Significant Differences In Performance Research Articles

COMPARATIVE STUDY ON THE FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF INDONESIAN COMMERCIAL BANKS DUE TO THE CORONA VIRUS OUTBREAK

This study intended to find out the differences in banking in Indonesia before and during the Covid-19 pandemic. The population is commercial bank companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange, while the samples selected by purposive technique. The CAMELS method is used to assess banking performance. The data used in this study comes from the 2019-2020 quarterly financial statements. Statistical test using SPSS with Paired T-Test or Wilcoxon Signed-rank Test. In addition, the MANOVA test is used to determine whether there are significant differences in overall banking performance. The findings of this study are the Capital (CAR) has a significant difference in the first quarter of 2019 and 2020, Asset Quality (NPL) proxied by NPL-gross ratio has a significant difference in the second and third quarters, and NPL-net ratio has a significant difference in the fourth quarter, Management Quality (BOPO) have significant differences in the first, second, and third quarters, Earning (ROA) has a significant difference in the second and third quarters, Liquidity (LDR) ratio has a significant difference in the third and fourth quarters. Meanwhile, From the results of the MANOVA test on the performance of commercial banks, overall there is no significant difference due to the corona virus outbreak in Indonesia

COMPARATIVE STUDY ON THE FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF INDONESIAN COMMERCIAL BANKS DUE TO THE CORONA VIRUS OUTBREAK

This study intended to find out the differences in banking in Indonesia before and during the Covid-19 pandemic. The population is commercial bank companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange, while the samples selected by purposive technique. The CAMELS method is used to assess banking performance. The data used in this study comes from the 2019-2020 quarterly financial statements. Statistical test using SPSS with Paired T-Test or Wilcoxon Signed-rank Test. In addition, the MANOVA test is used to determine whether there are significant differences in overall banking performance. The findings of this study are the Capital (CAR) has a significant difference in the first quarter of 2019 and 2020, Asset Quality (NPL) proxied by NPL-gross ratio has a significant difference in the second and third quarters, and NPL-net ratio has a significant difference in the fourth quarter, Management Quality (BOPO) have significant differences in the first, second, and third quarters, Earning (ROA) has a significant difference in the second and third quarters, Liquidity (LDR) ratio has a significant difference in the third and fourth quarters. Meanwhile, From the results of the MANOVA test on the performance of commercial banks, overall there is no significant difference due to the corona virus outbreak in Indonesia

Effects of Dietary Supplementation with Mulberry Leaf Powder on the Growth Performance, Lipid Metabolism Parameters, Immunity Indicators, and Gut Microbiota of Dogs.

Overfeeding and a lack of exercise are increasingly causing obesity in dogs, which has become a big problem threatening the health of dogs. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate how dietary regulations can help to improve dogs' body conditions and minimize obesity. This study was carried out to investigate the effects of dietary mulberry leaf powder (MLP) supplementation on the growth performance, lipid metabolism parameters, and gut microbiota of Chinese indigenous dogs. Fifteen Chinese indigenous dogs (6.34 ± 0.56 kg) were randomly assigned to three treatment groups and received either the control diet (CON), high-fat diet (HF), or high-fat diet containing 6% Mulberry leaf powder (MLP) for four weeks. The CON group received a basal diet, the HF group received a basal diet supplemented with 10% lard, and the MLP group received a basal diet supplemented with 10% lard and 6% MLP. The trial lasted for four weeks. The growth performance, lipid metabolism parameters, immune globulins, cytokines, and fecal microbiota were measured. Results showed that there was no significant difference in growth performance. The MLP group appeared to have decreased (p < 0.05) the serum level of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and apoliprotein-A1(APO-A1) in serum. The MLP group appeared to have higher (p < 0.05) serum immune globulin A (IgA) levels. UPGMA results showed that the MLP group was closer to the CON group than to the HF group. LEfSe analysis showed that dietary supplementation with MLP contributed to an alteration in the genus Alloprevotella, Sarcina, and species belonging to the Bacteroides and Lactobacillus genus. Overall, the dietary supplementation of 6% MLP can improve lipid metabolism conditions and immunity in high-fat-diet-fed dogs, and can alter the gut microbial composition of dogs.

