Optimising the Configuration of the CMS GPU Reconstruction

Particle track reconstruction for high energy physics experiments like CMS is computationally demanding but can benefit from GPU acceleration if properly tuned. This work develops an autotuning framework to automatically optimise the throughput of GPU-accelerated CUDA kernels in CMSSW. The proposed system navigates the complex parameter space by generating configurations, benchmarking performance, and leveraging multi-fidelity optimisation from simplified applications. The autotuned launch parameters improved CMSSW tracking throughput over the default settings by finding optimised, GPU-specific configurations. The successful application of autotuning to CMSSW demonstrates both performance portability across diverse accelerators and the potential of the methodology to optimise other HEP codebases

Lithium-storage properties of gallic acid-reduced graphene oxide and silicon-graphene composites

Graphene oxide (GO) was de-oxygenated using gallic acid under mild conditions to prepare reduced graphene oxide (RGO). The resultant RGO showed a lithium-ion storage capacity of 1280\ua0mA\ua0h\ua0g at a current density of 200\ua0mA\ua0g after 350 cycles when used as an anode for lithium ion batteries. The RGO was further used to stabilize silicon (Si) nanoparticles to prepare silicon-graphene composite electrode materials. Experimental results showed that a composite electrode prepared with a mass ratio of Si:GO\ua0=\ua01:2 exhibited the best lithium ion storage performance

Demystifying Smoker's Paradox: A Propensity Score-Weighted Analysis in Patients Hospitalized With Acute Heart Failure.

Background Smoker's paradox has been observed with several vascular disorders, yet there are limited data in patients with acute heart failure (HF). We examined the effects of smoking in patients with acute HF using data from a large multicenter registry. The objective was to determine if the design and analytic approach could explain the smoker's paradox in acute HF mortality. Methods and Results The data were sourced from the acute HF registry (Gulf CARE [Gulf Acute Heart Failure Registry]), a multicenter registry that recruited patients over 10 months admitted with a diagnosis of acute HF from 47 hospitals in 7 Middle Eastern countries. The association between smoking and mortality (in hospital) was examined using covariate adjustment, making use of mortality risk factors. A parallel analysis was performed using covariate balancing through propensity scores. Of 5005 patients hospitalized with acute HF, 1103 (22%) were current smokers. The in-hospital mortality rates were significantly lower in current smoker's before (odds ratio, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.52-0.96) and more so after (odds ratio, 0.47; 95% CI, 0.31-0.70) covariate adjustment. With the propensity score-derived covariate balance, the smoking effect became much less certain (odds ratio, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.36-1.11). Conclusions The current study illustrates the fact that the smoker's paradox is likely to be a result of residual confounding as covariate adjustment may not resolve this if there are many competing prognostic confounders. In this situation, propensity score methods for covariate balancing seem preferable. Clinical Trial Registration URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/. Unique identifier: NCT01467973.Gulf CARE (Gulf Acute Heart Failure Registry) is an investigator- initiated study conducted under the auspices of the Gulf Heart Association and funded by Servier, Paris, France; and (for centers in Saudi Arabia), by the Saudi Heart Association (The Deanship of Scientific Research at King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia [research group number: RG -1436- 013]). This does not alter our adherence to policies on sharing data and materials; and the funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. The publication of this article was funded by the Qatar National Library

Types of tobacco consumption and the oral microbiome in the United Arab Emirates Healthy Future (UAEHFS) Pilot Study

© 2018, The Author(s). Cigarette smoking alters the oral microbiome; however, the effect of alternative tobacco products remains unclear. Middle Eastern tobacco products like dokha and shisha, are becoming globally widespread. We tested for the first time in a Middle Eastern population the hypothesis that different tobacco products impact the oral microbiome. The oral microbiome of 330 subjects from the United Arab Emirates Healthy Future Study was assessed by amplifying the bacterial 16S rRNA gene from mouthwash samples. Tobacco consumption was assessed using a structured questionnaire and further validated by urine cotinine levels. Oral microbiome overall structure and specific taxon abundances were compared, using PERMANOVA and DESeq analyses respectively. Our results show that overall microbial composition differs between smokers and nonsmokers (p = 0.0001). Use of cigarettes (p = 0.001) and dokha (p = 0.042) were associated with overall microbiome structure, while shisha use was not (p = 0.62). The abundance of multiple genera were significantly altered (enriched/depleted) in cigarette smokers; however, only Actinobacillus, Porphyromonas, Lautropia and Bifidobacterium abundances were significantly changed in dokha users whereas no genera were significantly altered in shisha smokers. For the first time, we show that smoking dokha is associated to oral microbiome dysbiosis, suggesting that it could have similar effects as smoking cigarettes on oral health

Association between pediatric asthma and adult polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS): a cross-sectional analysis of the UAE healthy future Study (UAEHFS)

