Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Diversity analysis and function prediction of rhizo- and endophytic bacterial communities of Senecio vulgaris L. (Asteraceae) in an invasive range

Because increasing evidence has confirmed the importance of plant-associated bacteria for plant growth and productivity, it is believed that interactions between bacteria and alien plants play an important role in plant invasions. However, the diversity of bacterial communities associated with invasive plants is poorly understood. Therefore, we investigated the diversity of rhizoand endophytic bacteria associated with the invasive annual plant Senecio vulgaris L (Asteraceae) based on bacterial 16S rRNA gene data obtained from 57 samples of four S. vulgaris populations in a subtropical mountainous area in central China. Significant differences in diversity were observed between plant compartments. Rhizosphere harbored much more bacterial OTUs and showed higher alpha diversity than the leaf and root endosphere. Bacterial community composition differed substantially between compartments and locations in relative abundance profiles, especially at phyla and family level. However, the top five phyla (Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria and Acidobacteria) comprised more than 90% of abundance in all the bacterial communities. And similar endophytic communities with a shared core set of bacteria were observed from different S. vulgaris populations. According to the function prediction based on the identification and abundance information of the OTU, bacteria characterized as plant pathogens, as well as those involved in ureolysis and nitrate reduction, were rich in endophytic communities. This study reveals the microbiomes and their putative function in the invasive S. vulgaris plants and is also the first step for future studies on the role of interactions between bacteria and alien plants in plant invasions.
Ghost Riders: Sybil Attacks on Crowdsourced Mobile Mapping Services

Real-time crowdsourced maps, such as Waze provide timely updates on traffic, congestion, accidents, and points of interest. In this paper, we demonstrate how lack of strong location authentication allows creation of software-based Sybil devices that expose crowdsourced map systems to a variety of security and privacy attacks. Our experiments show that a single Sybil device with limited resources can cause havoc on Waze, reporting false congestion and accidents and automatically rerouting user traffic. More importantly, we describe techniques to generate Sybil devices at scale, creating armies of virtual vehicles capable of remotely tracking precise movements for large user populations while avoiding detection. To defend against Sybil devices, we propose a new approach based on co-location edges, authenticated records that attest to the one-time physical co-location of a pair of devices. Over time, co-location edges combine to form large proximity graphs that attest to physical interactions between devices, allowing scalable detection of virtual vehicles. We demonstrate the efficacy of this approach using large-scale simulations, and how they can be used to dramatically reduce the impact of the attacks. We have informed Waze/Google team of our research findings. Currently, we are in active collaboration with Waze team to improve the security and privacy of their system.
Atmospheric carbonyl sulfide (OCS) variation from 1992-2004 by ground-based solar FTIR spectrometry

Abstract. Analysis of ground-based high-resolution solar FTIR absorption spectra from four sites was performed to determine trends and variability in OCS columns over the period 1992–2004. The sites were Wollongong, Australia (34.45° S, 150.88° E), Lauder, New Zealand (45.0° S, 169.7° E), Arrival Heights, Antarctica (77.8° S, 166.6° E) and Mauna Loa, Hawaii (19.5° N, 155.6° W). Small but significant long-term trends of −0.18±0.02% yr-1 above Hawaii, −0.30±0.12% yr-1 above Wollongong and −0.29±0.14% yr-1 above Lauder, were seen. No significant trend was seen above Arrival Heights. A large peak-to-peak seasonal difference observed in 1996–1997 above Wollongong and reported earlier was confirmed, but not repeated in later years. This seasonal feature correlated with particularly high water vapour columns present during late summer and early autumn, and suggests a link to warm oceanic airmasses. Seasonal variation of approximately 6% per year is observed in the total column in other years for all four locations.
Individual factors influencing the duration of untreated psychosis

Duration of untreated psychosis (DUP), or the time between onset of psychosis and treatment initiation, is a prognostic factor of schizophrenia. However, few studies evaluated the relative influence of individual‐related factors on this duration. The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of socio‐demographic, clinical and cannabis use on DUP.
Patient-Specific Variations in Biomarkers across Gingivitis and Periodontitis

