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Deforestation in Ghana is primarily caused by agriculture, and as such, there is a need to explore agricultural systems that promote forest and environmental conservation. Studies on decision support frameworks that can help farmers and landowners make informed optimal land use choices are limited in the country. This study attempts to fill the gap. We used survey questionnaire and focus group discussion to gather data from farmers and other stakeholders. Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) technique was employed to analyse the data. The results showed that agroforestry, with the highest ranking (probability of 0.98), is the optimal land use option. Coconut and oil palm land use options were perceived to be contributing to the degradation of the periphery of the Ankasa Conservation Area (ACA). Intensifying education and training will increase the uptake of agroforestry as an integrated multifunctional land use strategy in the ACA.

Marx is a fallibilist. He holds that no commitment is immune to revision under pressure of rational scrutiny. His criticisms of rival thinkers often turn not just on their getting things wrong, but on their being too little observant of this precept. I examine one such episode: Marx’s critique of Stirner in The German Ideology. Stirner is himself a fallibilist and understands his philosophy as a correction against earlier, less successful attempts to pursue a consistently fallibilistic program in philosophy. Marx argues, however, that Stirner is himself inconsistent in his fallibilism. Stirner treats one concept in particular—his central concept—as indefeasible, ostensibly because it stands in a privileged relationship to non-conceptual reality. Marx understands Stirner’s inconsistency to result from his making covert recourse to a given element in knowledge. Marx holds that there is no given element in knowledge, and that confused appeals to the given serve to cover over assumptions and insulate commitments from scrutiny, all of which falls afoul of thoroughgoing fallibilism.

Diesel is an essential energy source in the transportation and industrial sectors worldwide; hence, the quality of this commodity is crucial. This study compares various fuel samples to understand the quality of the fuels in terms of sulphur content, density, surface tension, viscosity, and calorific value. The properties of diesel fuel samples from eight (8) Filling Stations (Marketing Companies (MC)) were examined and compared with GSA 141:2022 and ISO 8217:2017 standards. Fuel from two companies, MC-A and MC-G had slightly lower densities than the standard, indicative of a possible contamination with lower-density fuels such as kerosene. The surface tension of all samples, except one was within the standard range. The only sample with the lower than the standard value also displayed high sulphur content. Although all the fuel samples met the minimum requirement for calorific value, the viscosities of the fuels from three companies were slightly higher than the specified standard value which can potentially result in higher emissions. In the case of sulphur content, fuel samples from only three companies were in compliance with the maximum 50 ppm standard. This means 62.5 % of the diesel fuel within the study area at the time contained more than the acceptable amount of sulphur. The findings in this research highlight the need to re-examine the quality of fuels along the distribution chain.

ABSTRACTFood waste can be converted to a useful product such as biochar as a way of recycling waste to retain nutrients in the soil, which in turn contributes to carbon sequestration and offset some greenhouse gas emissions in the struggle to achieve carbon neutrality. Mixed food waste-derived biochars (FWB1–300°C, FWB2–450°C and FWB3–600°C) were pyrolysed at 300°C, 450°C and 600°C, respectively, using an electric kiln. Tests for physiochemical parameters and germination tests were performed. It was realized that at 300°C biochars produced had high nitrogen, organic matter, bulk density, biochar yield, and longer root lengths. The results indicate that municipal food waste biochars produced at three temperatures were suitable for use as fertilizer. However, biochar produced at a moderately lower temperature is favourable for agriculture purposes, FWB1–300°C and FWB2–450°C obtained moderate pH and ash levels and so are less toxic to the growth of plants.

Background: High fructose diet has been linked with impaired body metabolism and cardiovascular diseases. Sodium butyrate (NaB) was documented to improve glucoregulation and cardiometabolic problems associated with high fructose diet (HFrD) but the mechanisms behind it are unclear. As a result, the purpose of this study was to look into the effects of NaB on VEGF and cardiac lactate in HFrD-induced dysmetabolism. Methods: Twenty male Wistar rats of weight 130–140 g were assigned randomly after a week of acclimation into four groups: Control diet (CTR), High fructose drink (HFrD); 10 % (w/v), NaB (200 mg/kg bw), and HFrD + NaB (200 mg/kg bw). The animals were induced to be unconscious with 50 mg/kg of pentobarbital sodium intraperitoneally, blood samples were taken via cardiac puncture and cardiac tissue homogenates were obtained for Fasting Blood Sugar (FBS) and plasma insulin, cardiac glycogen, plasma and cardiac glycogen synthase, plasma and cardiac nitric oxide as well as vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Result: HFrD resulted in statistical elevation body and cardiac weight, plasma glucose, plasma insulin, cardiac lactate, glycogen and decreased nitric oxide level (NO) when compared with the control group. Administration of NaB reduced cardiac weight, blood glucose, plasma insulin, cardiac lactate while nitric oxide and glycogen increased (P

