Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Transpiration and water potential of young Quercus petraea (M.) Liebl. coppice sprouts and seedlings during favourable and drought conditions

Stojanović M. , Szatniewska J., Kyselová I. , Pokorný R. , Čater M. (2017): Transpiration and water potential of young Quercus petraea (M.) Liebl. coppice sprouts and seedlings during favourable and drought conditions. J. For. Sci., 63: 313–323. Increased frequency and intensity of drought events consequently affect oak high forests with the process of further decline, compromised growth and questionable natural regeneration. To overcome such difficulties, new adaptive strategies are required. Coppicing, as the oldest way of forest management, might provide some solutions. In our study two contrasting management systems, sessile oak coppice and high forest, were compared at the initial stages of regeneration and forest development. The transpiration of young oak sprouts and seedlings was monitored using sap flow systems during the 2015 growing season. The study of transpiration also included leaf water potential measurements during three measurement campaigns with contrasting weather conditions. Coppice sprouts transpired significantly more than seedlings on the individual tree and stand level during the entire growing season 2015; particularly large differences were observed during drought conditions. Coppice sprouts experienced lower water limitations due to the voluminous and deeper root system as indicated by leaf water potential results. Presented results attribute young coppices as one of the promising adaptable forest management types with a better adaptive strategy at the extreme sites under water limiting conditions.
ON FRIEDRICHS CONSTANT AND HORGAN-PAYNE ANGLE FOR LBB CONDITION

In dimension 2, the Horgan-Payne angle serves to construct a lower bound for the inf-sup constant of the divergence arising in the so-called LBB condition. This lower bound is equivalent to an upper bound for the Friedrichs constant. Explicit upper bounds for the latter constant can be found using a polar parametrization of the boundary. Revisiting carefully the original paper which establishes this strategy, we found out that some proofs need clarification, and some statements, replacement.
Radiation-induced apoptosis of oligodendrocytes in the adult rat brain

Abstract Although radiation injuries to the brain are well documented, immediate early histological changes in the brain remain to be defined. The present study characterizes glial injury provoked in adult rat white matter within 24 h after a single irradiation of the whole brain (10 or 20 Gray). Irradiated brains were histologically and histochemically analyzed. TUNEL-positive cells exhibiting apoptotic morphology were counted in five representative regions of the white matter. Glial cell death was further evaluated by glial cell density 24 h after irradiation, which induced both dose (p < 0.0001)- and time- (p < 0.0001) dependent apoptosis in these cells. The overall apoptotic rate in the white matter peaked within 8 h after irradiation. Total glial cell density decreased significantly in the white matter 24 h after irradiation. TUNEL-positive cells were immunohistochemically negative for GFAP, a marker for astrocytes, but positive for CNP, a marker for oligodendrocytes. The apoptotic rate was highest in the external capsule (p < 0.0001), followed by the fimbria and genu of the corpus callosum ( p< 0.0001). The rates were lowest in the internal capsule and cerebellum. These data indicated that brain irradiation induces rapid apoptotic depletion of the oligodendroglial population, which may participate in the development of radiation-induced pathological conditions. [Neurol Res 2001; 23: 869-874]
Assessing false consensus effect in a consensus enhancing procedure

A model for multi‐expert multi‐criteria decision making (ME‐MCDM) is proposed and defined in a consensus‐reaching process. A decision problem is considered, in which a group of experts are involved in the evaluation of the performances of a set of alternatives with respect to a predefined set of criteria. The main novelty of the present consensus model is that of being guided by both consensus and false consensus effects. One finding in studies examining intuitive predictions of the preference is the false consensus effect, which represents the tendency to overestimate consensus for one's attitudes and behaviors. The purpose is to evaluate a consensual judgement whether the consensus degree is partly due to expert's failure to recognize that their choices not only depend on the “objective” response alternatives but also on their subjective structure. In this context, expert's own beliefs, values, and habits tend to bias their perception of how widely they are shared. Our study contributes by investigating the impact of the description of the choice option and the form of the judgement task on the magnitude of the agreement in the case of the presence of the false consensus effect. The consensus reaching process is modeled within fuzzy set theory by ordered weighted averaging operators. Our study contributes by investigating the magnitude of the presence of the false consensus effect. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Biopsy related prostate status does not affect on the clinicopathological outcome of robotic assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy.