Asthma and polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) are linked in several possible ways. To date, there has been no study evaluating whether pediatric asthma is an independent risk factor for adult PCOS. Our study aimed to examine the association between pediatric asthma (diagnosed at 0-19 years) and adult PCOS (diagnosed at ≥20 years). We further assessed whether the aforementioned association differed in two phenotypes of adult PCOS which were diagnosed at 20-25 years (young adult PCOS), and at \u3e25 years (older adult PCOS). We also evaluated whether the age of asthma diagnosis (0-10 vs 11-19 years) modified the association between pediatric asthma and adult PCOS. This is a retrospective cross-sectional analysis using the United Arab Emirates Healthy Future Study (UAEHFS) collected from February 2016 to April 2022 involving 1334 Emirati females aged 18-49 years. We fitted a Poisson regression model to estimate the risk ratio (RR) and its 95% confidence interval (95% CI) to assess the association between pediatric asthma and adult PCOS adjusting for age, urbanicity at birth, and parental smoking at birth. After adjusting for confounding factors and comparing to non-asthmatic counterparts, we found that females with pediatric asthma had a statistically significant association with adult PCOS diagnosed at ≥20 years (RR=1.56, 95% CI: 1.02-2.41), with a stronger magnitude of the association found in the older adult PCOS phenotype diagnosed at \u3e25 years (RR=2.06, 95% CI: 1.16-3.65). Further, we also found females reported thinner childhood body size had a two-fold to three-fold increased risk of adult PCOS diagnosed at ≥20 years in main analysis and stratified analyses by age of asthma and PCOS diagnoses (RR=2.06, 95% CI: 1.08-3.93 in main analysis; RR=2.74, 95% CI: 1.22-6.15 among those diagnosed with PCOS \u3e 25 years; and RR=3.50, 95% CI: 1.38-8.43 among those diagnosed with asthma at 11-19 years). Pediatric asthma was found to be an independent risk factor for adult PCOS. More targeted surveillance for those at risk of adult PCOS among pediatric asthmatics may prevent or delay PCOS in this at-risk group. Future studies with robust longitudinal designs aimed to elucidate the exact mechanism between pediatric asthma and PCOS are warranted

High prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors amongst young adults in the United Arab Emirates: the UAE Healthy Future Study

BackgroundCardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in the world. In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), it accounts for 40% of mortality. CVD is caused by multiple cardiometabolic risk factors (CRFs) including obesity, dysglycemia, dyslipidemia, hypertension and central obesity. However, there are limited studies focusing on the CVD risk burden among young Emirati adults. This study investigates the burden of CRFs in a sample of young Emiratis, and estimates the distribution in relation to sociodemographic and behavioral determinants.MethodsData was used from the baseline data of the UAE Healthy Future Study volunteers. The study participants were aged 18 to 40 years. The study analysis was based on self-reported questionnaires, anthropometric and blood pressure measurements, as well as blood analysis.ResultsA total of 5167 participants were included in the analysis; 62% were males and the mean age of the sample was 25.7 years. The age-adjusted prevalence was 26.5% for obesity, 11.7% for dysglycemia, 62.7% for dyslipidemia, 22.4% for hypertension and 22.5% for central obesity. The CRFs were distributed differently when compared within social and behavioral groups. For example, obesity, dyslipidemia and central obesity in men were found higher among smokers than non-smokers (p \u3c 0.05). And among women with lower education, all CRFs were reported significantly higher than those with higher education, except for hypertension. Most CRFs were significantly higher among men and women with positive family history of common non-communicable diseases.ConclusionsCRFs are highly prevalent in the young Emirati adults of the UAE Healthy Future Study. The difference in CRF distribution among social and behavioral groups can be taken into account to target group-specific prevention measures

Incense Burning is Associated with Human Oral Microbiota Composition

© 2019, The Author(s). Incense burning is common worldwide and produces environmental toxicants that may influence health; however, biologic effects have been little studied. In 303 Emirati adults, we tested the hypothesis that incense use is linked to compositional changes in the oral microbiota that can be potentially significant for health. The oral microbiota was assessed by amplification of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene from mouthwash samples. Frequency of incense use was ascertained through a questionnaire and examined in relation to overall oral microbiota composition (PERMANOVA analysis), and to specific taxon abundances, by negative binomial generalized linear models. We found that exposure to incense burning was associated with higher microbial diversity (p \u3c 0.013) and overall microbial compositional changes (PERMANOVA, p = 0.003). Our study also revealed that incense use was associated with significant changes in bacterial abundances (i.e. depletion of the dominant taxon Streptococcus), even in occasional users (once/week or less) implying that incense use impacts the oral microbiota even at low exposure levels. In summary, this first study suggests that incense burning alters the oral microbiota, potentially serving as an early biomarker of incense-related toxicities and related health consequences. Although a common indoor air pollutant, guidelines for control of incense use have yet to be developed

Clinical presentation and outcomes of peripartum cardiomyopathy in the Middle East: a cohort from seven Arab countries

