely overlooked in Italy. Several species are actually rare, either because of the rarity of their habitats (e.g. old-growth forests), or because in Italy they are at the margins of their bioclimatic distribution. The picture of the lichen biota of Italy has now new pixels, but its grain is still coarse. Further analysis of historical collections, increased efforts in the exploration of some areas, and the taxonomic revision of critical groups are still necessary to provide more complete distributional data for new biogeographic hypotheses, taxonomic and ecological research, and biodiversity conservation.
DNA barcoding of the mesic adapted striped mouse, Rhabdomys dilectus in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal provinces of South Africa
Authors: Matamba Emmanuel , Richards Leigh R. , Cherry Michael I. , Rambau Ramugondo V.
Published: August 2021

Abstract

South African small mammals are under-represented in DNA barcoding efforts, particularly from the eastern forested regions of the country. This study reports DNA barcoding ofRhabdomystaxa from previously unsampled parts of the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal provinces of South Africa. The complete mitochondrial DNA cytochrome oxidase I (COI) gene was sequenced for 101Rhabdomyssp. individuals from 16 localities from all three main forest groups (coastal, mistbelt, and scarp forests). Molecular data were supplemented with external morphological measurements, including those deemed potential taxonomically diagnostic characters. Findings indicate the area to be inhabited solely byRhabdomys dilectus chakae. Haplotypes distributed across the three forest groups were separated by shallow sequence divergences ranging from 0.001–0.015 (Kimura 2-parameter model) and displayed very little population genetic structure (FST= 0.071787). Morphological data revealed some regional metric differences in external morphology, but all the head-and-body to tail (HB: tail) ratios match that ofR. d. chakae, and consequently, molecular and morphological data are congruent. These data confirm a range extension ofR. d. chakae, supporting the utility of COI barcodes in the identification of small mammalian species.
Dynamic genetic diversity and population structure of Coreius guichenoti
Authors: Liu Dongqi , Lan Feng , Xie Sicai , Diao Yi , Zheng Yi , Gong Junhui
Published: August 2021

To investigate the genetic effects on the population of Coreius guichenoti of dam constructions in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, we analyzed the genetic diversity and population structure of 12 populations collected in 2009 and 2019 using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control regions. There was no significant difference in genetic diversity between 2009 and 2019 (P > 0.05), but the population structure tended to become stronger. Genetic differentiation (FST) among five populations (LX, BB, YB, SF and JA) collected in 2009 was not significant (P > 0.05). However, some populations collected in 2019 were significantly differentiated (P < 0.05), indicating that the population structure has undergone change. A correlation analysis showed that the genetic diversity of the seven populations collected in 2019 was significantly negatively correlated with geographical height (r = −0.808, P = 0.028), indicating that the populations at high elevations were more vulnerable than those at low elevations. In order to prevent the further decrease of genetic diversity and population resources, some conservation and restoration suggestions, such as fish passage and artificial breeding, are put forward.
Corporate Application of Health Literacy
Authors: Hochmuth Natascha , Sørensen Kristine
Published: August 2021

Background:

The growing concern of low health literacy in populations combined with the interest of companies to develop cultures of health and the emerging interest in the workplace as an arena for improving health literacy is increasingly acknowledged. This study aimed to explore how companies currently apply the concept of health literacy as part of their health efforts in the work sphere.

Methods:

A systematic literature review was conducted based on the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis) guidelines. The search was performed in the databases PubMed, Science Direct, and Directory of Open Access Journals from July 2019 to August 2019 and included the search terms “health literacy,” “health literate,” and “health competence” combined with the search terms “company/companies,” “corporation/corporates,” “workplace,” “business,” and “organization.” Studies were eligible for inclusion if they (1) were written in English or German, (2) were concerned with employers/employees, companies, corporations, or organizations, (3) dealt with health literacy in particular, and (4) were formatted as journal articles, systematic literature reviews, or book chapters.

Key Results:

The search identified 20 articles. A thematic analysis resulted in 5 clusters with 2 to 3 sub-themes illustrating the characteristics of how corporations apply health literacy. The clusters entailed the conceptualization of health literacy, its measurement, and the application of health literacy in strategies, interventions, and training.