This study aimed to investigate the role of iodine intake in thyroid function ofdiabetic rats. Twenty-four (24) male Wistar rats were placed into four groups (n=6): Group (non-diabetic without iodine), Group 2 (non-diabetic + iodine), Group 3 (diabetic without iodine) and Group 4 (diabetic + iodine). 10mg/kg bw of iodine were mixed with the feeds. Serum triodothyronine (T3), thyroxine (T4), Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH), thyroglobulin and thyroperoxidase antibodies were assessed using ELISA. Serum MDA, SOD, and NO levels were assessed with spectrophotometry. In the diabetic rats, lower mean serum T4 and TSH concentrations were observed (T4: 13.16±0.55 Vs 11.75±0.21 mg/dL, TSH: 2.62±0.11 Vs 2.28±0.08 IU/mL). Iodine treatment further reduced T4 and increased TSH concentrations (T4: 11.75±0.21 vs 6.75±0.22 mg/dL, TSH: 2.28±0.08 Vs 3.08±0.15 IU/mL). Thyroglobulin and thyroperoxidase antibodies were absent in all the rats. It was also observed that iodine intake caused an increase in oxidative stress in both diabetic and non-diabetic treated rats (MDA; 18.4±1.3 Vs 22.2±2.7 μmol/l X 10-5, NO; 14.08±0.38 Vs 13.24±0.07μm/l) and increased SOD levels in diabetic rats (44.44±2.94 Vs 68.94±0.91 mg/ml); this increase could be due to the increased TSH. Consumption of excess iodine suppressed thyroid function in diabetic rats and induced oxidative stress in both diabetic and non-diabetic treated rats.

This article describes a new alternative approach to satellite constellation deployment by incorporating momentum exchange tethers (METs). Traditional methods of deploying satellite constellations have limitations, typically involving costly propulsion systems and extended dispersion times. METs offer a novel solution by efficiently transferring momentum between tethered objects, reducing the need for onboard propellants and streamlining the deployment process. This article discusses orbit design and maneuvers for different mission architectures using asymmetrical and symmetrical tether release techniques to deploy satellites into designated orbits. In addition, a short walkthrough of designing one possible constellation is given, showing how quickly a MET-deployed constellation can be established in low Earth orbit (LEO). This work contributes to ongoing research investigating the applicability of METs in satellite constellation deployments, which could potentially be a new opportunity for MET technology to start seeing routine usage in the space environment, and also enable new constellation architectures that have not yet been realized.

Hydra is a system utilizing computer vision for near real-time data quality monitoring. Currently operational across all of Jefferson Lab’s experimental halls, it reduces the workload of shift takers by autonomously monitoring diagnostic plots during experiments. Hydra uses "off-the-shelf" supervised learning technologies and is supported by a comprehensive MySQL database. To simplify access, web apps have been developed to facilitate both labeling and monitoring of Hydra’s inferences. Hydra can connect with the alarm system and incorporates complete historical tracking, enabling it to identify issues that shift takers could miss. When issues are detected, a natural first question is: "Why does Hydra think there is a problem?" To answer, Hydra employs Gradient-weighted Class Activation Maps (GradCAM) to identify regions of the image that are important for the specific classification. This interpretive layer enhances transparency and trustworthiness, which is essential for integration with experiment workflows and operation. The Hydra system, results, and sociological considerations for deployment will be discussed.

The evolution of modern heterogeneous accelerators, such as GPUs, has significantly advanced the landscape of artificial intelligence (AI). There is a notable surge to adopt AI within the nuclear physics domain (AI4NP). While most AI4NP studies focus on feasibility analysis, our attention is directed towards evaluating their performance on contemporary GPUs that integrate tensor cores. We first benchmark the throughput of hyperparameterized multi-layer perceptron (MLP) models. We then examine the performance of an AI4NP application: Hydra. We assess the performance gain and accuracy loss caused by the tensor cores for low-precision floating-point operations. Our experiments encompass the PyTorch and TensorFlow Keras frameworks on NVIDIA’s T4 and A100 GPUs. We explore the behavior of different GPU hardware platforms and AI software tools. This study can be a valuable resource for guiding the performance optimization of larger-scale deployments of AI4NP applications.

The Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility collaborates with Lawrence Berkeley National Lab to implement a dynamic UDP load balancer (LB) for high-throughput scientific data processing. This study employs a simulation to compare the efficacy of Proportional, Integrative, Derivative (PID) controllers and Q-Learning based controllers for configuring the load balancer. Two cluster configurations, homogeneous and heterogeneous, were examined. The simulation results indicate that PID control is superior in both configurations. In homogeneous clusters, PID achieved a 50% reduction in aggregate queue levels and maintained an even distribution across computational nodes (CNs). In contrast, Q-Learning was less effective in heterogeneous environments, exacerbating queue levels compared to the no-control case and failing to achieve balance across the cluster. Our findings suggest that PID control should be used for the ESnet-JLab FPGA Accelerated Transport (EJFAT) system.

One critical step on the path from data taking to physics analysis is calibration. For many experiments this step is both time consuming and computationally expensive. The AI Experimental Calibration and Control project seeks to address these issues, starting first with the GlueX Central Drift Chamber (CDC). We demonstrate the ability of a Gaussian Process to estimate the gain correction factor (GCF) of the GlueX CDC accurately, and also the uncertainty of this estimate. Using the estimated GCF, the developed system infers a new high voltage (HV) setting that stabilizes the GCF in the face of changing environmental conditions. This happens in near real time during data taking and produces data which are already approximately gain-calibrated, eliminating the cost of performing those calibrations which vary ±15% with fixed HV. We also demonstrate an implementation of an uncertainty aware system which exploits a key feature of a Gaussian process.

Development of the EIC project detector "ePIC" is now well underway and this includes the "single software stack" used for simulation and reconstruction. The stack combines several non-experiment-specific packages including ACTS, DD4hep, JANA2, and PODIO. The software stack aims to be forward looking in the era of AI/ML and heterogeneous hardware. A formal decision making process was implemented to choose the components that involved everyone in the collaboration that was interested. This talk will present an overview of the software stack currently used for development of the ePIC detector and on which we expect to execute the experiment.

Abstract In order to expand the output of solar power systems for efficient integration into the national grid, solar energy resource assessment at site is required. A major impediment however, is the widespread scarcity of radiometric measurements, which can be augmented by satellite observation. This paper assessed the suitability of satellite-based solar radiation resource retrieved from the NASA-POWER archives at $$0.5^\circ \times 0.5^\circ$$ 0 . 5 ∘ × 0 . 5 ∘ spatial resolution over Ghana–West Africa, to develop a long-term source reference. The assessment is based on the criteria of comparison with estimations from sunshine duration measurement for 22 synoptic stations. Overall, the satellite-based data compared well with ground-based estimations by r = 0.6–0.94 ± 0.1. Spatiotemporally, the agreement is strongest over the northern half Savannah-type climate during March–May, and weakest over the southern half Forest-type climate during June–August. The assessment provides empirical framework to support solar energy utilization in the sub-region.

The main goal of the study was to assess the anaerobic biodegradability of cattle blood and rumen content under mesophilic conditions and develop a mathematical model that incorporates the two main fractions of biogas namely, methane and carbon dioxide; hydraulic retention time and temperature for use as a tool to efficiently predict the optimum and economic conditions for the industrial production of the main fractions of biogas. Slaughterhouse waste containing cattle blood and rumen content was obtained from the Kumasi Abattoir Company Limited and processed for laboratory experimentation. The biochemical methane potential assay was performed within the laboratory to determine the main fractions of biogas at thermostatically controlled temperatures of 35, 37 and 40 °C and 54 days. The data was idealized with scatter plots and co-efficient of determination. Analysis of the data suggested a non-linear relationship between the fractions of biogas and the temperature and hydraulic retention days. By using computer techniques to solve the nonlinear equations, a unique model was produced. The model accurately duplicates not only the experimental fractions of biogas, but it predicts the fractions of biogas in a continuum of temperature and days and offers a significant benefit for industrial production. It offers a significant economic benefit in the industry by enabling computer automation and conservation of energy by guiding producers to operate at the optimal temperatures and days for maximum production of the fractions of biogas. The computer model fills a gap in the existing literature and technology regarding the biodegradability of cattle blood and rumen content.