Edge computing-based Generative Adversarial Network for photo design style transfer using conditional entropy distance

In recent years, cell phone photography systems have made significant advancements due to their widespread adoption. However, processing the large amount of data generated by these systems on the cloud often leads to high network latency and bandwidth requirements, limiting computational efficiency. To address this challenge, this study introduces a novel design style transfer method for generating high-quality stylized photos in cell phone photography systems using Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) with an edge computing-based approach. The proposed method aims to enhance the visual appeal of cell phone images by mimicking the artistic style of paintings through abstraction and emphasis on key features. To achieve this objective, a conditional GAN is trained on meticulously labeled data pairs that identify crucial regions in images. This approach offers an efficient solution for computationally intensive tasks by utilizing inference on edge computing nodes. This effectively reduces network latency and bandwidth requirements while improving computational efficiency. Additionally, a penalty is introduced using conditional entropy distance to ensure consistent entropy levels across different photo samples, resulting in higher quality generated photos. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed CEDGAN model achieves a detection accuracy ranging from 95% to 98%, with consistent results, thus laying a solid foundation for effective photo enhancement. When collecting important portions of materials, CEDGAN maintains a detection accuracy of around 90% to 95% without any significant difference in overall performance. As a result, this method opens up new possibilities for cell phone photography enthusiasts who desire to effortlessly create artistic and stylized photos using edge computing-based GANs. It offers a practical solution for combining technological innovation with creativity in photography.

Consolidation Carnival: A Case-Based Approach to Reviewing Musculoskeletal Anatomy in an Undergraduate Medical Curriculum.

Recent changes in undergraduate medical curricula have resulted in time constraints that are particularly challenging, especially when students must learn large blocks of musculoskeletal anatomy content. Consequently, students have resorted to rote memorization to cope, which counteracts our established collaborative self-directed learning model. For a 6-week musculoskeletal anatomy course, two structured case-based review sessions are described, each following the completion of two five-hour lab sessions, two on the upper extremities and two on the lower extremities. These largely self-directed review sessions consisted of 6 students rotating through 7 to 8 stations every 10 minutes where clinical cases with follow-up questions were projected on large screens. The students were expected to work collaboratively to solve the cases utilizing the prosected specimens provided and discuss the accompanying answers at the end of each case. Ninety-four per cent of the students who participated in this study agreed that the case-based review sessions provided a helpful overview of musculoskeletal anatomy content. Student performance on the open-ended, case-based musculoskeletal examination questions showed no significant difference in performance on shoulder, hand, hip, thigh, and leg questions. There was, however, a statistically significant decrease in the students' scores on a forearm question in 2021 compared to 2019. This paper describes our integrated, collaborative musculoskeletal course, including case-based review sessions, which was positively received by students as having value in reviewing the musculoskeletal content though it was not found to improve examination performance.

Estimating evapotranspiration from soil moisture using the improved soil water balance method in cold mountainous areas

Evapotranspiration (ET) is critical for ecosystem protection and water services, especially in the mountainous areas of arid and semi-arid watersheds. The lysimeter and Eddy Covariance (EC) methods are widely used for directly measuring ET, but are difficult to install and apply in mountainous areas with complex topography. The commonly used indirect methods for estimating ET, such as the Penman-Monteith (PM) method, present significant challenges in mountainous areas with scarce data. The simple soil water balance (SWB) method, which estimates ET from soil moisture dynamics, is another reliable and simple method for estimating ET. However, a drawback of the original SWB method is that it assumes soil moisture depletion only occurs through ET, ignoring the process of deep percolation. This restriction limits the applicability of the SWB method. In this study, we improve the SWB method (ISWB) by incorporating a deep percolation module into the soil water balance equation. Subsequently, we compare the estimated ET obtained from the ISWB, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)-56 PM, and the Hargreaves-Samani (HS) methods with the observed ET. Results show that the ISWB method for estimating ET performs better when using the soil moisture of the 0–25 cm and below layers, compared to the 0–20 cm and above layers. Meanwhile, there is no significant difference in performance between using the soil moisture of the 0–25 cm layer and the soil layers below 25 cm. In addition, ignoring interception evaporation has an obvious influence on ET estimation using the ISWB. Furthermore, the comparison indicated that the performance of the ISWB method is superior to that of the FAO-56 PM and HS methods in the study areas. Our study shows that the ISWB method has significant potential for ET estimation in data-scarce and topographic-complex mountainous areas.