This study investigates the use of saliva, as an emerging diagnostic fluid in conjunction with classification techniques to discern biological heterogeneity in clinically labelled gingivitis and periodontitis subjects (80 subjects; 40/group) A battery of classification techniques were investigated as traditional single classifier systems as well as within a novel selective voting ensemble classification approach (SVA) framework. Unlike traditional single classifiers, SVA is shown to reveal patient-specific variations within disease groups, which may be important for identifying proclivity to disease progression or disease stability. Salivary expression profiles of IL-1ß, IL-6, MMP-8, and MIP-1α from 80 patients were analyzed using four classification algorithms (LDA: Linear Discriminant Analysis [LDA], Quadratic Discriminant Analysis [QDA], Naïve Bayes Classifier [NBC] and Support Vector Machines [SVM]) as traditional single classifiers and within the SVA framework (SVA-LDA, SVA-QDA, SVA-NB and SVA-SVM). Our findings demonstrate that performance measures (sensitivity, specificity and accuracy) of traditional classification as single classifier were comparable to that of the SVA counterparts using clinical labels of the samples as ground truth. However, unlike traditional single classifier approaches, the normalized ensemble vote-counts from SVA revealed varying proclivity of the subjects for each of the disease groups. More importantly, the SVA identified a subset of gingivitis and periodontitis samples that demonstrated a biological proclivity commensurate with the other clinical group. This subset was confirmed across SVA-LDA, SVA-QDA, SVA-NB and SVA-SVM. Heatmap visualization of their ensemble sets revealed lack of consensus between these subsets and the rest of the samples within the respective disease groups indicating the unique nature of the patients in these subsets. While the source of variation is not known, the results presented clearly elucidate the need for novel approaches that accommodate inherent heterogeneity and personalized variations within disease groups in diagnostic characterization. The proposed approach falls within the scope of P4 medicine (predictive, preventive, personalized, and participatory) with the ability to identify unique patient profiles that may predict specific disease trajectories and targeted disease management.
An adaptive channel allocation algorithm for hierarchical wireless network

With the development of information technology those years, big data and cloud computing technology has been widely used. Those new communication scenarios require the network with very powerful computing power and real-time business processing capabilities. But limited by the number of channels that can be used in 802.11b/g, there are a lot of channel interferences in WLAN system. In this paper, firstly we propose a hierarchical WLAN architecture suiting for big data communication environment, which can ensure the transmission of important information and enhance the central control capability of the system. And then we give a channel allocation algorithm RCE for typical and hierarchical WLAN architectures. Especially, the algorithm can make use of all 14 channels by introducing channel interference factors. A large number of experiments show that our channel allocation algorithm has better result in reducing overall system interference and improving channel utilization, and can be applied to different network structures preferably.
Renal safety of tenofovir and/or entecavir in patients with chronic HBV monoinfection

Background Tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) and entecavir (ETV) are recommended as the first-line therapy for chronic hepatitis B (CHB) due to their genetic barrier to resistance and effectiveness of virological suppression. TDF and ETV may cause renal toxicity through various mechanisms such as renal tubular injury, apoptosis, and mitochondrial toxicity. The aims of the current review were to assess the potential renal toxicity associated with the use of TDF and ETV in patients infected with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) and to provide clinical perspectives on these two agents in the treatment of CHB. Methods A literature search of clinical studies published in PubMed and posted on ClinicalTrials.gov website was implemented to find studies evaluating the potential renal toxicity of TDF and ETV. Results Twenty-one studies were examined in this review. The TDF dose used in the studies was 245 or 300 mg/day and that of ETV was 0.5 or 1 mg/day. Based on the markers of renal function, patients treated with TDF were not more likely to show changes in renal function than those treated with ETV; however, the estimated glomerular filtration rates (eGFRs) of patients receiving TDF tended to be more clearly reduced than those of patients receiving ETV. The eGFRs of patients treated with TDF decreased in a time-dependent manner, whereas those of patients treated with ETV increased or decreased across various time points. Conclusion The data shown in this study suggest that use of TDF and ETV could be at least associated with reductions in renal function in patients with chronic HBV infection. However, various risk factors, such as pre-existing renal failure and comorbidities, are also associated with decreased renal function during the treatment of TDF and ETV. Thus, studies of management strategies for HBV-infected patients with these risk factors are necessary in the near future.
Glaucoma detection based on deep convolutional neural network