In order to understand the dynamics of regeneration, growth, population and possible upscale for the benefit of agroforestry parkland trees in the semi-arid areas of Ghana, a study was conducted to determine the population density, diversity, relative dominance, importance value indices (IVI) and use categories of parkland tree species in the Sudan and Guinea Savannah vegetation zones of Ghana, with special reference to F. albida. Tree inventories were conducted on 80 sampled farms covering a total area of 74.2 hectares across 8 communities distributed in 4 districts in the Sudan and Guinea savannah zones. Mean farm size was 0.93 hectares. Fifty-four tree species belonging to 24 families were encountered during the study. A Simpson's diversity index of 2.72 was determined as the overall diversity index of tree species on farmlands. Tree population densities in the sampled communities ranged between 4 (Katiu) and 11 (Kugri) trees per hectare. The predominant uses of parkland trees include food, medicine, shade, fuelwood and wood for construction. Others include fencing, soil improvement, direct income from sale of tree products, erosion control, fodder, tools, deity, packaging and craft. Ranking parkland tree species according to their Importance Value Indices (IVIs) in the various study ecological zones, it was evident that Faidherbia albida is highly ranked in both ecological zones due to its multipurpose functions such as fodder (pods and leaves) provision, shade provision in the dry season, and its contribution to improved growth and yield of crops grown under its canopy. Faidherbia albida populations should be increased on farmlands through programs like the Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) and possible domestication.

Abstract The erratic rainfall patterns and decline in crop production are due to the threat of climate change. The responses of farm households to climate change play a very essential role in addressing the risk of climate change. This study investigated factors influencing adaptation strategies to climate change in the Black Volta Basin of Ghana. Survey questions were administered to 450 households sampled from eight districts using a multistage sampling technique. Out of the six adaptation strategies, four major identified adaptation strategies were subsequently used as the dependent variable in the multivariate (MV) probit and binary logit models. The results revealed that factors such as gender, age, household size, farmer-based-organizations membership, farm income, years of education, districts of location of respondents, farm size and climate change awareness—statistically and significantly—influenced households’ adaptation to the changing climate. However, the positive correlation matrix from the MV probit model showed complementarities among all the adaptation strategies adopted by household heads. Priority should be given to improving household heads’ adaptive capacity. Also, governmental and non-governmental organizations should invest in climate-resilient programmes. Finally, programmes aimed at sensitizing household heads on climate change adaptation strategies such as changing planting time, changing farming methods, and planting early maturing and drought-resistant varieties through pieces of trainings and workshops may be duly supported by the Government; particularly, for household heads in the Black Volta Basin.

Abstract Background Current tests for diagnosis and differentiation of lymphoplasmacytic enteritis (LPE) and small cell lymphoma (SCL) in cats are expensive, invasive, and lack specificity. The identification of less invasive, more reliable biomarkers would facilitate diagnosis. Objectives To characterize the mucosal proteome in endoscopically obtained, small intestinal tissue biopsy specimens. We hypothesized that differentially expressed proteins could be identified and serve as biomarker candidates for the differentiation of LPE and SCL in cats. Animals Six healthy control cats, 6 cats with LPE, and 8 cats with SCL. Methods The mucosal proteome was analyzed using 2‐dimensional fluorescence difference gel electrophoresis (2D DIGE) and nanoflow liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. For 5 proteins, results were verified by Western blot analysis. Results A total of 2349 spots were identified, of which 9 were differentially expressed with a ≥2‐fold change between healthy cats and cats with LPE and SCL (.01 < P

ABSTRACT Whether a microbe is free-living or associated with a host from across the tree of life, its existence depends on a limited number of elements and electron donors and acceptors. Yet divergent approaches have been used by investigators from different fields. The “environment first” research tradition emphasizes thermodynamics and biogeochemical principles, including the quantification of redox environments and elemental stoichiometry to identify transformations and thus an underlying microbe. The increasingly common “microbe first” research approach benefits from culturing and/or DNA sequencing methods to first identify a microbe and encoded metabolic functions. Here, the microbe itself serves as an indicator for environmental conditions and transformations. We illustrate the application of both approaches to the study of microbiomes and emphasize how both can reveal the selection of microbial metabolisms across diverse environments, anticipate alterations to microbiomes in host health, and understand the implications of a changing climate for microbial function.

Requirement expression media is an overlooked consideration in requirements innovation. The path to including media other than natural language requirement sentences begins with determining the viability of media to be used as requirement expressions in systems engineering. This research uses the INCOSE characteristics for individual requirements and sets of requirements as a basis for an assessment of the sufficiency of model diagrams and engineering drawings to express requirements. A critical review of high-impact sources is used to develop characteristic lists for natural language requirement sentences and for model diagrams and engineering drawings. A comparative analysis of the characteristic lists for requirement sentences, model diagrams, and engineering drawings shows that each have the same fundamental characteristics and the differences are based on the ability of the media to represent abstraction. The contribution of this research is the establishment of model diagrams and engineering drawings as viable alternatives to natural language sentences for system engineering requirements expressions.

