bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A pilot study on effect of adjunctive transcranial direct current stimulation on symptom domains of depression in patients with depressive disorder
Authors: Singh Shipra , Meena Amit K. , Sharma Gautam , Deshpande Smita N. 
Published: October 2021

Background:
Depression is a highly prevalent condition and includes clusters of symptoms, namely, depressive cognition, anxiety, and visceral symptoms. Depressive symptoms often respond sub-optimally to pharmacotherapy. Adjunctive transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), a noninvasive brain stimulation modality, may improve depressive symptomatology.

Aim:
The aim of this study was to study the effect of tDCS as an augmentation strategy in depression and its various symptom domains.

Materials and Methods:
It is a prospective interventional study. Patients diagnosed with depressive disorder (based on International Classification of Disease- 10 criteria, diagnosed by treating psychiatrist), aged 18-70 years, who showed inadequate improvement on antidepressant selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, were recruited after informed consent. Each participant was administered 20 sessions of tDCS over 2 weeks, each session of 20 min, with anode placement at left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and cathode at right supraorbital region. Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAM-D) was administered pre- and post-intervention to assess the change in symptoms.

Results:
Of a total of 35 participants, the mean score on HAM-D prior to and postintervention was 19.97 (standard deviation [SD] = 3.519) and 13.17 (SD = 3.365), respectively. The difference was statistically highly significant (P = 0.000) on paired t-test. All symptom domains of HAM-D, identified using the Cole and Motivala model (Cole et al., 2004), also showed significant reduction from pre-tDCS to post-tDCS scores (P = 0.000).

Conclusion:
Positive effect of tDCS on depressive symptoms, its tolerability and safety profile, and affordability makes it an effective therapeutic strategy in augmenting antidepressants in patients with depression. However, longer period studies with larger sample size may yield more generalizable results.
Apolipoprotein B/A1 ratio as a potential marker of cardiovascular risk in women
Authors: Ayoade Olufisayo Gabriel , Essien Sarah Ifreke , Sonuga Oyebola 
Published: October 2021

Background:
There has been a significant steady rise in the prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) among Nigerian women within the last decade. The balance between pro-atherogenic particles and antiatherogenic particles has been markedly reflected in the apolipoprotein B/A1 ratio (Apo B/A1), and this ratio has been shown to be the strongest single lipoprotein-related cardiovascular risk factor. The cutoff value for the apo B/A1 ratio that defines high cardiovascular risk has been proposed to be 0.8 for women. This study is to determine the apo B/A1 ratio in apparently healthy Nigerian women and to evaluate the relationship of this ratio with other lipid indices.

Methods:
A total of 161 apparently healthy female adults between the ages of 30 and 66 years were selected for this study over a period of 6 months. Plasma total cholesterols (TC), triglycerides (TG), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) were measured using the enzymatic methods, whereas low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) was calculated using the Friedewald formula. Apolipoprotein A1 and B were determined using immunoturbidimetry methods.

Results:
The mean of plasma apo B/A-I ratio in the studied participants was 0.68, with values ranging from 0.27 to 1.46. The percentage of participants with the apoB/apoA-I ratio exceeding 0.8 (the cutoff value for CVD risk) was 24.2%. The participants with apoB/apoA-I >0.8 were characterized by higher mean TC (216 mg/dl vs. 171 mg/dl; P < 0.001), TG (80 mg/dl vs. 66 mg/dl; P = 0.007), LDL-C (163 mg/dl vs. 120 mg/dl; P < 0.001), and lower HDL-C (36 mg/dl vs. 43 mg/dl; P < 0.001) compared with women with apoB/apoA-I < 0.8.

Conclusion:
This study has demonstrated that the women with apo B/A1 >0.8 have worse atherogenic lipid profile (high plasma TC, TG, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and low high-density cholesterol). It has also shown that only the apoB/A-I ratio correlates with other lipid markers; it should be considered as a potential useful tool in cardiovascular risk assessment in women. Its potential use in the national guideline for assessment and management of dyslipidemia will be invaluable.
Study on concordance of specific cytological diagnosis with histology in a teaching hospital
Authors: Atanda Akinfenwa Taoheed , Faro-Tella Ramat Olayinka 
Published: October 2021

Background:
Fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC), a cheap screening technique, has helped reduce the diagnostic turnaround time of palpable swellings from different anatomical sites. In light of the technique increasingly being used as a definitive diagnostic tool, it is thus important to evaluate its accuracy in making specific diagnosis beyond just being a screening tool.