Discussion:

The literature review reveals that the application of health literacy by companies is in its infancy. More research and practical experience are warranted on how companies can mobilize and facilitate a health literate workforce.

[
HLRP: Health Literacy Research and Practice
. 2021;5(3):e218–e225.]

Plain Language Summary:

This literature study explored the role of advancing health literacy in companies. Five aspects were identified as important, including the understanding of the concept, its measurement, and its integration into strategies, interventions, and training. The involvement of management and the staff was crucial for success.
Dynamics of solutions to a semilinear plate equation with memory
Authors: Liu Jinxing , Wang Xiongrui , Zhou Jun , Liu Xu
Published: August 2021

In this paper we consider an initial-boundary value problem of a semilinear regularity-loss-type plate equation with memory in a bounded domain of \begin{document}$ \mathbb{R}^n $\end{document} (\begin{document}$ n = 1,2,\cdots $\end{document}). By using the Faedo-Galërkin method and some theories of ordinary differential equations, we obtain the local existence and uniqueness of weak solutions. Then, we study the dynamics of the weak solutions, such as global existence and finite time blow-up, by energy estimation and some ordinary differential inequalities. Moreover, the upper bound of blow-up time for the blow-up solutions is also considered.
Revisiting Computer-Assisted Language Teaching: What Else Do Tertiary-Level EFL Teachers Need to Know?
Authors: Zhang Xiaodong
Published: August 2021

Computer-assisted language teaching (CALT) is widely used in teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) in college. As illustrated by the existing research, CALT is valuable in that it can leverage technological affordances (e.g., multimodal resources or interactive spaces) in motivating students’ learning interest. However, beyond the technological level, CALT treats language (i.e., vocabulary and grammar) separately from content de/construction (e.g., questions-based content comprehension). This means that to further improve CALT in the EFL context, the students’ understanding of the relationship between language and content, which contributes to the success of literacy activities, must be fostered pedagogically. As such, this paper introduces systemic functional linguistics and argues for its use as a complementary tool for students’ improved engagement in CALT. It also offers recommended practices for teachers in this regard.
Teamwork Effectiveness in Student’s Final Year Project
Authors: Yusof Norazah , Hussein Ramlah , Hashim Rathiah , Mansur Andi Besse Firdausiah , Malik Saadia , Bajnaid Nada , Mohd Arif Shereena
Published: August 2021

The goal of this paper is to deliberate issues pertaining to teamwork effectiveness among students in a university environment. Final year project is an important assessment to measure students’ teamwork skills in the university. Three main factors have been identified that contribute to teamwork effectiveness. The factors are namely interpersonal skills, interdependence and commitment to success. Interpersonal factors include social sensitivity and emotional engagement attributes. In this perspective, measures such as teamwork support, care, trust, honesty and respect towards team members are important key criteria. On the other hand, interdependence among others includes traits such as promoting each other to achieve common goals, bringing the best of each other and helping each other completing the task. Commitment to team success involves high obligation, high motivation, strong common goals and strong shared values and beliefs. In this paper, construct items for each factor are developed based on previous studies. The findings show that these factors are relevant toward the success of the student’s final year project. Lacking these skills may result in poor performance among team members and may lead to unfavorable outcome.
Students’ Satisfaction Using E-Learning as a Supplementary Tool
Authors: Thoo Ai Chin , Hang See Pheng , Lee Yoke Lai , Tan Liat Choon
Published: August 2021

E-learning is useful to help students gaining digital and data literacy during their studies particularly in the era of Industrial Revolution 4.0 (IR 4.0). E-learning which is characterized by time and place flexibility should be utilized as a tool for self-learning. In Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), e-learning plays an important role as a supplementary tool for effective web-based learning. The purpose of this study is to examine what are the factors that drive students’ satisfaction in e-learning. A total of 194 samples were collected from undergraduate students in UTM using quantitative method. Purposive sampling technique was used to select the respondents. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) was utilized for data analysis. The findings showed that delivery method and con-tent have a positive and significant relationship with satisfaction of using e-learning. However, system operations has no impact on students’ satisfaction in e-learning. In conclusion, the finding of this study is expected to provide an effective teaching model for general education schools.
A Rule Induction Framework on the Effect of ‘Negative’ Attributes to Academic Performance
Authors: Gue Ivan Henderson Vy , Sy Alexis Mervin , Nuñez Ailene , Loresco Pocholo James , Onia Jaychris Georgette , Belino Manuel
Published: August 2021