Algorithmic loafing and mitigation strategies in Human-AI teams

Exercising social loafing – exerting minimal effort by an individual in a group setting – in human-machine teams could critically degrade performance, especially in high-stakes domains where human judgement is essential. Akin to social loafing in human interaction, algorithmic loafing may occur when humans mindlessly adhere to machine recommendations due to reluctance to engage analytically with AI recommendations and explanations. We consider how algorithmic loafing could emerge and how to mitigate it. Specifically, we posit that algorithmic loafing can be induced through repeated encounters with correct decisions from the AI and transparency may combat it. As a form of transparency, explanation is offered for reasons that include justification, control, and discovery. However, algorithmic loafing is further reinforced by the perceived competence that an explanation provides. In this work, we explored these ideas via human subject experiments (n = 239). We also study how improving decision transparency through validation by an external human approver affects performance. Using eight experimental conditions in a high-stakes criminal justice context, we find that decision accuracy is typically unaffected by multiple forms of transparency but there is a significant difference in performance when the machine errs. Participants who saw explanations alone are better at overriding incorrect decisions; however, those under induced algorithmic loafing exhibit poor performance with variation in decision time. We conclude with recommendations on curtailing algorithmic loafing and achieving social facilitation, where task visibility motivates individuals to perform better.

Prophylactic Knee Bracing in Offensive Linemen of the National Football League: A Retrospective Analysis of Usage Trends, Player Performance, and Major Knee Injury.

Offensive linemen in American football are prone to high-energy valgus forces to the knee, leading to associated injuries. Some offensive linemen in the National Football League (NFL) wear prophylactic knee braces (PKB) to prevent ligamentous injury. This purpose of the study was to compare injury rates and performance between NFL offensive linemen who wear PKB and those who do not. It was hypothesized that brace wear would be associated with fewer major knee injuries and no difference in gameplay performance. Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. For the 2014 through 2020 NFL seasons, offensive linemen with at least 200 game snaps per regular season were identified. Players were grouped by PKB status (bracers vs nonbracers) based on visualization of bilateral, dual-hinged metal knee braces as part of gameday uniforms on publicly available imaging databases and/or game videos. Major knee injuries, defined as those requiring the missing of games, were identified using publicly available data. Performance was assessed with Pro Football Focus grades for each season. Rates of major knee injury were compared between groups with the 2-sample Z test for proportions, and performance grades were compared with the unpaired t test. For the cumulative study period, bracers demonstrated a significantly lower rate of major knee injuries than nonbracers (0.013 vs 0.049 injuries per player, respectively; P = .04). Isolated MCL injury was the most common injury for nonbracers. There was no group difference in performance for the cumulative study period or during most individual seasons. Yearly prevalence of PKB usage declined steadily from 16.3% in 2014 to 5.6% in 2020. A subgroup analysis of rookie players demonstrated an overall downtrend in usage during the study period as well. Results indicated that knee brace prophylaxis by NFL offensive linemen was associated with a reduced risk of major knee injury without a significant difference in performance when compared with nonbracers. Despite this, the prevalence of PKB declined over the study period.

Impact Light Regimen and Melatonin on Growth Performance, Welfare and Physiological Parameters of Broiler Chickens

The study was conducted to evaluate the effects of lighting program and melatonin on growth performance, welfare, and some physiological characteristics of broilers. A completely randomized design involved 2 photoperiods (constant lighting 24 L:0 D). and intermittent lighting 4 L:2 D) periodically for group one and two respectively, the third group the birds were to continuous lighting 24 hours with the addition of the melatonin 20 mg/kg of diet. A total of 180 unsexed one-day-old ROSS 308 broiler chicks randomly divided into three treatments with three replicates (20 birds per replicate). The results showed a significant superiority in the body weight and weight Gain of the intermittent light treatments and the addition of melatonin compared to the control treatment for broilers at 21 days. No significant differences in growth performance for broilers at 38 days, and there were no significant differences in dressing percentage, relative weight of the internal organs, temperature of the bird’s body parts, biochemical characteristics, and hormones, except for the significant decrease in the level of ALT for birds treated with melatonin and when raising birds under a lighting program. Intermittently, there was an improvement in the level of antioxidants through a decrease in MDA. There was a significant improvement in the measures of welfare, as the incidence of inflammation of the hock burn and Footpad dermatitis decreased. Results above suggest that the raising broilers under intermittent lighting system and treatment with melatonin did not affect production performance, but it improved the status of antioxidants and welfare Indications for broilers.