Objective:
To determine the concordance rate between cytological and histological diagnosis

Materials and Methods:
Cytology and corresponding histology reports for lesions from patients with maxillofacial, lymph node, and abdominal swellings, where both were available, were compared for the concordance of specific cytological diagnosis with final histological diagnosis.

Results:
In the 10-year (2006–2015) studied, there were 177 complete cases in which specific diagnoses were made on cytology; of these, 135 (75.3%) were in concordance with histological diagnoses. Concordance for intra-abdominal, maxillofacial, and lymph node aspirates was 90.2%, 85.5%, and 62.9%, respectively. Cytological concordance of specific diagnosis for benign and malignant lesions was 70.7% and 79.5%, respectively. Concordances for lymphomas, carcinomas, and sarcomas were 84.1%, 68.2%, and 66.7%, respectively. The specific cytologic diagnosis was enhanced by preaspirate ultrasound scan while the absence of immunocytochemistry hampered accuracy in specific diagnosis of nodal non-Hodgkin's and Hodgkin's lymphoma (66.7% and 42.9%), respectively.

Conclusion:
This study concludes that FNAC is a simple technique with fairly reliable utility in proffering specific diagnosis on suitable lesions. However, in developing countries where repertoire of antibodies for immunocytochemistry may be limited, the accuracy will be improved by good clinical history and preaspirate ultrasound where necessary.
Patterns for cost-sharing of agricultural technology transfer in Nigeria
Authors: Ozor N. , Madukwe M.C. , Garforth C. , Agwu A.E. , Chukwuone N.A. 
Published: October 2021

With recent changes in the financing and delivery of agricultural technology transfer worldwide due to inability of many governments to cope with varied needs of clients, most reforms currently being initiated by governments tend towards a pluralistic approach and financial participation of all stakeholders. One of such reforms is through cost-sharing. The authors examined stakeholders’ (extension professionals and farmers) opinions on the appropriate patterns for cost-sharing of agricultural technology transfer in Nigeria. The study was carried out in six geopolitical zones of Nigeria. Multistage random sampling technique was applied in the selection of 268 farmers and 272 extension professionals. Mean scores and t-test statistics were utilized in realizing the objectives of the study. Results show that the stakeholders’ overall opinion on the appropriate pattern for cost-sharing was for beneficiaries of service to pay specified amounts of money to extension organizations every farming season through their cooperative societies. Results further showed that farmers proved to have more ideas on the best patterns of sharing the cost of technology transfer than the extension professionals. It was concluded that for cost-sharing to be effective, all the stakeholders have to participate in decision-making and implementation processes of agricultural technology transfer in the country.
Key words: cost-sharing, agricultural technology transfer, farmers, extension professionals, Nigeria
Biological Characterization of Plasmodium falciparum Mitochondrial Heat Shock Protein PfHsp70-3: Possible Involvement in Malaria Pathogenesis
Authors: Nyakundi David O. , Boshoff Aileen 
Published: October 2021

Malaria remains a global health burden accounting for many deaths and illnesses in sub-Saharan Africa notwithstanding many decades of research on the disease. P. falciparum, the causative agent of the most fatal form of malaria, expresses a repertoire of heat shock proteins (Hsp) that cushion the parasite against heat shocks as it shuttles between extreme temperatures in human and mosquito vector hosts. By so doing, such proteins promote parasite’s cytoprotection, survival and pathogenesis. Heat shock proteins are named according to their molecular weights and there are six P. falciparum Hsp70 (PfHsp70) found in various cell compartments with mitochondrial putative PfHsp70-3. Using indirect immunofluorescence, this study established mitochondrial localization of PfHsp70-3 though some more confirmatory studies would be needed in the future. PfHsp70-3 was found to be heat inducible and expressed during all stages of the intra-erythrocytic cycle of parasite development. This could be an indication of PfHsp70-3’s involvement in the infectivity process of P. falciparum by helping the parasite to resist heat shocks during malaria febrile episodes. Generally, the data obtained in this study will enhance the existing knowledge on the biology of P. falciparum mitochondrial heat shock protein functions and open possible avenues for targeting the specificity between PfHsp70-3 and its co-chaperones for drug development.
Keywords: Malaria, P. falciparum, Heat shock proteins, PfHsp70-3, pathogenesis
Pair Distribution Function Analysis and Electrochemical Performance of Mesoporous Carbon Nanomaterials Synthesized Through KOH and ZnCl2 Activation
Authors: Kibona Talam E. , Terban Maxwell W. 
Published: October 2021