Attaining high retention rates among engineering institutions is a predominant is-sue. A significant portion of engineering students face challenges of retention. Academic advising was implemented to resolve the issue. Decision support sys-tems were developed to support the endeavor. Machine learning have been inte-grated among such systems in predicting student performance accurately. Most works, however, rely on a black box model approach. Rule induction generates simpler if-then rules, exhibiting clearer understanding. As most research works considered attributes for positive academic performance, there is the need to con-sider ‘negative’ attributes. ‘Negative’ attributes are critical indicators to possibility of failure. This work applied rule induction techniques for course grade predic-tion using ‘negative’ attributes. The dataset is the academic performance of 48 mechanical engineering students taking a machine design course. Students’ at-tributes on workload, course repetition, and incurred absences are the predictors. This work implemented two rule induction techniques, rough set theory (RST) and adaptive neuro fuzzy inference system (FIS). Both models attained a classifi-cation accuracy of 70.83% with better performance for course grades of ‘Pass’ and ‘High’. RST generated 16 crisp rules while ANFIS generated 27 fuzzy rules, yielding significant insights. Results of this study can be used for comparative analysis of student traits between institutions. The illustrated framework can be used in formulating linguistic rules of other institutions.
Employment Quality Difference and Employment Quality Evaluation of English Majors in Colleges
Authors: Li Ye
Published: August 2021

Our society needs talents that excel in English-Chinese translation and English education. However, there is not yet a unified and scientific evaluation index system (EIS) for the employment quality of graduates from English department of colleges. Very few scholars have analyzed the difference between English majors in employment ability. Therefore, this paper decides to analyze the difference between English majors in employment ability, and evaluate their employment quality. Firstly, an EIS was constructed to evaluate and predict the employment quality of English majors in colleges. Secondly, the relevant indices were selected and analyzed in turn. Thirdly, an employment quality prediction model was constructed for English majors in colleges. The proposed EIS and model were proved effective through experiments.
Using M-Learning Technology in Teaching Foreign Languages: A Panacea during COVID-19 Pandemic Era
Authors: Dolzhich Elena , Dmitrichenkova Svetlana , Ibrahim Mona Kamal
Published: August 2021

The higher education system around the world is being rapidly developed towards digitalization – from computers to laptops, from laptops to tablets and smartphones. Accordingly, traditional delivery of instruction is being shifted towards blended learning that is being gradually replaced with distance learning, i.e. higher education is moving forward with mobile learning (m-learning) technologies. The introduction of mobile learning became the most topical event in 2020 in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, due to which many countries had to completely move to distance learning in higher education. The purpose of the study is to analyze the prospects for the widespread use of mobile applications in teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) in Russia to Russian and Arab learners. In the course of the study, an online survey based on a questionnaire consisting of four open and closed questions was conducted. An empirical method was applied to collect the research data.  The survey was conducted at the Department of Foreign Languages of the Engineering Academy of the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia (EA PFUR). The total research sample included 200 participants and consisted of: 50 potential employers, 50 Russian and Arab students of the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia studying Linguistics (training program code 035700), 50 faculty members, namely teachers of the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia, the Institute of Foreign Languages of the Moscow State Pedagogical University and the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, as well as 50 administrative staff of the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia. The purpose of the survey was to collect information about the use of mobile applications (Smartphone Apps) and the introduction of mobile learning technology (m-learning) in the process of teaching EFL to students. According to the results of the survey, instructors are actively using mobile technologies in their professional activities and all participants in the learning process are receptive to their introduction in education. At the same time, respondents believe that technical challenges are the major obstacle to the adoption of mobile applications; these problems must be overcome in order to enable more productive use of mobile applications. In this regard, the study of mobile applications that are suitable for specific aspects of learning a foreign language, such as spoken language, reading comprehension, listening or writing, can be considered a promising research area.
Influence of Design Elements of Mobile Push Notifications on Mobile App User Interactions
Authors: Wohllebe Atilla , Adler Manuel Rolf , Podruzsik Szilárd
Published: August 2021