Effect of different forms of Carica papaya leaf processing techniques on growth, body indices and survival rate of red hybrid tilapia, Oreochromis mossambicus × Oreochromis niloticus

The use of natural products as additives in the production of aquaculture feed stimulates appetite, improves growth performance, and strengthens the immune defense mechanism in numerous aquaculture species. This study was conducted to determine the effect of various Carica papaya leaf processing techniques on the growth performance, body indices, and survival of red hybrid tilapia with an initial body weight of 2.371.0 ± 0.036 g. Four isonitrogenous (360.00 gkg−1) and isolipidic (80.00 gkg−1) diets were formulated and fed to red hybrid tilapia in triplicate groups for 12 weeks using a completely randomized experimental design. Papaya leaf inclusion in the formulated diets varied based on processing method: control (0%), commercial papaya leaf extract (1%), oven-dried papaya leaf powder (2%), and freeze-dried papaya leaf extract (2%). Regardless of processing method, the final weight of fish fed a diet containing papaya leaves was significantly greater (P 0.05) than that of the control group. However, there was no significant difference (P > 0.05) in growth performance between papaya leaf processing techniques. Similarly, the weight gain, specific growth rate, and feed conversion ratio did not differ significantly (P > 0.05) between groups supplemented with papaya leaf. In addition, the viscero-somatic index, hepato-somatic index, and survival rates were not affected (P > 0.05) by the different leaf processing techniques. Despite the fact that Carica papaya leaf processing techniques had no effect on the performance of Carica papaya leaves as functional feed additives, oven-drying is recommended due to the lower production cost. Similar to commercially produced and freeze-dried papaya leaf extracts, oven-dried papaya leaves containing 2% inclusion can be used as a dietary feed supplement in aquaculture.

Pregnant women's and policymakers' preferences forthe expansion of noninvasive prenatal screening: A discrete choice experiment approach study.

Quantitative approaches for eliciting preferences for new interventions are mostly conducted by patients and rarely by policymakers. This study aimed to quantify the preferences of pregnant women and policymakers regarding the addition of a new test to prenatal screening programs for detecting chromosomal abnormalities. A discrete choice experiment was conducted to measure the respondents' preferences for a new prenatal test. A seven-attribute instrument was built based on interviews with pregnant women and policymakers. The data were analyzed using robust conditional logistic regression and nested logit models. In total, 272 pregnant women and 24 policymakers completed the questionnaire (response rates of 48% and 55%, respectively). Overall, all attributes were statistically significant in the pregnant women group, whereas only three attributes (test performance, degree of test result certainty, and cost) were statistically significant in the policymakers group. Statistically significant differences in test performance and information were observed between the two groups. Policymakers differed from pregnant women in their appraisal of attributes related to their preference for a new prenatal screening intervention. The low response rates observed in both groups suggest that further investigation of the relevance of this approach must be conducted.

Analisis Kinerja Keuangan KSU Sri Nadi Bersama Sebelum dan Selama Masa Pandemi Covid 19 di Kota Denpasar, Bali

Analysis of Financial Performance of KSU Sri Nadi Bersama Before and During the Covid 19 Pandemic&#x0D; The concept of creating shared value is a business sustainability practice that has the nature to provide strengthening and independence of the surrounding environment. This consensus has been implemented by cooperatives in accordance with its function that gathers weak economic strength to become the lifeblood of the economy and strengthen the economic life of the nation. However, the Covid 19 pandemic has proven to have a bad effect on the micro to maceoeconomics. Therefore, this study aims to analyze the financial performance of KSU Sri Nadi Bersama Denpasar before and during the Covid 19 pandemic. The study used primary data in the form of monthly financial statements and primary data through interviews. The data analysis techniques used are descriptive analysis and paired t test on financial performance liquidity ratio, solvency ratio, profitability ratio and activity ratio. The results showed that there was a significant difference in liquidity ratio and solvency ratio in the pre-Covid 19 pandemic when compared to during the Covid 19 outbreak. Profitability ratios and activity ratios that showed no significant difference in financial performance in the period before and during the Covid 19 outbreak.