The second generation energy crop Miscanthus x giganteus (Mxg) was cultivated in pots with mixtures of clean and petroleum industry contaminated soil affected by petroleum, Pb, Zn contamination and high salinity. The survival rate reached 100%, nevertheless the biomass parameters were negatively affected even in the lowest proportion of contaminated soil. In the lowest contamination, where the plant grew still quite successfully, C10-C40 degradation was significantly enhanced compared to the unplanted control with degradation of 58 ± 14%. The plant contribution to aliphatics degradation was significantly correlated with biomass, thus it was negligible in higher contamination. A similar pattern was documented in development of the soil bacterial community. The shift in community structure after Mxg cultivation was observed mainly in the soil with the lowest contaminant proportion, though an increase of bacterial diversity in the miscanthus rhizosphere was observed in all cases. Relative abundance of Actinobacteria was reduced on behalf of several less abundant phyla (Verrucomicrobia, Bacterioides, Acidobacteria). The majority of genera identified as potential petroleum degraders (Pseudomonas, Shinella, Altererythrobacter, Azospirillum, Mesorhizobium, Dyella) were more abundant in contaminated soil with miscanthus, suggesting that Mxg could be a promising crop for phytomanagement of petroleum contaminated soils but salt phytotoxicity needs to be mitigated first.

A complexity metric is proposed for the quantification of system complexity using information about the composition of a system and its interactions depicted in a System Modelling Language (SysML) model. The proposed metric is adapted from the complexity metric developed for design structure matrix (DSM) applications and was modified to allow the metric to be applied at different decomposition levels and to accommodate the inclusion of external interactions. The metric was applied to three case studies: a Mars lander, a CubeSat and a spacecraft thermal control system. The proposed metric attributed a higher amount of complexity due to the interactions compared to the DSM metric. This variance resulted in instances where the results differed for the two metrics. Despite these differences, both metrics behaved similarly to changes in component or interaction complexity.

Objective To examine the value of health systems data as indicators of emerging COVID-19 activity.Design Observational study of health system indicators for the COVID Hotspotting Score (CHOTS) with prospective validation.Setting and participants An integrated healthcare delivery system in Northern California including 21 hospitals and 4.5 million members.Main outcome measures The CHOTS incorporated 10 variables including four major (cough/cold calls, emails, new positive COVID-19 tests, COVID-19 hospital census) and six minor (COVID-19 calls, respiratory infection and COVID-19 routine and urgent visits, and respiratory viral testing) indicators assessed with change point detection and slope metrics. We quantified cross-correlations lagged by 7–42 days between CHOTS and standardised COVID-19 hospital census using observational data from 1 April to 31 May 2020 and two waves of prospective data through 21 March 2021.Results Through 30 September 2020, peak cross-correlation between CHOTS and COVID-19 hospital census occurred with a 28-day lag at 0.78; at 42 days, the correlation was 0.69. Lagged correlation between medical centre CHOTS and their COVID-19 census was highest at 42 days for one facility (0.63), at 35 days for nine facilities (0.52–0.73), at 28 days for eight facilities (0.28–0.74) and at 14 days for two facilities (0.73–0.78). The strongest correlation for individual indicators was 0.94 (COVID-19 census) and 0.90 (new positive COVID-19 tests) lagged 1–14 days and 0.83 for COVID-19 calls and urgent clinic visits lagged 14–28 days. Cross-correlation was similar (0.73) with a 35-day lag using prospective validation from 1 October 2020 to 21 March 2021.Conclusions Passively collected health system indicators were strongly correlated with forthcoming COVID-19 hospital census up to 6 weeks before three successive COVID-19 waves. These tools could inform communities, health systems and public health officials to identify, prepare for and mitigate emerging COVID-19 activity.