With the increasing relevance of mobile apps for companies, push notifications to address app users are also becoming more important. While the acceptance factors of push notifications have already been extensively researched, the effect of the different design elements on user interaction by opening the mobile app is still completely unexplored. Based on existing scientific findings from related fields, especially banner advertising and e-mail marketing, the authors first develop hypotheses on the effect of title, button and image on user interaction with push notifications. In several experiments the hypotheses are tested using the example of a mobile shopping app. The results are evaluated using Chi-square test and Cramer's V. While the use of a title seems to have a positive effect on interaction rates, the hypotheses on the positive effect of buttons and images on interaction rates have to be rejected.
The Challenges and Prerequisites of Data Stream Processing in Fog Environment for Digital Twin in Smart Industry
Authors: B. A. Alaasam Ameer
Published: August 2021

Smart industry systems are based on integrating historical and current data from sensors with physical and digital systems to control product states. For example, Digital Twin (DT) system predicts the future state of physical assets using live simulation and controls the current state through real-time feedback. These systems rely on the ability to process big data stream to provide real-time responses. For, example it is estimated that one autonomous vehicle (AV) could produce 30 terabytes of data per day. AV will not be on the road before using an effective way to managing its big data and solve latency challenges. Cloud computing failed in the latency challenge, while Fog computing addresses it by moving parts of the computations from the Cloud to the edge of the network near the asset to reduce the latency. This work studies the challenges in data stream processing for DT in a fog environment. The challenges include fog architecture, the necessity of loosely-coupling design, the used virtual machine versus container, the stateful versus stateless operations, the stream processing tools, and live migration between fog nodes. The work also proposes a fog computing architecture and provides a vision of the prerequisites to meet the challenges.
SVM-Based Switching Filter Hardware Design for Mixed Noise Reduction in Digital Images Using High-Level Synthesis Tools
Authors: Dawrayn Abdulhadi Mohammad din , Bilal Muhammad
Published: August 2021

Impulse and Gaussian are the two most common types of noise that affect digital images due to imperfections in the imaging process, compression, storage and communication. The conventional filtering approaches, however, reduce the image quality in terms of sharpness and resolution while suppressing the effects of noise. In this work, a machine learning-based filtering structure has been proposed preserves the image quality while effectively removing the noise. Specifically, a support vector machine classifier is employed to detect the type of noise affecting each pixel to select an appropriate filter. The choice of filters includes Median and Bilateral filters of different kernel sizes. The classifier is trained using example images with known noise parameters. The proposed filtering structure has been shown to perform better than the conventional approaches in terms of image quality metrics. Moreover, the design has been implemented as a hardware accelerator on an FPGA device using high-level synthesis tools.
Parallel Algorithm of Hierarchical Phrase Machine Translation Based on Distributed Network Memory
Authors: Qiu Guanghua
Published: August 2021

Machine translation has developed rapidly. But there are some problems in machine translation, such as good reading, unable to reflect the mood and context, and even some language machines can not recognize. In order to improve the quality of translation, this paper uses the SSCI method to improve the quality of translation. It is found that the translation quality of hierarchical phrases is significantly improved after using the parallel algorithm of machine translation, which is about 9% higher than before, and the problem of context free grammar is also solved. The research also found that the use of parallel algorithm can effectively reduce the network memory occupation, the original 10 character content, after using the parallel algorithm, only need to occupy 8 characters, the optimization reaches 20%. This means that the parallel algorithm of hierarchical phrase machine translation based on distributed network memory can play a very important role in machine translation.
Predictors of Undergraduate Satisfaction With the Usage of University of Ilorin Web Portal
Authors: Adeyemi Ismail Olatunji , Issa Abdulwahab Olanrewaju
Published: August 2021