Mesoporous carbon has been synthesized by activating carbonized biogas slurry residues with ZnCl2 and KOH simultaneously. The carbon to activating agent mass ratios were kept at 1:4, while the ZnCl2 to KOH mass ratio varied from 4:0, 3:1, 2:2, 1:3, to 0:4. The highest BET specific surface area of 361 m2 g-1, micropore surface area of 231 m2 g‒1, mesopore surface area of 125 m2 g‒1, and total pore volume of 0.23 cm3 g‒1 which amounted to 78% mesopore content, were obtained for the sample with 3:1 ZnCl2 to KOH mass ratio. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images were acquired to determine the surface morphology and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) was used to determine surface composition of the samples. The short, medium, and long-range orders of the synthesized materials were studied using pair distribution function (PDF) analysis. PDF showed that in addition to the locally ordered carbon and silica phase components, samples activated using combined ZnCl2 and KOH also contained crystalline Zn2SiO4 phase with the willemite structure. Electrochemical studies in three-electrode cell system revealed maximum specific capacitance of 216 F g‒1 exhibited by sample with a ZnCl2: KOH mass ratio of 3:1 at a scan rate of 5 mV s‒1.
Keywords: Mesoporous carbon; Pair distribution function, Specific capacitance, supercapacitor
Vulnerability and Responses of Smallholder Farmers to Climate Change Effects in Semiarid Areas of Bahi and Kongwa Districts, Tanzania
Authors: Myeya Helena Elias 
Published: October 2021

This study examined the vulnerability and responses of smallholder farmers to climate change effects in Semiarid Areas of Bahi and Kongwa Districts. A total of 366 household heads were involved in this study. The study employed questionnaire, interviews and documentary review as data collection techniques. Archival data for temperature, rainfall and crop yields were collected for trend analysis. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse quantitative data, content analysis was employed to analyse qualitative data. Simple linear trend analysis and Mann Kendall were used to establish trends. The findings indicate that smallholder farmers in the study area have noted reduced rainfall, increased temperature and reduced production as indicators of climate change. Results from archival data indicate insignificant decline of rainfall, significant increase of temperature and insignificant decline of crop yields at 5% significance level. As a response to these changes, smallholder farmers reported to use improved crop varieties, change planting dates, use intercropping, out-migrating and change land use practices. Several challenges were reported to hinder effective adaptation including inadequate capital, limited soft loans, limited weather information and deficient extension services. It is concluded that the climate is changing in the study area calling for strengthening farmers’ adaptive capacity.
Keywords: Adaptive strategies, climate change effects, challenges, semiarid area, Tanzania.
Attitude of Swiss general practitioners to mandatory training in assessing fitness to drive of older drivers
Authors: Grob Philip , Pfäffli Matthias 
Published: October 2021

