Heuristic assignment of CPDs for probabilistic inference in junction trees

Many researches have been done for efficient computation of probabilistic queries posed to Bayesian networks (BN). One of the popular architectures for exact inference on BNs is the Junction Tree (JT) based architecture. Among all the different architectures developed, HUGIN is the most efficient JT-based architecture. The Global Propagation (GP) method used in the HUGIN architecture is arguably one of the best methods for probabilistic inference in BNs. Before the propagation, initialization is done to obtain the potential for each cluster in the JT. Then with the GP method, each cluster potential becomes cluster marginal through passing messages with its neighboring clusters. Improvements have been proposed by many researchers to make this message propagation more efficient. Still the GP method can be very slow for dense networks. As BNs are applied to larger, more complex, and realistic applications, developing more efficient inference algorithm has become increasingly important. Towards this goal, in this paper, we present some heuristics for initialization that avoids unnecessary message passing among clusters of the JT and therefore it improves the performance of the architecture by passing lesser messages

Effect of phosphate buffer on the complexation and photochemical interaction of riboflavin and caffeine in aqueous solution: A kinetic study

A study of the photodegradation of 5×10−₅ M riboflavin (RF) in 0.2-1.0 M phosphate buffer in the presence and absence of 2.50×10-₄ M caffeine at pH 6.0-8.0 has been carried out. RF in phosphate buffer is photodegraded simultaneously by normal photolysis (photoreduction) and photoaddition reactions giving rise to lumichrome (LC) and cyclodehydroriboflavin (CDRF) as the main final products, respectively. RF and its photoproducts, formylmethylflavin (FMF), lumiflavin (LF), LC and CDRF in degraded solution have been determined by a specific multicomponent spectrophotometric method with an accuracy of ±5

Photodegradation of levofloxacin in aqueous and organic solvents: A kinetic study

The kinetics of photodegradation of levofloxacin in solution on UV irradiation in the pH range 2.0–12.0 has been studied using a HPLC method. Levofloxacin undergoes first-order kinetics in the initial stages of the reaction and the apparent first-order rate constants are of the order of 0.167 to 1.807×10–3 min–1. The rate-pH profile is represented by a curve indicating the presence of cationic, dipolar and anionic species during the reaction. The singly ionized form of the molecule is non-fluorescent and is less susceptible to photodegradation. The increase in the degradation rate in the pH range 5.0–9.0 may be due to greater reactivity of the ionized species existing in that range. The rate appears to vary with a change in the degree of ionization of the species present in a particular pH range and their susceptibility to photodegradation. Above pH 9, the decrease in the rate of photodegradation may be result of deprotonation of the piperazinyl group. The levofloxacin molecule is more stable in the pH range around 7, which is then suitable for formulation purposes. The photodegradation of levofloxacin was found to be affected by the dielectric constant and viscosity of the medium

The impact of surgical closure of atrial septal defect on the pulmonary hypertension: a prospective observational study

Introduction: The most prevalent congenital disease is atrial septal defect. Atrial septal defects that have a left to right shunt result in persistent volume overload in the pulmonary vasculature. So histological changes occur in pulmonary vasculature leads to pulmonary hypertension. Without surgery, both life expectancy and functional ability are reduced. The aim of this study was to observe the impact of surgical closure of atrial septal defect on pulmonary hypertension. Methods: This observational study was done in the department of cardiac surgery, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University from June 2020 to June 2022. Sample size was 24 Patients were evaluated preoperatively, postoperative day of operation through a clinically, ECG, color doppler echocardiography. The statistical analysis was performed by using SPSS version 26.0 for windows software. Results: In my study, the mean age of the patients was 33.33±11.3 years, male female ratio was 1:2. The mean pulmonary artery systolic pressure got decreased from 57.54±7.9 mmHg to 53.29±8.30 mmHg on postoperative day. 75% patients improved into New York heart association class 2 on post operative day. Significant improvement was seen in functional capacity of the patients. 29.2% patients had atrial fibrilation preoperatively, after surgery on post-operative day it became 25%. Conclusions: This study concludes that surgical closure of atrial septal defect leads to a significant reduction in pulmonary hypertension

The genetic architecture of the human cerebral cortex

The cerebral cortex underlies our complex cognitive capabilities, yet little is known about the specific genetic loci that influence human cortical structure. To identify genetic variants that affect cortical structure, we conducted a genome-wide association meta-analysis of brain magnetic resonance imaging data from 51,665 individuals. We analyzed the surface area and average thickness of the whole cortex and 34 regions with known functional specializations. We identified 199 significant loci and found significant enrichment for loci influencing total surface area within regulatory elements that are active during prenatal cortical development, supporting the radial unit hypothesis. Loci that affect regional surface area cluster near genes in Wnt signaling pathways, which influence progenitor expansion and areal identity. Variation in cortical structure is genetically correlated with cognitive function, Parkinson's disease, insomnia, depression, neuroticism, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Rehabilitation versus surgical reconstruction for non-acute anterior cruciate ligament injury (ACL SNNAP): a pragmatic randomised controlled trial

BackgroundAnterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture is a common debilitating injury that can cause instability of the knee. We aimed to investigate the best management strategy between reconstructive surgery and non-surgical treatment for patients with a non-acute ACL injury and persistent symptoms of instability.MethodsWe did a pragmatic, multicentre, superiority, randomised controlled trial in 29 secondary care National Health Service orthopaedic units in the UK. Patients with symptomatic knee problems (instability) consistent with an ACL injury were eligible. We excluded patients with meniscal pathology with characteristics that indicate immediate surgery. Patients were randomly assigned (1:1) by computer to either surgery (reconstruction) or rehabilitation (physiotherapy but with subsequent reconstruction permitted if instability persisted after treatment), stratified by site and baseline Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score—4 domain version (KOOS4). This management design represented normal practice. The primary outcome was KOOS4 at 18 months after randomisation. The principal analyses were intention-to-treat based, with KOOS4 results analysed using linear regression. This trial is registered with ISRCTN, ISRCTN10110685, and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02980367.FindingsBetween Feb 1, 2017, and April 12, 2020, we recruited 316 patients. 156 (49%) participants were randomly assigned to the surgical reconstruction group and 160 (51%) to the rehabilitation group. Mean KOOS4 at 18 months was 73·0 (SD 18·3) in the surgical group and 64·6 (21·6) in the rehabilitation group. The adjusted mean difference was 7·9 (95% CI 2·5–13·2; p=0·0053) in favour of surgical management. 65 (41%) of 160 patients allocated to rehabilitation underwent subsequent surgery according to protocol within 18 months. 43 (28%) of 156 patients allocated to surgery did not receive their allocated treatment. We found no differences between groups in the proportion of intervention-related complications.InterpretationSurgical reconstruction as a management strategy for patients with non-acute ACL injury with persistent symptoms of instability was clinically superior and more cost-effective in comparison with rehabilitation management