This paper will seek to present an understanding of the historical conditions that make possible a convergence of the selected religious teachings and human rights, and ask the question if such a convergence can operate successfully within a hierarchal bureaucracy such as found in government or institutional religion. The paper will look at three specific case studies where there has been a convergence of human rights and religion and the resulting struggle to influence the behavior of the state: 1. the example of Christian liberation theology in South America in the 1960s and 70s. 2. The example of the movement Rabbis for Human Rights within the Israeli milieu from its founding in 1988 to the present. 3. The example of CAIR –The Council on American-Islamic Relations– which presently operates in the U.S. Within the teachings of most great religious movements are found principles of behavior that support the concept of universal human rights. However, these principles are overshadowed when the religious teachings are enlisted to the needs of institutions, be they of the state or established religious hierarchies. The needs of institutions and hierarchical bureaucracies do not reflect universal human rights and the principles of behavior that underpin them. Rather, such institutions reflect the particular needs of interest groups and elites. These elites often are able to use ideology (which may be religious in nature) to cause their own special interests to be substituted for a community’s more general needs and interests. As the rules of behavior narrow to accommodate institutional and bureaucratic dictates, universal human rights becomes the cause of minority groups and others on the margin of society seeking to reinterpret and broaden the definitions of what is humane and proper behavior. It is within this struggle to reinterpret rules of behavior along the lines of universal human rights that a convergence between religious teaching and human rights becomes most possible. But once again, this will happen as an alliance of those outside the dominant power structure. The three case studies given above demonstrate how this struggle from the margins has been fought in three contemporary arenas. A reasonable conclusion drawn from this is that supporters of universal human rights seem, ironically, condemned to never to attain the structural power necessary to enforce, on a universal scale, the practice of their principles. For, no such structural power exists that is designed to realize such universal ends. Thus, even on those rare occasions when champions of human rights manage to attain positions of power, they are always restrained, co-opted, or otherwise compromised by the institutional and bureaucratic matrices of power–all of which are typically designed to promote and protect particular, and not universal, interests. Thus, from an historical prospective, those promoting universal human rights, even when allied to or inspired by religious teachings, are condemned to always fight as outsiders. For to move inside is to transform universal principles into special interest dictates. این مقاله به دنبال ارائه شناختی از شرایط تاریخی است که همگرایی تعالیم مذهبی انتخاب شده و حقوق بشر را امکان پذیر ساخته و این سوال را مطرح می­کند که آیا چنین همگرایی می­تواند به موفقیتی که در دین دولتی و یا نهادی یافته است، در یک بروکراسی سلسله مراتبی پیدا کند؟ این مقاله به 3 مورد مطالعاتی نگاه می کند که در آن همگرایی حقوق بشر و مذهب و مبارزه ناشی از آن برای تاثیرگذاری بر رفتار دولت وجود دارد: 1- نمونه آزادی الاهیات مسیحی در آمریکای جنوبی در دهه­های 1960-1970؛ 2- نمونه جنبش­های خاخام برای حقوق بشر در منطقه اسرائیل از زمان تاسیس آن در سال 1988 تا­کنون 3-نمونه Cair (شورای روابط آمریکایی- اسلامی) که در حال حاضر در ایالات متحده فعالیت می­کند. در میان تعالیم اکثر جنبش­های بزرگ دینی اصول رفتاری وجود دارد که از مفهوم حقوق بشر جهانی حمایت می­شود. هرچند این اصول هنگامی که مورد نیاز نهادها باشند یا دولت یا سلسله مراتب مذهبی تشکیل شده باشند، تحت الشعاع قرار می­گیرند. نیازهای نهادها و بروکراسی سلسله مراتبی، حقوق بشر جهانشمول و اصول رفتاری مبتنی بر حقوق بشر جهانشمول را نشان نمی­دهد. بلکه، این نهادها، نیازهای خاص گروه­های مورد علاقه و نخبه را منعکس می­کنند. این نخبگان اغلب می­توانند از ایدئولوژی (که ممکن است طبعاً مذهبی باشند) استفاده کنند تا منافع خاص خود را جایگزین نیازهای عمومی و منافع جامعه کنند. از آنجا که قواعد رفتاری بر اساس تطابق با دیکته سازمان­ها و بروکراسی­ها محدود می­شوند، حقوق بشر جهانشمول باعث می­شود گروه­های اقلیت و دیگر افراد در حاشیه جامعه به دنبال تفسیر دوباره و گسترش تعاریف انسان و رفتار شایسته باشند. در کشاش این تفسیر دوباره، قواعد رفتاری در راستای حقوق بشر جهانشمول، همگرایی بین آموزه­های دینی و حقوق بشر بیشتر امکان پذیر است. اما بار دیگر این اتفاق در قالب یک اتحاد میان کسانی که خارج از ساختار قدرت غالب هستند، اتفاق می­افتد. سه مطالعه موردی که در بالا اشاره داده شده است، نشان می­دهد که این کشمکش­ها از حاشیه به سه حوزه معاصر راه پیدا کرده­اند. نتیجه منطقی که می­توان برداشت کرد این است که حامیان حقوق بشر جهانشمول به طرز مضحکی محکوم شده­اند که هیچ گاه برای رسیدن به ساختار قدرت مورد نیاز برای اعمال اصولشان در سطح جهانی، تلاش نکرده­اند. از این رو، این چنین قدرت ساختاری­ای وجود ندارد که برای تحقق این اهداف جهانی طراحی شده باشد. بنابراین حتا در آن موارد نادر که قهرمانان حقوق بشر موفق به رسیدن به قدرت می­شوند، هیچ وقت مستقل نبودند و یا توسط ماتریس­های نهادی بوروکراتیک قدرت، تضعیف شده­اند. تمام این­ها به نوع خاصی طراحی شده­اند تا منافع خاص و غیر جهانی را ترویج و محافظت کنند. بنابراین، از دیدگاه تاریخی، کسانی که حقوق بشر جهانی را ارتقا می­دهند، حتا زمانی که حقوق بشر با آموزه­های مذهبی متحد هستند و یا از آنها الهام گرفته­اند، همیشه به عنوان بیگانه­ها با یکدیگر مبارزه می­کنند. برای پیشرفت عمیق­تر، باید اصول جهانشمول تبدیل به منافع خاص اجباری شوند.