This study examined undergraduate students’ satisfaction with the University portal using Information System Success Model (ISSM). This study adopted stratified random sampling technique to select a sample size of 394 from a total population of 40,609 undergraduate students of the University of Ilorin. Questionnaire was the instrument that was used in collecting data for the study. Out of all the 394 copies of questionnaire administered, only 362 copies were returned completely filled and validated for this study. Findings show that IT professionals are responsive to students’ complaints but they do not show enough empathy to them; the students found the portal useful and they are satisfied with the overall use of the portal; and system quality, service quality and information quality predict students’ satisfaction of the portal. Study shows that information quality has the highest significant impact in determining the perceived usefulness of a Web portal while system quality has the least significant impact in determining the perceived usefulness of a Web portal.
Enhancing Behavioral Dependency for Effective Computing in Software
Authors: Bura Deepa , Choudhary Amit
Published: August 2021

Software plays an important role in effective computing and communication of any services. It become crucial to identify some critical parts of the software that can lead to enhanced computing and increases efficiency of the software. Dependency plays a significant role in finding relationship amongst classes and predicting change prone classes. This paper aims to enhance Behavioral Dependency by defining 6 types of dependencies amongst classes. These are (i) direct behavioral dependency (ii) indirect behavioral dependency (iii) internal behavioral dependency (iv) external behavioral dependency (v) indirect internal behavioral dependency and (vi) Indirect External Behavioral Dependency. Evaluating these dependencies, gives accurate results for the prediction of change prone classes. Further, paper compares proposed approach with existing methods.
PerSummRe
Authors: Dubey Neeru , Verma Amit Arjun , Setia Simran , Iyengar S. R. S.
Published: August 2021

The size of Wikipedia grows exponentially every year, due to which users face the problem of information overload. We purpose a remedy to this problem by developing a recommendation system for Wikipedia articles. The proposed technique automatically generates a personalized synopsis of the article that a user aims to read next. We develop a tool, called PerSummRe, which learns the reading preferences of a user through a vision-based analysis of his/her past reads. We use an ensemble non-invasive eye gaze tracking technique to analyze user’s reading pattern. This tool performs user profiling and generates a recommended personalized summary of yet unread Wikipedia article for a user. Experimental results showcase the efficiency of the recommendation technique.
COVID-19 pandemic restrictions and problems faced by patients due to difficult hearing
Authors: Jayarajah Umesh , Basnayaka Oshan , Siriwardena Heshan , Abeygunasekera Anuruddha M.
Published: August 2021

Aims: The impact of COVID-19 is considerable in patients with hearing impairment who are faced with difficulties in communication due to masks and social distancing. We aimed to provide a preliminary description about difficulties faced by a group of patients due to hearing impairment. We collected data from 300 consecutive patients from a tertiary care urology clinic at Colombo South Teaching Hospital, Sri Lanka. A self-administered questionnaire was used. Chi-Square test was used for statistical analysis. The mean age of the patients was 55.9 (range:11-85). Eight patients (2.7%) had previous known hearing impairment. Repetition of instructions were required at least once due to hearing impairment in 27.3% (once:14.3%; twice:7.0%; three times:3.3%; >three times:2.7%). However, around 81.7% reported that they had no hearing problems while others reported some dif ficulty (18.3%: mild-10.3%, n=31; moderate-4.3%,n=13 and severe-3.7%,n=11). Nine patients (3.0%) required lowering of the mask to enable lip reading in order to understand the instructions and all reported moderate/severe hearing impairment (moderate: n=1, severe: n=8). Patient reported hearing impairment was significantly higher in those aged ≥65 years (31% vs. 11%, p<0.001). Around 18% of our cohort experienced some form of hearing difficulty. Thus, awareness among the healthcare providers and general public should be improved. Further studies on the impact of this problem with special focus on possible solutions are necessary.
Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia presenting as recurrent respiratory tract Infections
Authors: Prasadani Manori , Sathiadas M. G.
Published: August 2021