PURPOSE To determine whether the biopsy core number and time interval between prostate biopsy and radical prostatectomy affect the operative and oncologic outcome of robot assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (RALP). MATERIALS AND METHODS From January 2008 to April 2009, a single surgeon performed 72 RALPs after an initial learning period of 30 cases. The relationship between time from biopsy to prostatectomy and biopsy core number with operative time and estimated blood loss (EBL) were initially evaluated with a linear regression model. These patients were classified into groups according to whether the interval from biopsy to RALP was within four weeks or not, and whether there were less than or greater than 10 core specimens removed. RESULTS RALP was performed in 34 patients within four weeks of biopsy, and in 38 patients more than 4 weeks after biopsy. According to the number of core specimens removed, less than 10 cores were performed in 10 patients, and more than 10 cores were performed in 62 patients. Using an interval of 4 weeks as the cutoff point, early surgery was associated with longer operating time (232.6 vs 208.8 min) and increased estimated blood loss (305.1 vs 276.9 mL). For cases with more than 10 biopsy cores, there was a slight increase in operative time (229.2 vs 210.3 min). None of these differences were statistically significant by multivariate analysis. CONCLUSION Our data suggests that there is no reason to delay RALP to more than 4 weeks after prostate biopsy. It also revealed that the number of biopsy cores (up to 14) did not influence operative outcome. Thus, RALP is a feasible procedure regardless of the biopsy related prostate state.
Clinical and Pathological Findings Associated with Aerosol Exposure of Macaques to Ricin Toxin

Ricin is a potential bioweapon that could be used against civilian and military personnel. Aerosol exposure is the most likely route of contact to ricin toxin that will result in the most severe toxicity. Early recognition of ricin exposure is essential if specific antidotes are to be applied. Initial diagnosis will most likely be syndromic, i.e., fitting clinical and laboratory signs into a pattern which then will guide the choice of more specific diagnostic assays and therapeutic interventions. We have studied the pathology of ricin toxin in rhesus macaques exposed to lethal and sublethal ricin aerosols. Animals exposed to lethal ricin aerosols were followed clinically using telemetry, by clinical laboratory analyses and by post-mortem examination. Animals exposed to lethal aerosolized ricin developed fever associated with thermal instability, tachycardia, and dyspnea. In the peripheral blood a marked neutrophilia (without immature bands) developed at 24 h. This was accompanied by an increase in monocytes, but depletion of lymphocytes. Red cell indices indicated hemoconcentration, as did serum chemistries, with modest increases in sodium and blood urea nitrogen (BUN). Serum albumin was strikingly decreased. These observations are consistent with the pathological observations of fluid shifts to the lungs, in the form of hemorrhages, inflammatory exudates, and tissue edema. In macaques exposed to sublethal aerosols of ricin, late pathologic consequences included chronic pulmonary fibrosis, likely mediated by M2 macrophages. Early administration of supportive therapy, specific antidotes after exposure or vaccines prior to exposure have the potential to favorably alter this outcome.
An AES Based 256-bit Hash Function for Lightweight Applications: Lesamnta-LW

This paper proposes a new lightweight 256-bit hash function Lesamnta-LW. The security of Lesamnta-LW is reduced to that of the underlying AES-based block cipher and it is theoretically analyzed for an important application, namely the key-prefix mode. While most of recently proposed lightweight primitives are hardware-oriented with very small footprints, our main target with Lesamnta-LW is to achieve compact and fast hashing for lightweight application on a wider variety of environments ranging from inexpensive devices to high-end severs at the 2120 security level. As for performance, our primary target CPUs are 8-bit and it is shown that, for short message hashing, Lesamnta-LW offers better tradeoffs between speed and cost on an 8-bit CPU than SHA-256.
Nitric oxide function in atherosclerosis

Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory process in the intima of conduit arteries, which disturbs the endothelium-dependent regulation of the vascular tone by the labile liposoluble radical nitric oxide (NO) formed by the constitutive endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS). This defect predisposes to coronary vasospasm and cardiac ischaemia, with anginal pain as the typical clinical manifestation. It is now appreciated that endothelial dysfunction is an early event in atherogenesis and that it may also involve the microcirculation, in which atherosclerotic lesions do not develop. On the other hand, the inflammatory environment in atherosclerotic plaques may result in the expression of the inducible NO synthase (iNOS) isozyme. Whether the dysfunction in endothelial NO production is causal to, or the result of, atherosclerotic lesion formation is still highly debated. Most evidence supports the hypothesis that constitutive endothelial NO release protects against atherogenesis e.g. by preventing smooth muscle cell proliferation and leukocyte adhesion. Nitric oxide generated by the inducible isozyme may be beneficial by replacing the failing endothelial production but excessive release may damage the vascular wall cells, especially in combination with reactive oxygen intermediates.
BUILDING AN ARC IN THE ANTHROPOCENE: APPLYING PRINCIPLES OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESILIENCE TO IMPROVE SINGLE-SPECIES CONSERVATION PLANNING IN AN ERA OF CLIMATE CHANGE

In the first research paper of this thesis, I investigated the unresolved issues of sample bias and choice of environmental covariate subset in Maxent, the most popular presence-only SDM algorithm, in order to improve the reliability of model predictions. I found that spatially filtering species occurrence data (a sample bias correction strategy) reduced model complexity when environmental covariates were selected using reverse stepwise elimination; however, changing the bias correction strategy had a limited effect on model results overall. Conversely, using alternative subsets of environmental covariates led to non-trivial differences in model outputs. In the second research paper of this thesis, I developed landscape-scale Maxent models for 3 at-risk migratory forest landbirds in the province of Nova Scotia, Canada: the Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus), the Olive-sided Flycatcher (Contopus cooperi), and the Canada Warbler (Cardellina canadensis). One objective of this research was to investigate whether topographic covariates, which may be considered more resilient to the effects of climate change, can be used alongside forest covariates to predict bird occurrence. Topographic covariates were found to have moderate to strong predictive power in all bird models. As topography (1) should be relatively unaffected by a changing climate and (2) helps regulate the structure and composition of forest habitat, I posited that topographic covariates may be useful in identifing areas that are more likely to support the persistence of species over the long term as climate changes. In the third research paper of this thesis, I proposed a novel approach to single-species conservation planning that (1) targets individual species which may be missed by more general planning strategies, while also (2) contributing towards the maintenance of overall biodiversity in an era of climate change. Specifically, the proposed approach combines elements of predictive modeling and an existing resilience-based conservation planning strategy known as “conserving nature’s stage” (CNS) to delineate climate-resilient refugial habitat and reduce uncertainty in conservation plans.
Implementation Intentions: Strategic Automatization of Goal Striving

Several theories that have been used to understand the self-regulation of behavior in, consider the formation of a goal intention as the key act of willing in promoting goal attainment. Goal intentions can be defined as the instructions that people give themselves to perform particular behaviors or to achieve certain desired outcomes (Triandis, 1980) and characteristically are measured by items of the form "I intend to achieve Xl" Forming a goal intention serves to end deliberation about behaviors or outcomes and indicates the standard of performance that one has set oneself, one's commitment to the performance, and the amount of time and effort that will be expended during action Although key health behavior theories construe goal intentions as the most important predictor of behavior and goal achievement, at least 3 lines of research indicate that there is often a substantial "gap" between intention and action. First, correlational studies indicate that much of the variance in behavior is not explained by measures of goal intentions. For instance, Sheeran (2002) meta-analyzed 10 previous meta-analyses of correlational research and found that intentions accounted for only 28% of the variance in behavior, on average, across 422 studies. Second, Fife-Schaw, Sheeran and Norman (in press) used statistical simulations to estimate the impact of maximally effective TPB interventions on the likelihood of performing 30 behaviors. Findings indicated that even if participants all had the maximum possible attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control scores, and thus the highest possible intention scores that could be
Structural brain changes associated with tardive dyskinesia in schizophrenia