The neurovascular unit provides a dynamic interface between the circulation and central nervous system. Disruption of neurovascular integrity occurs in numerous brain pathologies including neurotrauma and ischaemic stroke. Tissue plasminogen activator is a serine protease that converts plasminogen to plasmin, a protease that dissolves blood clots. Besides its role in fibrinolysis, tissue plasminogen activator is abundantly expressed in the brain where it mediates extracellular proteolysis. However, proteolytically active tissue plasminogen activator also promotes neurovascular disruption after ischaemic stroke; the molecular mechanisms of this process are still unclear. Tissue plasminogen activator is naturally inhibited by serine protease inhibitors (serpins): plasminogen activator inhibitor-1, neuroserpin or protease nexin-1 that results in the formation of serpin:protease complexes. Proteases and serpin:protease complexes are cleared through high-affinity binding to low-density lipoprotein receptors, but their binding to these receptors can also transmit extracellular signals across the plasma membrane. The matrix metalloproteinases are the second major proteolytic system in the mammalian brain, and like tissue plasminogen activators are pivotal to neurological function but can also degrade structures of the neurovascular unit after injury. Herein, we show that tissue plasminogen activator potentiates neurovascular damage in a dose-dependent manner in a mouse model of neurotrauma. Surprisingly, inhibition of activity following administration of plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 significantly increased cerebrovascular permeability. This led to our finding that formation of complexes between tissue plasminogen activator and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 in the brain parenchyma facilitates post-traumatic cerebrovascular damage. We demonstrate that following trauma, the complex binds to low-density lipoprotein receptors, triggering the induction of matrix metalloproteinase-3. Accordingly, pharmacological inhibition of matrix metalloproteinase-3 attenuates neurovascular permeability and improves neurological function in injured mice. Our results are clinically relevant, because concentrations of tissue plasminogen activator: plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 complex and matrix metalloproteinase-3 are significantly elevated in cerebrospinal fluid of trauma patients and correlate with neurological outcome. In a separate study, we found that matrix metalloproteinase-3 and albumin, a marker of cerebrovascular damage, were significantly increased in brain tissue of patients with neurotrauma. Perturbation of neurovascular homeostasis causing oedema, inflammation and cell death is an important cause of acute and long-term neurological dysfunction after trauma. A role for the tissue plasminogen activator-matrix metalloproteinase axis in promoting neurovascular disruption after neurotrauma has not been described thus far. Targeting tissue plasminogen activator: plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 complex signalling or downstream matrix metalloproteinase-3 induction may provide viable therapeutic strategies to reduce cerebrovascular permeability after neurotrauma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lead (Pb), an occupational and environmental toxicant, is known to induce immunomodulatory effects resulting in lowered resistance to infectious micro-organisms and altered levels of immunoglobulins in humans. Preferential activation of type-2 helper T cells and inhibition of type-1 T-cell activation is considered a cellular mechanism for the Pb-induced immune alteration, which has not been investigated well in humans. Lead's influence on in vivo balance between type-1 and type-2 activities was assessed among workers exposed to Pb through battery manufacturing in Korea. Serum IgE levels were significantly higher in the workers with a blood Pb level (PbB) of ≥ 30 g/dL than in the workers with a PbB of < 30 g/dL. Furthermore, the serum IgE concentrations significantly correlated with PbB although no significant relationship between PbB and serum interleukin-4 or interferon gamma levels was observed. The present study indicates that elevation of IgE levels may be an immunologic index for Pb-induced in vivo toxicities, potentially involved with progression of various allergic diseases in humans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: High-dose-rate electronic brachytherapy (EBT) provides a non-surgical treatment option for non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC). This matched-pair cohort study compared the outcomes of treatment with EBT to those of Mohs micrographic surgery (MMS) in patients with NMSC. Material and methods : At four treatment centers, patients treated with EBT were case matched to patients treated with MMS based on retrospectively-collected patient age, lesion size, location and type, and year of treatment. Follow-up data were prospectively collected and included local recurrence, toxicities, cosmesis, and patient-reported outcomes. Results: The 369 patients (188 in the EBT treatment group and 181 in the MMS treatment group) had 416 lesions (208 in the EBT group and 208 in the MMS group), including 226 basal cell carcinomas (BCC) and 190 squamous cell carcinomas (SCC). Most patients were Caucasian (98.9% and 99.5%) and male (65.4% and 66.3%) of median age 80.7 (range: 61-98) (EBT) and 76.8 (range: 51-98) years (MMS). Most lesions were size > 1 cm and ≤ 2 cm, and located on the head. At mean 3.4 years post-treatment, 99.5% of EBT, and 100.0% of MMS-treated lesions were free of recurrence (p = ns). One recurrence was noted in the EBT group. Physicians rated cosmesis as “excellent” or “good” in 97.6% of EBT-treated lesions, and 95.7% of MMS-treated lesions. Conclusions : This matched-pair cohort study supports the use of EBT as an effective non-surgical treatment option for NMSC with equivalent recurrence rates and cosmetic outcomes to MMS in appropriately-selected patients with early stage NMSC at extended follow-up.