Academic Performance among Filipino Students with Parents Working Abroad

This study aims to evaluate the academic performance of students with OFW (Overseas Filipino Worker) parents in selected schools on Siargao Island, Surigao del Norte. It utilizes a descriptive quantitative research design through the survey method. The researchers employ a purposive sampling method, selecting only students whose parents are OFWs to participate as respondents in this study. Based on the study’s findings, the outstanding academic performance of respondents in their classes, as measured by the General Point Average (GPA), is not significantly affected by the absence of their parents. In addition, using one-way ANOVA, no significant difference in the academic performance of the respondents was observed when categorized according to their socio-demographic profiles

Sodium Bicarbonate Ingestion in a Fasted State Improves 16.1-km Cycling Time-Trial Performance.

The use of sodium bicarbonate (SB) as a preexercise ergogenic aid has been extensively studied in short-duration high-intensity exercise. Very few studies have considered the effects of SB ingestion before prolonged high-intensity exercise. The aim of the present study was to determine the effects of a 0.3 g·kg -1 body mass dose of SB ingested before the start of a 16.1-km cycling time trial in cyclists. Ten trained male cyclists (age, 31.1 ± 9 yr; height, 1.84 ± 0.05 m; body mass, 82.8 ± 8.5 kg; and V̇O 2peak , 60.4 ± 3.1 mL·kg -1 ·min -1 ) completed this study. Participants ingested 0.3 g·kg -1 in gelatine (SB-G) and enteric capsules (SB-E) 1 wk apart to determine individualized time-to-peak alkalosis for each ingestion form. Using a randomized crossover design, participants then performed simulated 16.1-km time trials after ingestion of SB-G, SB-E, or a placebo. There were significant differences in performance between the SB and placebo ingestion strategies ( f = 5.50, P = 0.014, p η2 = 0.38). Performance time was significantly improved by SB ingestion (mean improvement: 34.4 ± 42.6 s ( P = 0.031) and 40.4 ± 45.5 s ( P = 0.020) for SB-G and SB-E, respectively) compared with the placebo. Gastrointestinal symptoms were lower after SB-E compared with SB-G (36.3 ± 4.5 vs 5.6 ± 3.1 AU, P < 0.001, g = 7.09). This study demonstrates that increased buffering capacity after acute preexercise SB ingestion can improve endurance cycling time-trial performances. The use of SB could be considered for use in 16.1-km cycling time trials, but further work is required to establish these effects after a preexercise meal.

Amide proton transfer weighted MRI in differential diagnosis of ovarian masses with cystic components: A preliminary study

Rationale and objectivesTo evaluate the performance of three-dimensional (3D) amide proton transfer-weighted (APTw) MRI in the differentiation between benign and malignant ovarian masses based on single-slice and all-slice analysis of cystic regions. Materials and methodsPatients were consecutively recruited and underwent conventional pelvic MRI and APTw MRI. Two radiologists independently assessed ovarian masses blinded to the histopathological results. Three APTw SI values were generated from the cystic regions of the masses: (1) APTw SI of a single representative slice (RS); (2) average (AVE) of APTw SIs of all slices of the mass; (3) area-weighted (AW) average of APTw SIs of all slices of the mass. O-RADS MRI score of each mass was reported. Independent sample t-test and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis were performed for comparison. Inter- and intra-observer reliability were assessed by the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and quadratic kappa coefficient. Results46 ovarian masses were included for final analysis. The three APTw SI values were higher in cystic regions of malignant ovarian masses compared with benign lesions (p<0.0001). ROC curve analysis showed no significant difference in diagnostic performance among three APTw SI values and the O-RADS MRI score (AUC: RS-APTw SI, 0.930; AVE-APTw SI, 0.927; AW-APTw SI, 0.935; O-RADS score, 0.937). ConclusionsAPTw MRI may be used as a noninvasive tool for the differentiation of benign and malignant ovarian masses based on the analysis of the cystic regions.