AIMS OF THE STUDY: In Switzerland, drivers over the age of 75 must undergo a medical assessment of their fitness to drive every 2 years. This assessment is usually carried out by a general practitioner (GP). Since 2016, physicians require official accreditation (so-called level 1 competence) to perform these examinations. This can be obtained either by self-declaration of competence or by attending an accredited training course. Little is known about the Swiss GPs' views on this regulation. In this study, we investigated the attitude of GPs towards these modalities.
METHODS: A questionnaire was mailed to 2372 GPs in a large part of German-speaking Switzerland, 1198 of whom completed and returned the questionnaire. The anonymised data were analysed by descriptive statistics (frequencies, percentages) to summarise participant demographics and agreement with attitudinal statements.
RESULTS: The response rate was 50.5%. Sociodemographic data (age, gender, settlement area) of the participating GPs corresponded to those of the Swiss medical statistics. The majority (93.1%) of respondents worked in an outpatient setting, 6.9% in the inpatient sector. Overall, 34.4% of the GPs completed a training course and 47.7% submitted a self-declaration in order to acquire level 1 competence. Older and more experienced physicians had made more use of the self-declaration option. 58.1% of the respondents would like to retain the existing regulations. Of the respondents who had attended a training course, 51.7% considered themselves more competent in the assessment of older drivers after the training, and 76.1% would like to maintain the course duration of 1 day. Of the physicians surveyed, 70.8% were of the opinion that level 1 examinations are a useful screening tool for older drivers who are unfit to drive, and 78.4% agreed that MFTD (medical fitness to drive) examinations of older drivers should be performed by GPs.
CONCLUSIONS: In Switzerland, the currently existing regulation for acquiring level 1 competence is widely accepted by GPs. Almost all respondents considered that they have sufficient knowledge to assess MFTD. However, the majority of GPs who had attended the training course indicated they have benefited from it. Periodic assessment of MFTD of older drivers was considered useful and should preferably be performed by GPs. These results show that the periodic assessment of older drivers' MFTD practised in Switzerland is well accepted.
Optimización del método de digestión por microondas y espectrofotometría de absorción atómica con generador de hidruro para la cuantificación de arsénico en diferentes matrices
Authors: Diez-Pérez-Núñez Diana , Colmán Derlysa , García Lilian , Nakagoe Saori , Ramírez Karina , Torres Oscar , Olivares José Chamorro , Mereles Laura 
Published: October 2021

El arsénico es un metaloide natural presente abundantemente en la corteza terrestre que requiere ser estudiado; se caracteriza por su capacidad de bioacumulación y como consecuencia puede causar efectos nocivos en los organismos vivos. El objetivo del estudio fue optimizar los métodos analíticos para cuantificar arsénico total en muestras de agua, suelo y arroz. Para el estudio se colectaron muestras de agua y suelo de los humedales del Lago Ypoá, considerada un área con mínima actividad antropogénica, mientras que para el arroz se seleccionaron muestras comerciales de procedencia nacional de arroz pulido y descascarillado. La aplicación de los métodos de ensayo se llevó a cabo por duplicado mediante digestión ácida asistida por horno microondas y posterior cuantificación por espectrofotometría de absorción atómica con generador de hidruro. Se evaluaron pruebas de linealidad, recuperación y la adición de distintas proporciones de reactivos. Se observó linealidad de la respuesta instrumental para la curva de calibración en el rango comprendido entre 0,2 a 12 µg.L-1, los porcentajes de recuperación fueron superior al 95 % y para las muestras de suelo se identificó que la proporción de reactivos adecuada para la cuantificación de arsénico total con menor sesgo fue de 3,5 mL HNO3 + 1 mL HF + 0,5 mL HCl + 0,6 g H3BO3 para 0,2 g de muestra. Estos resultados permiten delinear futuros trabajos para evaluar el contenido de arsénico en muestras ambientales para su aplicación en salud pública y apoyo a la producción agrícola y ganadera del país.
Pedagogical Diagnosis and Self-learning in the Training of Foreign Language Teachers
Authors: Tenesaca Josué Bonilla , Medina Isabel Batista , Alvarez Marisela Jiménez 
Published: October 2021

Universities in charge of training foreign language teachers have the responsibilities to guarantee and improve their preparation. In doing so, it is still evident that within Hispanic speaking environments, foreign language contexts require much attention. Hence, the pedagogical diagnosis allows describing, analyzing, interpreting, and comprehending the educative reality of future foreign language teachers, to design strategies for educative intervention. These strategies may facilitate personalized attention for enhancing self-learning and developing linguo-professional potentialities from classroom diversity. This paper has the aim of revealing the importance of pedagogical diagnosis for personal implication of the future foreign language teacher, his conscious responsibility in self-learning, as an active transformer of the reality. For the accomplishment of this task, several scientific methods such as analysis-synthesis, induction-deduction and hermeneutic were used.