Congenital diaphragmatic hernia is a defect in the fetal diaphragm, allowing the contents of the abdominal cavity to protrude into the thorax. It is characterized by varying degree of pulmonary hypoplasia associated with decrease in cross sectional area of pulmonary vasculature. The case report presents an incidental finding of a congenital diaphragmatic hernia at an age of two years and four months, emphasizing the increased importance of thorough clinical examination that may lead you to an important incidental diagnosis.
Thrombotic microangiopathy in Hump nosed viper ‘Hypnale’ envenomation
Authors: Perera Wanniarachchi W. K. M. N. , Pirasath Selladurai , Pemasiri M. , Gamarallage A. , Sugathapala A. G. H. , Nettikumara U.
Published: August 2021

Hump-nosed viper (HNV) which compromises ‘Hypnale hypnale’, ‘H. zara’ and ‘H. nepa’ is recognized as a highly venomous snake and ‘H. zara’ and ‘H. nepa’ are the commonest cause of snakebite envenoming in Sri Lanka. It has been earlier identified as resulting in only minor or local envenoming whereas, now known to cause serious systemic toxicity and fatalities. Here we report a case of 62 year old female presented with Hump-nosed viper bite who developed Microangiopathic Haemolytic anaemia (MAHA) and Acute Kidney Injury (AKI) which recovered spontaneously without residual renal or haematological abnormalities.
Autoimmune hepatitis with cholestasis; An uncommon presentation in elderly
Authors: Albert Nimalan A. , Sivansuthan S.
Published: August 2021

Auto immune Hepatitis (AIH) with cholestatic jaundice is a rare entity. AIH is characterized by inflammatory changes in liver with the presence of circulating auto antibodies and hyperglobulinemia. Here we report a case of 67-years-old lady who presented with Acute autoimmune hepatitis with cholestatic jaundice with early accurate diagnosis and early initiation of corticosteroids recovered successfully. Even though it is very rare AIH should not be overlooked in patients with cholestatic jaundice without viral/drug induced hepatitis.
A female patient with painful abdominal lump- torsion of wandering spleen
Authors: Rajendra S.
Published: August 2021

We present a 65 year old female patient presented with acute onset of severe left sided abdominal pain associated with a tender intra-abdominal lump over the left flank. An abdominal ultrasonography revealed an ectopic spleen in left flank and a CE-CT scan of abdomen confirmed the wandering spleen with torsion of vascular pedicle at the hilum. She underwent splenectomy. Wandering spleen is an uncommon clinical entity. Review of literature was made on different clinical presentations, diagnostic evaluation, treatment options, and clinical outcomes of patients with wandering spleen and discussed in this case report.
Bilateral anterior cerebral artery thrombosis - a mimicker of basilar artery thrombosis: a case report
Authors: Gnanathayalan S. W. , Peranantharajah T. , Rajendra N. , Arasalingam A.
Published: August 2021

We present a rare case of bilateral anterior cerebral artery (ACA) territory infarction with akinetic mutism, quadriparesis and frontal lobe release signs along with limbic dysfunction mimicking a basilar artery thrombosis. The etiology was thrombosis of the anterior communicating artery with propagation or embolism of the thrombus to both A2 segments of the anterior cerebral artery and restricted or absent blood flow in the branches arising from the A2 and A3 segments causing extensive infarction. We also aim to review the anatomy of the ACA to understand localization of lesions.
Using community science to explore the spatial distribution of the daylily gall midge (Cecidomyiidae) in Canada’s Maritimes region
Authors: Cattiaux Alicia S.M.A. , Caseley Heather J. , Rutherford Katherine L. , Manning Paul
Published: August 2021

The daylily gall midge, Contarinia quinquenotata (Loew) (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae), is an ornamental pest of daylilies, Hemerocallis spp. Linneas (Asphodelaceae). Originally native to Asia, this pest was accidentally introduced to western North America, and it is believed to occur throughout other parts of North America even though its presence has not been confirmed. Using an online survey of gardeners across Canada’s “Maritimes” (the region that includes the provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island), we determined that symptoms of the pest occurred at multiple sites across Nova Scotia, but we received no reports from Prince Edward Island or New Brunswick. Sequencing the cytochrome c oxidase 1 gene of the samples submitted by community scientists, we confirmed the daylily gall midge occurs at multiple sites across Nova Scotia. A common garden study that included 517 daylily varieties found that yellow-flowering varieties were almost twice as likely to be affected as nonyellow varieties. Early-flowering varieties were more likely to be attacked than later-flowering varieties. For each day that the date at first flowering was delayed, the likelihood of gall midge attack decreased by 16%. To avoid or mitigate damage where the daylily gall midge occurs, selecting late-flowering varieties with nonyellow flowers can be a useful complement to destructing infested flower buds.
Ubiquitin Specific Protease 1 Expression and Function in T Cell Immunity
Authors: Omilusik Kyla D , Nadjsombati Marija S , Yoshida Tomomi M , Shaw Laura A , Goulding John , Goldrath Ananda W
Published: August 2021