Glaucoma is a chronic and irreversible eye disease, which leads to deterioration in vision and quality of life. In this paper, we develop a deep learning (DL) architecture with convolutional neural network for automated glaucoma diagnosis. Deep learning systems, such as convolutional neural networks (CNNs), can infer a hierarchical representation of images to discriminate between glaucoma and non-glaucoma patterns for diagnostic decisions. The proposed DL architecture contains six learned layers: four convolutional layers and two fully-connected layers. Dropout and data augmentation strategies are adopted to further boost the performance of glaucoma diagnosis. Extensive experiments are performed on the ORIGA and SCES datasets. The results show area under curve (AUC) of the receiver operating characteristic curve in glaucoma detection at 0.831 and 0.887 in the two databases, much better than state-of-the-art algorithms. The method could be used for glaucoma detection.
Short‐chain fatty acids induce tissue plasminogen activator in airway epithelial cells via GPR41&43

Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is a heterogeneous chronic inflammatory disease generally divided based on the presence or absence of nasal polyps (NPs). One of the features of NPs is excessive fibrin deposition, which is associated with down‐regulation of tissue plasminogen activator (t‐PA) in NPs. As t‐PA is expressed in epithelial cells, and epithelium is readily accessible to topical therapies, identifying compounds that can mediate the induction of t‐PA would be a potential new strategy for the treatment of NPs.
Parent and clinician agreement regarding early behavioral signs in 12‐ and 18‐month‐old infants at‐risk of autism spectrum disorder

Parent and clinician agreement regarding early behavioral signs of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in children from a high‐risk cohort (siblings of children diagnosed with ASD, n = 188) was examined. Infants were assessed prospectively at 12 and 18 months of age using the clinician administered Autism Observational Scale for Infants (AOSI) and the Autism Parent Screen for Infants (APSI) and underwent a blind independent diagnostic assessment for ASD at 36 months of age. Direct comparison of parent and clinician ratings showed poor agreement on all early behavioral signs, with parent‐reported symptoms being better able to differentiate between children with and without ASD at both 12 and 18 months of age compared to clinician observations during a brief office visit. The results suggest that parents may detect some clinically informative behaviors based on their day‐to‐day observations more readily than do clinicians during brief clinical assessments, a result that needs to be replicated in a non‐sibling cohort. Autism Res 2018, 11: 539–547. © 2018 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Lived experiences of parents caring for a child with a life-limiting condition in Australia: A qualitative study

Background: Experiential studies in paediatric palliative care are needed to enable an ongoing international agenda which supports the development of responsive family supports. Aim: To provide an in-depth exploration of the prevalent lived experiences of parents who are currently providing care for a child with a life-limiting condition in Australia. Design: Cross-sectional, prospective, qualitative study guided by an advisory group and reported according to the consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative studies. Transcripts were subjected to a thematic analysis, underpinned by an interpretative phenomenological framework. Setting/participants: Purposively sampled parents (n = 14) recruited from a statewide paediatric hospice who self-identified as a ‘primary caregiver’ for one or more children and/or adolescents (⩽18 years) with a life-limiting condition. Results: Four key themes represented the prevalent experiences of parents: (1) trapped inside the house, (2) the protector, (3) living with the shadow and (4) travelling a different pathway. They describe parents’ physical and social isolation, exclusion from the workforce, pervasive grief and associated impacts to their health and well-being. Limited professional and diminished social supports resulted in full ownership of care responsibility. Yet, parents embraced their role as ‘protector’, reporting acquired meaning and purpose. Conclusion: This study builds upon the growing body of evidence available in paediatric palliative care internationally. The key themes highlight the substantial demand for both physical and emotional support beyond what is currently offered and call for the implementation of carefully planned support services and other societal initiatives which seek to alleviate the broad health impacts to caregivers.
The challenge of the biosciences in nurse education: A literature review