Background The pathological basis of tardive dyskinesia is unknown. Although its clinical features implicate the basal ganglia, imaging studies have not found clear evidence that it is associated with volume changes in these or other brain structures. Aims To determine, using voxel-based structural imaging, whether there are regions of grey matter volume change in people with schizophrenia who also have tardive dyskinesia compared with those without tardive dyskinesia. Method A total of 81 people with chronic schizophrenia, 32 with tardive dyskinesia and 49 without, were examined using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and whole-brain, optimised voxel-based morphometry. A comparison group of 61 healthy controls was also examined. Results Compared with those without tardive dyskinesia, patients with tardive dyskinesia showed a pattern of volume reductions in predominantly subcortical regions, including the basal ganglia and the thalamus. Within the basal ganglia, volume reductions were seen in the caudate nucleus, to a lesser extent in the putamen, and only marginally in the globus pallidus. The patients with tardive dyskinesia, but not those without, showed significant volume reductions in the basal ganglia compared with the healthy controls but both groups had smaller volumes than controls in other affected areas. Conclusions The pathological process or processes that underlie the development of tardive dyskinesia are not just neurochemical in nature, but affect brain structure.
Intermittent exposures to nanoTesla range, 7 Hz, amplitude-modulated magnetic fields increase regeneration rates in planarian

Abstract Purpose: To discern if physiologically and naturally-patterned electromagnetic fields presented with base frequencies of 7 Hz within the 100 nT range could facilitate regeneration in planarian similar to microTesla, 60 Hz fields. Methods: In two separate experiments planarian were decapitated and exposed to either 140 or 400 nT peak amplitude-modulated 7 Hz magnetic fields for 6 min once per hour, 8 h per night for 5 days. Daily regeneration rates and movement velocities (cm/min) were measured. Results: The planarian exposed to either intensity magnetic field exhibited faster regeneration of photoreceptors and auricles compared to sham field and reference groups. The magnetic field exposure accommodated 50% of the variance during the faster growth days. Conclusions: Naturally-patterned, intermittently-presented weaker electromagnetic fields may produce enhanced regeneration rates in flat worms similar to those observed for 60 Hz, higher intensity fields.
Effects of acute psychosocial stress on working memory related brain activity in men

Acute psychosocial stress in humans triggers the release of glucocorticoids (GCs) and influences performance in declarative and working memory (WM) tasks. These memory systems rely on the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex (PFC), where GC‐binding receptors are present. Previous studies revealed contradictory results regarding effects of acute stress on WM‐related brain activity. We combined functional magnetic resonance imaging with a standardized psychosocial stress protocol to investigate the effects of acute mental stress on brain activity during encoding, maintenance, and retrieval of WM. Participants (41 healthy young men) underwent either a stress or a control procedure before performing a WM task. Stress increased salivary cortisol levels and tended to increase WM accuracy. Neurally, stress‐induced increases in cortical activity were evident in PFC and posterior parietal cortex (PPC) during WM maintenance. Furthermore, hippocampal activity was modulated by stress during encoding and retrieval with increases in the right anterior hippocampus during WM encoding and decreases in the left posterior hippocampus during retrieval. Our study demonstrates that stress increases activity in PFC and PPC specifically during maintenance of items in WM, whereas effects on hippocampal activity are restricted to encoding and retrieval. The finding that psychosocial stress can increase and decrease activity in two different hippocampal areas may be relevant for understanding the often‐reported phase‐dependent opposing behavioral effects of stress on long‐term memory. Hum Brain Mapp, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Surgical outcome in pediatric patients with Ebstein's anomaly: A multicenter, long‐term study