T cells are essential mediators of immune responses against infectious diseases and provide long-lived protection from reinfection. The differentiation of naive to effector T cells and the subsequent differentiation and persistence of memory T cell populations in response to infection is a highly regulated process. E protein transcription factors and their inhibitors, Id proteins, are important regulators of both CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses; however, their regulation at the protein level has not been explored. Recently, the deubiquitinase USP1 was shown to stabilize Id2 and modulate cellular differentiation in osteosarcomas. In this study, we investigated a role for Usp1 in posttranslational control of Id2 and Id3 in murine T cells. We show that Usp1 was upregulated in T cells following activation in vitro or following infection in vivo, and the extent of Usp1 expression correlated with the degree of T cell expansion. Usp1 directly interacted with Id2 and Id3 following T cell activation. However, Usp1 deficiency did not impact Id protein abundance in effector T cells or alter effector T cell expansion or differentiation following a primary infection. Usp1 deficiency resulted in a gradual loss of memory CD8+ T cells over time and reduced Id2 protein levels and proliferation of effector CD8+ T cell following reinfection. Together, these results identify Usp1 as a player in modulating recall responses at the protein level and highlight differences in regulation of T cell responses between primary and subsequent infection encounters. Finally, our observations reveal differential regulation of Id2/3 proteins between immune versus nonimmune cell types.
Critical Roles of Phosphoinositide 3-Kinase δ in the Humoral Immune Response to Trypanosoma congolense Infection
Authors: Olayinka-Adefemi Folayemi , Onyilagha Chukwunonso , Jayachandran Nipun , Hou Sen , Jia Ping , Uzonna Jude , Marshall Aaron J
Published: August 2021

PI3Kδ is critical in generating humoral and regulatory immune responses. In this study, we determined the impact of PI3Kδ in immunity to Trypanosoma congolense, an African trypanosome that can manipulate and evade Ab responses critical for protection. Upon infection with T. congolense, PI3KδD910A mice lacking PI3Kδ activity paradoxically show a transient enhancement in early control of parasitemia, associated with impaired production of regulatory IL-10 by B cells in the peritoneum. C57BL/6 wild-type (WT) mice treated with the PI3Kδ inhibitor (PI3Kδi) Idelalisib showed a similar transient decrease in parasitemia associated with reduced IL-10. Strikingly, however, we find that PI3KδD910A mice were ultimately unable to control this infection, resulting in uncontrolled parasitemia and death within 2 wk. Assessment of humoral responses revealed delayed B cell activation, impaired germinal center responses, and compromised Ab responses to differing degrees in PI3KδD910A and PI3Kδi-treated mice. To test the role of Abs, we administered serum from WT mice to PI3KδD910A mice and found that lethality was prevented by postinfection serum. Interestingly, serum from naive WT mice provided partial protection to PI3KδD910A mutants, indicating an additional role for natural Abs. Together our findings suggest that although PI3Kδ drives immune regulatory responses that antagonize early control of parasite growth in the peritoneum, it is also required for generation of Abs that are critical for protection from systemic trypanosome infection. The essential role of PI3Kδ for host survival of African trypanosome infection contrasts with findings for other pathogens such as Leishmania, underlining the critical importance of PI3Kδ-dependent humoral immunity in this disease.
IFN-γ Drives TNF-α Hyperproduction and Lethal Lung Inflammation during Antibiotic Treatment of Postinfluenza Staphylococcus aureus Pneumonia
Authors: Verma Atul K , Bauer Christopher , Palani Sunil , Metzger Dennis W , Sun Keer
Published: August 2021