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES To review relevant literature that addresses the challenges of the biosciences in nurse education. More precisely, the review aims to explore the literature, concerning students' learning, learning contexts and methodological issues and identify any significant gaps. BACKGROUND Knowledge of anatomy, physiology and biochemistry is essential for the understanding of human beings and for full appreciation of the concepts of illness and disease. The current status would seem to be that the required competencies within bioscience subjects are difficult to acquire and students have high rates of failure. DESIGN Integrative review. METHODS The research was performed on CINAHL, ERIC, Medline and British Nursing Index databases in a period from 2013-2017. Descriptive analytical methods were used for the initial research trawl. FINDINGS The search strategy resulted in 23 papers. The results of this review shed light on certain deficiencies in the research field looking at the biosciences in nurse education. There is a distinct lack of intervention studies and, thereby, knowledge of how best to support students' learning in effective ways. Of note is that there are no field study approaches identified in the review sample. CONCLUSION Many of the papers are single studies and course evaluations which may be seen as too narrow and inadequate as perspective. Students appear satisfied with the courses in the biosciences, but there seems to be no correlation between satisfaction and achievement. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE Understanding and being able to give coherent rationales for the bioscience content in the nursing curricula are crucial and must be established in relation to its relevance to the dynamic nature of patient care, technological advances and demographic realities. Only on that basis can the primacy of this content be seen as relevant to the aspiring student nurse.
Quasi-Static Failure Criteria for Concrete / Quasi-Statyczne Kryteria Zniszczenia Betonu

Abstract The behaviour of concrete under quasi-static loadings for uniaxial compression, tension and plane stress conditions is studied. The failure criteria of concrete are discussed as well as the methods of constitutive parameters identification are elaborated. The attention is focus on an energetic interpretation of selected failure criteria. The numerical example with concrete damage plasticity material model is shown Streszczenie W pracy prezentuje sie zachowanie betonu przy obciazeniach quasi-statycznych przy jednoosiowym sciskaniu i rozciaganiu oraz w płaskim stanie naprezenia. Dyskutowane sa kryteria zniszczenia betonu oraz metody identyfikacji parametrów konstytutywnych. Istotnym elementem jest równiez energetyczna interpretacja omawianych kryteriów. Zawarto przykład numeryczny wykorzystujacy model materiału betonu plastycznego ze zniszczeniem, który dowodzi prawdziwosci opisu konstytutywnego na podstawie wyników eksperymentalnych.
Behaviour of the Foramen Ovale Flow in Fetuses with Intrauterine Growth Restriction

Background Foramen ovale (FO) flow may be altered in IUGR. This study was designed to test this hypothesis. Methods Forty pregnant women (24–38 weeks) were divided into 3 groups: group I (IUGR), group II (adequate growth and maternal hypertension), and group III (normal controls). Impedance across the FO was assessed by the FO pulsatility index (FOPI): (systolic velocity − presystolic velocity)/mean velocity. Statistical analysis utilized ANOVA, Tukey test, and ROC curves. Results Mean FOPI in IUGR fetuses (n = 15) was 3.70 ± 0.99 (3.15–4.26); in the group II (n = 12), it was 2.84 ± 0.69 (2.40–3.28), and in the group III (n = 13), it was 2.77 ± 0.44 (2.50–3.04) (p=0.004). FOPI and UtA RI were correlated (r = 0.375, p=0.017), as well as FOPI and UA RI (r = 0.356, p=0.024) and, inversely, FOPI and MCA RI (r = −0.359, p=0.023). Conclusions The FO flow pulsatility index is increased in fetuses with IUGR, probably as a result of impaired left ventricular diastolic function.
Trauma exposure and endothelial function among midlife women