Background: The aim of this work was to assess whether stone complexity with the Guy’s stone score (GSS) is associated with increased intraoperative fluoroscopy time. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed records of 261 consecutive patients undergoing percutaneous nephrolithotomy between 2007 and 2015. Of these, 203 had both preoperative computed tomography for accurate staging and full intraoperative fluoroscopy and radiation dosimetry data were available. Stone complexity was assessed using GSS. A correlation between fluoroscopy time (FT) and GSS was assessed in a univariate and multivariate fashion, including parameters such as age, sex, body mass index (BMI), and number of accesses. Results: The overall mean FT was 3.69 min [standard deviation (SD) 2.77]. The overall mean Guy’s score was 2.5 (SD 1). There was a statistically significant correlation between operative time and FT ( r = 0.34, p < 0.0001). There was a trend towards increasing operative time with increasing GSS ( r = 0.12, p = 0.08), but there was no statistically significant correlation. There was no correlation between FT and GSS ( r = 0.04, p = 0.55). On multivariable regression, accounting for sex, BMI, age, and singular versus multiple accesses, there was no significant correlation between stone complexity and FT ( p = 0.893). Conclusions: In the setting of conscious efforts to reduce intraoperative radiation exposure, increasing stone complexity, as classified by GSS, did not correlate with FT on univariate or multivariate analysis. Thus, treatment of more complex stones may be undertaken without concern that there is an inevitable need for significantly increased fluoroscopy exposure to the patient or operating room staff.

Background: Antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD) is a common side effect of antibiotic use. The pathogenesis of AAD may be mediated by disruption of the host’s normal flora resulting in overgrowth of pathogens. One of these pathogens is Clostridium difficile . Probiotics may help reestablish the disrupted intestinal flora and help clear the pathogen and its toxins from the host. Although numerous studies have been conducted, results are variable due to study design, type of probiotic, differing dose of probiotic, and duration of treatment. Our study aims to assess the efficacy and safety of the probiotics Lactobacillus GG and Saccharomyces boulardii for the prevention of C. difficile associated diarrhea. Methods: Study data were collected from two community hospitals in Kansas City over a period of 5 months. All patients in the study were initiated on antibiotics and were then given probiotics. This study was controlled and not blinded. Results: In data from two community hospitals, 816 patients who were being treated with antibiotics prior to the investigation served as a control; 14 (1.72%) had C. difficile Infections. During the study using probiotic administration, 803 patients also being treated with antibiotics prior to the investigation were followed and in this population; five patients (0.62%) contracted a C. difficile infection.