Inflammatory cytokine storm is a known cause for acute respiratory distress syndrome. In this study, we have investigated the role of IFN-γ in lethal lung inflammation using a mouse model of postinfluenza methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) pneumonia. To mimic the clinical scenario, animals were treated with antibiotics for effective bacterial control following MRSA superinfection. However, antibiotic therapy alone is not sufficient to improve survival of wild-type animals in this lethal acute respiratory distress syndrome model. In contrast, antibiotics induce effective protection in mice deficient in IFN-γ response. Mechanistically, we show that rather than inhibiting bacterial clearance, IFN-γ promotes proinflammatory cytokine response to cause lethal lung damage. Neutralization of IFN-γ after influenza prevents hyperproduction of TNF-α, and thereby protects against inflammatory lung damage and animal mortality. Taken together, the current study demonstrates that influenza-induced IFN-γ drives a stepwise propagation of inflammatory cytokine response, which ultimately results in fatal lung damage during secondary MRSA pneumonia, despite of antibiotic therapy.
Features and behavior of valvular abnormalities in adolescent and adult patients in mucopolysaccharidosis: an echocardiographic study
Authors: Galzerano Domenico , Saba Seemi , Al Sergani Abdullah , Vriz Olga , Alghalayini Khalil , Ramzan Khushnooda , Elmahi Isra , Cittadini Antonio , Di Salvo Giovanni , Pergola Valeria
Published: August 2021

Mucopolysaccharidoses, a rare inherited disorder of lysosomal storage, account for less than 0.1% of all genetic diseases.  The penetrance is highly variable and clinically it varies from severe fetal-neonatal forms to attenuated diseases diagnosed in adult individuals. The majority of the patients have been reported to show cardiac abnormalities since pediatric age, however, there is a minority of patients with attenuated disease diagnosed in the adolescent and adult age. The haematopoietic stem cell transplantation and enzyme replacement therapy are the current therapies for these disorders. Thanks to these treatments, Mucopolysaccharidoses patients live longer than in the past. Even though enzyme replacement therapy has been demonstrated to reduce left ventricular mass in patients with cardiomyopathy, the efficacy on valve abnormalities has not been clearly demonstrate yet. Furthermore, thanks to the current therapy, to better understanding and to the advent on new technologies, an increasing number of adolescent and adult patients diagnosed with MPS are followed up in the adult echocardiographic laboratory. Indeed, a systematic descriptive study describing the echocardiographic features of valvular involvement and their evolution in adolescent and adult patients lacks of medical literature and this was the aim of our investigation. Our results showed that all the valves are affected, mainly the mitral valve with a higher prevalence compared to the pediatric age.  The echocardiographic features of MPS differs from other valvular disease of adolescent and adult age, and knowing them can avoid misdiagnosis. Our observations also suggest that the progression of cardiac involvement slows after the initiation of the therapy in our group of age. Further studies on larger population are required to confirm our results.
Non-pharmacological remedies for post-viral acute cough
Authors: Ciprandi Giorgio , Tosca Maria Angela
Published: August 2021

The post-viral acute cough (PAC) is a widespread symptom, mainly in childhood and adolescence, and is usually associated with an acute upper respiratory infection, namely the common cold. The use of cough relievers is, therefore, impressive, as documented by the market data. There are many medical devices and dietary supplements for treating PAC, which contain non-pharmacological components. Ancient people used traditional herbs to treat PAC. Thus, a well-established tradition considers natural remedies as an effective and safe way to relieve PAC. The herbal agents include polyphenols, flavonoids, saponins, glucosides, and alkaloids. Also, the European Medicine Agency has recognized the value of plant extracts and other natural substances to treat PAC. Nevertheless, a few studies investigated the role of non-pharmacologic remedies for PAC. There is some evidence for honey, glycerol, Althea officinalis, Drosera rotundifolia, Grindelia, Hedera helix, Pelargonium sidoides, Sambucus nigra, Thymus vulgaris, hyaluronic acid, and saline solutions. However, further rigorous studies should confirm natural products' efficacy and safety to relieve PAC.