Origin and age group of the fastest amateur triathletes competing in ‘Ironman Hawaii’ between 2003 and 2019

Little is known about the prevalent nationalities among the best-placed athletes participating in “Ironman Hawaii.” Moreover, the age at which athletes achieve their best performances remains unclear. The present study aimed to compare the prevalent nationalities among the athletes, their respective placement among the top five, and the performance difference between the different age groups in ‘Ironman Hawaii’ from 2003 to 2019. A total of 30 354 amateur triathletes were selected from the Obsessed Triathlete (OBSTRI) website. A “TOP 5” division filter was applied for further analysis, resulting in 1 851 athletes being included in this study. Among the male runners, Americans participated the most in Ironman events (39%), followed by Germans (10%). Among female runners, Americans participated the most (54%), followed by Australian runners (8%). Male Americans also featured most among the top five (30%), followed by Germans (16%). Female Americans were the most prevalent among the top five (47%), followed by Australian Americans (10%). There were no significant performance differences (p ​> ​0.05) between the 25–29 and 40–44 age groups for either sex. The 45–49 age group presented significantly worse performance than the 35–39 age group for both sexes (p ​< ​0.001). North Americans were the most performant and frequent participants in “Ironman Hawaii.” The expected performance decline due to aging was observed after 45 years in both sexes.

An independent evaluation in a CRC patient cohort of microbiome 16S rRNA sequence analysis methods: OTU clustering, DADA2, and Deblur.

16S rRNA is the universal gene of microbes, and it is often used as a target gene to obtain profiles of microbial communities via next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology. Traditionally, sequences are clustered into operational taxonomic units (OTUs) at a 97% threshold based on the taxonomic standard using 16S rRNA, and methods for the reduction of sequencing errors are bypassed, which may lead to false classification units. Several denoising algorithms have been published to solve this problem, such as DADA2 and Deblur, which can correct sequencing errors at single-nucleotide resolution by generating amplicon sequence variants (ASVs). As high-resolution ASVs are becoming more popular than OTUs and only one analysis method is usually selected in a particular study, there is a need for a thorough comparison of OTU clustering and denoising pipelines. In this study, three of the most widely used 16S rRNA methods (two denoising algorithms, DADA2 and Deblur, along with de novo OTU clustering) were thoroughly compared using 16S rRNA amplification sequencing data generated from 358 clinical stool samples from the Colorectal Cancer (CRC) Screening Cohort. Our findings indicated that all approaches led to similar taxonomic profiles (with P > 0.05 in PERMNAOVA and P <0.001 in the Mantel test), although the number of ASVs/OTUs and the alpha-diversity indices varied considerably. Despite considerable differences in disease-related markers identified, disease-related analysis showed that all methods could result in similar conclusions. Fusobacterium, Streptococcus, Peptostreptococcus, Parvimonas, Gemella, and Haemophilus were identified by all three methods as enriched in the CRC group, while Roseburia, Faecalibacterium, Butyricicoccus, and Blautia were identified by all three methods as enriched in the healthy group. In addition, disease-diagnostic models generated using machine learning algorithms based on the data from these different methods all achieved good diagnostic efficiency (AUC: 0.87-0.89), with the model based on DADA2 producing the highest AUC (0.8944 and 0.8907 in the training set and test set, respectively). However, there was no significant difference in performance between the models (P >0.05). In conclusion, this study demonstrates that DADA2, Deblur, and de novo OTU clustering display similar power levels in taxa assignment and can produce similar conclusions in the case of the CRC cohort.

Proniosomal Gel-Loaded Phosphodiesterase Inhibitors (Sildenafil, Vardenafil, and Tadalafil): Prospects for Topical Penile Therapy of Tadalafil for Treatment of Erectile Dysfunction.