Las universidades encargadas de la formación de profesores de lenguas extranjeras tienen la responsabilidad de garantizar y mejorar su preparación. Para ello, sigue siendo evidente que, en los entornos hispanohablantes, los contextos de las lenguas extranjeras requieren mucha atención. Por ello, el diagnóstico pedagógico permite describir, analizar, interpretar y comprender la realidad educativa de los futuros profesores de lenguas extranjeras, para diseñar estrategias de intervención educativa. Estas estrategias pueden facilitar la atención personalizada para potenciar el autoaprendizaje y desarrollar las potencialidades lingüísticas-profesionales desde la diversidad del aula. Este trabajo tiene como objetivo revelar la importancia del diagnóstico pedagógico para la implicación personal del futuro profesor de lenguas extranjeras, su responsabilidad consciente en el autoaprendizaje, como transformador activo de la realidad. Para la realización de esta tarea se utilizaron varios métodos científicos como el análisis-síntesis, la inducción-deducción y la hermenéutica.
Attitudes towards natural sciences in students from mexico, colombia and peru
Authors: Chavez Williams Orlando Tapia 
Published: October 2021

In science didactics the study of attitudes informs about the professional and socio-scientific profiles, for this reason this study has focused its analysis on Mexican, Colombian and Peruvian students to determine their attitudes towards the knowledge, teaching and learning of the natural Sciences. For this, a study was approached with a semantic differential scale allowing to conclude that the students have an intermediate level (between neutral and positive), finding only significant differences depending on the locality.

En didáctica de las ciencias el estudio de las actitudes informa sobre los perfiles profesiones y socio-científicos, por ello este estudio ha centrado su análisis en estudiantes mexicanos, colombianos y peruanos para determinar sus actitudes hacia el conocimiento, la enseñanza y el aprendizaje de las ciencias naturales. Para ello se abordó un estudio con una escala de diferencial semántico permitiendo concluir que los estudiantes poseen un nivel intermedio (entre lo neutral y lo positivo), hallando sólo diferencias significativas en función a la localidad.
RE-DESAIN ALAT PERONTOK BUNGA CENGKEH
Authors: Mangulang Zulkifli , Pabeta Djufri Juma , Ramadhani M. Rizki , Hayat Muh. 
Published: October 2021

Beberapa daerah di indonesia melakukan pemisahan bunga cengkeh dari tangkai dengan cara manual yaitu petani memegang cengkeh kemudian bunganya digesekkan ke tangan satu ke tangan yang lainnya. Proses ini dapat menyebabkan kulit tangan petani menjadi kasar/tebal. Adapun tujuan penelitian ini untuk mengetahui cara kerja alat perontok bunga cengkeh dan cara re-desain alat perontok bunga cengkeh. Metode penelitian ini mengunakan kualitatif dengan perancangan yang dilakukan dimulai dengan mempersiapkan bahan dan alat kemudian merakit rangka utama dan setelah itu memasang komponen pada rangka dan terakhir pengujian alat. Tahapan pengujian alat yang pertama siapkan alat perontok bunga cengkeh, siapkan bahan, hidupkan mesin, masukkan cengkeh kedalam corong, cengkeh akan dorontokkan dengan sendirinya oleh perontok dan kemudian hasil cengkeh akan keluar dari saluran tempat pengeluaran. Setelah penelitian di dapatkan hasil sebanyak 4 kali percobaan yang dilakukan pada waktu dan hari yang sama sehingga dengan melakukan pengujian tersebut dapat menghasilkan sebuah hal yang ingin diketahui seperti bagaimana hasil perontokkan yang diperoleh dengan berat yang dihasilkan cengkeh 1000 gram, tangkai 682 gram dan kerusakan 140 gram, kapasitas dan berat awal pada alat 2000 gram (2 kg) bunga dan dibutuhkan waktu 9:20 menit untuk mendapatkan hasil tersebut. Sehingga dapat disimpulkan bahwa dalam pengolahan bunga cengkeh yang pada umumnya masi mengunakan cara manual untuk memisahkan bunga cengkeh dengan tangkainya. Sehimgga kami menginisiasi untuk meredesain mesin perontok bunga cengkeh yang lebih ifisien dan memudahkan para petani cengkeh. Untuk membuat alat perontok bunga cengkeh dibutuhkan komponen yang dapat merontokan bungcengkeh tanpa merusak struktur pada bunga cengkeh, maka dari kami mengunakan bahan dari karet agar proses perontokan tidak merusak kualitas bunga cengkeh adapun hasil yang sudah di uji berat awal cebngekeh sebanyak 2 kg waktu yang di hasilkan 9:20 menit.