Aims: Published data on the clinical presentation of peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) are very limited particularly from the Middle East. The aim of this study was to examine the clinical presentation, management, and outcomes of patients with PPCM using data from a large multicentre heart failure (HF) registry from the Middle East. Methods and results: From February to November 2012, a total of 5005 consecutive patients with HF were enrolled from 47 hospitals in 7 Middle East countries. From this cohort, patients with PPCM were identified and included in this study. Clinical features, in-hospital, and 12 months outcomes were examined. During the study period, 64 patients with PPCM were enrolled with a mean age of 32.5 ± 5.8 years. Family history was identified in 11 patients (17.2%) and hypertension in 7 patients (10.9%). The predominant presenting symptom was dyspnoea New York Heart Association class IV in 51.6%, class III in 31.3%, and class II in 17.2%. Basal lung crepitations and peripheral oedema were the predominant signs on clinical examination (98.2% and 84.4%, respectively). Most patients received evidence-based HF therapies. Inotropic support and mechanical ventilation were required in 16% and 5% of patients, respectively. There was one in-hospital death (1.6%), and after 1 year of follow-up, nine patients were rehospitalized with HF (15%), and one patient died (1.6%). Conclusions: A high index of suspicion of PPCM is required to make the diagnosis especially in the presence of family history of HF or cardiomyopathy. Further studies are warranted on the genetic basis of PPCM.Gulf CARE is an investigator-initiated study conducted under the auspices of the Gulf Heart Association and funded by Servier, Paris, France, and (for centres in Saudi Arabia) by the Saudi Heart Association [The Deanship of Scientific Research at King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (Research Group Number RG-1436-013)]. This does not alter our adherence to policies on sharing data and materials, and the funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript

The interrelationship and accumulation of cardiometabolic risk factors amongst young adults in the United Arab Emirates: The UAE Healthy Future Study.

INTRODUCTION: Similar to other non-communicable diseases (NCDs), people who develop cardiovascular disease (CVD) typically have more than one risk factor. The clustering of cardiovascular risk factors begins in youth, early adulthood, and middle age. The presence of multiple risk factors simultaneously has been shown to increase the risk for atherosclerosis development in young and middle-aged adults and risk of CVD in middle age. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to address the interrelationship of CVD risk factors and their accumulation in a large sample of young adults in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). METHODS: Baseline data was drawn from the UAE Healthy Future Study (UAEHFS), a volunteer-based multicenter study that recruits Emirati nationals. Data of participants aged 18 to 40 years was used for cross-sectional analysis. Demographic and health information was collected through self-reported questionnaires. Anthropometric data and blood pressure were measured, and blood samples were collected. RESULTS: A total of 5126 participants were included in the analysis. Comorbidity analyses showed that dyslipidemia and obesity co-existed with other cardiometabolic risk factors (CRFs) more than 70% and 50% of the time, respectively. Multivariate logistic regression analysis of the risk factors with age and gender showed that all risk factors were highly associated with each other. The strongest relationship was found with obesity; it was associated with four-fold increase in the odds of having central obesity [adjusted OR 4.70 (95% CI (4.04-5.46)], and almost three-fold increase odds of having abnormal glycemic status [AOR 2.98 (95% (CI 2.49-3.55))], hypertension (AOR 3.03 (95% CI (2.61-3.52))] and dyslipidemia [AOR 2.71 (95% CI (2.32-3.15)]. Forty percent of the population accumulated more than 2 risk factors, and the burden increased with age. CONCLUSION: In this young population, cardiometabolic risk factors are highly prevalent and are associated with each other, therefore creating a heavy burden of risk factors. This forecasts an increase in the burden of CVD in the UAE. The robust longitudinal design of the UAEHFS will enable researchers to understand how risk factors cluster before disease develops. This knowledge will offer a novel approach to design group-specific preventive measures for CVD development

2021 Asian Pacific Society of Cardiology Consensus Recommendations on the Use of P2Y12 Receptor Antagonists in the Asia-Pacific Region: Special Populations

Advanced age, diabetes, and chronic kidney disease not only increase the risk for ischaemic events in chronic coronary syndromes (CCS) but also confer a high bleeding risk during antiplatelet therapy. These special populations may warrant modification of therapy, especially among Asians, who have displayed characteristics that are clinically distinct from Western patients. Previous guidance has been provided regarding the classification of high-risk CCS and the use of newer-generation P2Y12 inhibitors (i.e. ticagrelor and prasugrel) after acute coronary syndromes (ACS) in Asia. The authors summarise evidence on the use of these P2Y12 inhibitors during the transition from ACS to CCS and among special populations. Specifically, they present recommendations on the roles of standard dual antiplatelet therapy, shortened dual antiplatelet therapy and single antiplatelet therapy among patients with coronary artery disease, who are either transitioning from ACS to CCS; elderly; or with chronic kidney disease, diabetes, multivessel coronary artery disease and bleeding events during therapy