Objective: Trauma is a potent exposure that can have implications for health. However, little research has considered whether trauma exposure is related to endothelial function, a key process in the pathophysiology of cardiovascular disease (CVD). We tested whether exposure to traumatic experiences was related to poorer endothelial function among midlife women, independent of CVD risk factors, demographic factors, psychosocial factors, or a history of childhood abuse. Methods: In all, 272 nonsmoking perimenopausal and postmenopausal women aged 40 to 60 years without clinical CVD completed the Brief Trauma Questionnaire, the Child Trauma Questionnaire, physical measures, a blood draw, and a brachial ultrasound for assessment of brachial artery flow-mediated dilation (FMD). Relations between trauma and FMD were tested in linear regression models controlling for baseline vessel diameter, demographics, depression/anxiety, CVD risk factors, health behaviors, and, additionally, a history of childhood abuse. Results: Over 60% of the sample had at least one traumatic exposure, and 18% had three or more exposures. A greater number of traumatic exposures was associated with lower FMD, indicating poorer endothelial function in multivariable models (beta, &bgr; [standard error, SE] −1.05 [0.40], P = 0.01). Relations between trauma exposure and FMD were particularly pronounced for three or more trauma exposures (b [SE] −1.90 [0.71], P = 0.008, relative to no exposures, multivariable). Conclusions: A greater number of traumatic exposures were associated with poorer endothelial function. Relations were not explained by demographics, CVD risk factors, mood/anxiety, or a by history of childhood abuse. Women with greater exposure to trauma over life maybe at elevated CVD risk.
Somatic mutations in the thyrotropin receptor gene cause hyperfunctioning thyroid adenomas

THE pituitary hormone thyrotropin stimulates the function, expression of differentiation and growth of thyrocytes by cyclic AMP-dependent mechanisms13. Tissue hyperplasia and hyperthyroidism are therefore expected to result when activation of the adenylyl cyclasecAMP cascade is unregulated. This is observed in several situations4,5, including when somatic mutations impair the GTPase activity of the G protein Gsα (refs 6, 7). Such a mechanism is probably responsible for the development of a minority of monoclonal hyperfunctioning thyroid adenomas6,8,9. Here we identify somatic mutations in the carboxv-terminal portion of the third cytoplasmic loop of the thyrotropin receptor in three out of eleven hyperfunctioning thyroid adenomas. These mutations are restricted to tumour tissue and involve two different residues (aspartic acid at position 619 to glycine in two cases, and alanine at position 623 to isoleucine in one case). The mutant receptors confer constitutive activation of adenylyl cyclase when tested by transfection in COS cells. This shows that G-protein-coupled receptors are susceptible to constitutive activation by spontaneous somatic mutations10,11 and may thus behave as proto-oncogenes.
Constitutive and Induced Differential Accumulation of Amino Acid in Leaves of Susceptible and Resistant Soybean Plants in Response to the Soybean Aphid (Hemiptera: Aphididae)

ABSTRACT Although soybean aphid (Aphis glycines) resistance is commercially available in the form of the Rag1 gene, the mechanism of this resistance is not fully understood. Amino acids are a limiting factor for aphid growth, and there is evidence that plant amino acid composition is related to aphid resistance. Antibiotic resistance like that conferred by Rag1 could be associated in part with both protein and nonprotein free amino acids reducing survival, growth, and fecundity of the target pest. We posed two hypotheses: (1) A. glycines resistance is related to host quality in terms of free amino acids composition in the leaf, and (2) aphids may enhance host quality by inducing changes in the free amino acids composition. To test these hypotheses we conducted a field experiment using a split plot design, with soybean lines (a susceptible line and a related line carrying Rag1) as whole plots and aphid density as subplots (insecticide treated or left exposed to natural infestations). We analyzed free amino acids in leaves at three soybean developmental stages in all subplots. We observed significant whole and subplot effects on the concentration of a subset of amino acids tested. Susceptible and resistant plants had constitutive (whole-plot) differences in amino acids composition in all developmental stages analyzed. In addition, aphid-induced (subplot) responses of the plant to aphid infestation were found. We propose that the reduced nutritional quality of the resistant line and its reduced susceptibility to aphid-induced changes may contribute to aphid resistance conferred by Rag1.