OBJECTIVE Surgical outcomes of pediatric patients with Ebstein's anomaly are often described as part of all-age-inclusive series. Our objective is to focus on patients treated surgically in childhood (0-18 y). We study the intended treatment (biventricular or 1.5 ventricle repair or univentricular palliation), freedom from unplanned reoperation and survival of this specific age group, in a nationwide study. DESIGN Records of all Ebstein's anomaly patients born between 1980 and 2013 were reviewed. Demographic variables, intraoperative procedures and postoperative outcomes were analyzed. RESULTS Sixty-three patients underwent 109 operations. Median follow-up after diagnosis was 121 months (range 0-216 months). Twenty-nine (46%) patients required surgery in the first year of life, including 21 who required neonatal surgery. The intended treatment was biventricular (n = 37, 59%) and 1.5 ventricle (n = 5, 8%) repair or univentricular (n = 21, 33%) palliation. The one-, five-, and 10-year freedom from unplanned reoperation was 89%, 79%, and 75% respectively. There were nine (14%) in hospital deaths (within 30 d after surgery). Causes of death were low cardiac output syndrome, cardiac failure, hypoxemia, pulmonary hypertension or an unknown cause. There were no late deaths. CONCLUSIONS Surgery in childhood represents the worse spectrum of disease, biventricular repair is often not applied. Patients often face revision surgery. Mortality is limited to the immediate postsurgical period.
Numerical local rings and local solution of nonlinear systems

Adapting a 1915 method of Macaulay, one can give a calculation of the local ring of an isolated zero of a polynomial system {<i>f</i><sub>1</sub>, <i>f</i><sub>2</sub>, . , <i>f</i><sub>t</sub>} ⊆ C[<i>x</i><sub>1</sub>, <i>x</i><sub>2</sub>, . , <i>x</i><sub>s</sub>] using oating point arithmetic. Using an approximate reverse reduced row echelon form algorithm (ARRREF) one gets a Gröbner basis with respect to a global, rather than local, ordering which leads to the usual representation as a matrix algebra. This can be exploited by relaxing the tolerance in the ARRREF to get information on zeros in a small Euclidean neighborhood of the given zero. The technique, which may be useful in the endgame stage of the homotopy continuation method, is applied to analytic as well as polynomial systems.
Starches, resistant starches, the gut microflora and human health.

Starches are important as energy sources for humans and also for their interactions with the gut microflora throughout the digestive tact. Largely, those interactions promote human health. In the mouth, less gelatinised starches may lower risk of cariogensis. In the large bowel, starches which have escaped small intestinal digestion (resistant starch), together with proteins, other undigested carbohydrates and endogenous secretions are fermented by the resident microflora. The resulting short chain fatty acids contribute substantially to the normal physiological functions of the viscera. Specific types of resistant starch (e.g. the chemically modified starches used in the food industry) may be used to manipulate the gut bacteria and their products (including short chain fatty acids) so as to optimise health. In the upper gut, these starches may assist in the transport of probiotic organisms thus promoting the immune response and suppressing potential pathogens. However, it appears unlikely that current probiotic organisms can be used to modulate large bowel short chain fatty acids in adults although resistant starch and other prebiotics can do so. Suggestions that starch may exacerbate certain conditions (such as ulcerative colitis) through stimulating the growth of certain pathogenic organisms appear to be unfounded. Short chain fatty acids may modulate tissue levels and effects of growth factors in the gut and so modify gut development and risk of serious disease, including colo-rectal cancer. However, information on the relationship between starches and the microflora is relatively sparse and substantial opportunities exist both for basic research and food product development.