Oral phosphodiesterase inhibitors have emerged as a game changer for the treatment of erectile dysfunction (ED) since attaining FDA approval for its first member, sildenafil, in 1998. Topical penile therapy could be a viable replacement for oral medication that would transform the treatment of ED for many decades to come. This innovative idea could offer a safer topical alternative with less vision and cardiovascular side effects than the oral route. This work aims at developing proniosomal gels for three selected members (sildenafil, vardenafil, and tadalafil) and investigating the proniosomal gels on a rodent model. Niosomes derived from the parent proniosomal gels were characterized for entrapment efficiency (EE%), size, polydispersity index (PDI), zeta potential, and morphology. Proniosomal gels were evaluated for skin permeation, in vivo mating behaviors, and biochemical assays of nitric oxide (NO) and cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) post penile topical administrations. The optimized proniosomes loaded with tadalafil (F1-T) were compared with oral tablets (Cialis®). Proniosomal gels demonstrated significant enhancement of skin penetration by up to 5.5-fold, compared to control topical suspension. Tadalafil-loaded proniosomes showed superior skin permeability over sildenafil- and vardenafil-loaded proniosomes. In addition, significant improvement was noticed regarding intromission number, intromission ratio, NO, and cGMP for the proniosomal gel F1-T, compared to the untreated control. No statistically significant (p > 0.05) differences in sexual performance or biochemical parameters (NO and cGMP levels) were recorded among orally and topically (tadalafil proniosomal gel) administered groups. These findings support tadalafil topical penile therapy as a promising alternative to the oral route.

A performance evaluation of drug response prediction models for individual drugs.

Drug response prediction is important to establish personalized medicine for cancer therapy. Model construction for predicting drug response (i.e., cell viability half-maximal inhibitory concentration [IC50]) of an individual drug by inputting pharmacogenomics in disease models remains critical. Machine learning (ML) has been predominantly applied for prediction, despite the advent of deep learning (DL). Moreover, whether DL or traditional ML models are superior for predicting cell viability IC50s has to be established. Herein, we constructed ML and DL drug response prediction models for 24 individual drugs and compared the performance of the models by employing gene expression and mutation profiles of cancer cell lines as input. We observed no significant difference in drug response prediction performance between DL and ML models for 24 drugs [root mean squared error (RMSE) ranging from 0.284 to 3.563 for DL and from 0.274 to 2.697 for ML; R2 ranging from -7.405 to 0.331 for DL and from -8.113 to 0.470 for ML]. Among the 24 individual drugs, the ridge model of panobinostat exhibited the best performance (R2 0.470 and RMSE 0.623). Thus, we selected the ridge model of panobinostat for further application of explainable artificial intelligence (XAI). Using XAI, we further identified important genomic features for panobinostat response prediction in the ridge model, suggesting the genomic features of 22 genes. Based on our findings, results for an individual drug employing both DL and ML models were comparable. Our study confirms the applicability of drug response prediction models for individual drugs.

Investigating the Relationship between Serum Levels of Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate (DHEAS) and Executive Function in Patients with Schizophrenia Compared to the Control group

Introduction: Schizophrenia is a chronic and debilitating mental disorder associated with psychosocial dysfunction and reduced quality of life. Neurosteroids modulate the functions of the brain and affect the activities of neurotransmitters. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between the serum level of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) and executive function in patients with schizophrenia compared to the control group. Method: In this case-control study, 20 schizophrenic men hospitalized in the psychiatric department of 5th Azar Hospital in Gorgan in 1401 and 20 non-diseased men eligible to enter the study were selected. After measuring the serum level of DHEAS, executive function was evaluated using the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test. Data analysis was performed in SPSS software (version 18) using independent t-test, U-Man-Whitney, logistic regression, chi-score, and Fisher's exact test at a significance level of 0.05. Results: The two groups were similar in terms of age (P=0.4), marital status (P=0.06), and education level (P=0.1). There was no statistically significant difference in the serum level of DHEAS in the two groups. There was a statistically significant difference in the executive performance of the two groups in the items of spotting (P=0.001) and correct answers (P=0.002). Conclusion: In this study, the level of DHEAS in subjects with schizophrenia was lower than that of healthy people. The serum level of this hormone was inversely associated with the duration of schizophrenia and had a direct linear relationship with executive function in the number of categories and perseverative errors. These results can guide relevant experts in the direction of timely diagnosis and treatment measures for these people.