Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Temporal Variation in Danger Drives Antipredator Behavior: The Predation Risk Allocation Hypothesis

The rapid response of animals to changes in predation risk has allowed behavioral ecologists to learn much about antipredator decision making. A largely unappreciated aspect of such decision making, however, is that it may be fundamentally driven by the very thing that allows it to be so readily studied: temporal variation in risk. We show theoretically that temporal variability in risk leaves animals with the problem of allocating feeding and antipredator efforts across different risk situations. Our analysis suggests that an animal should exhibit its greatest antipredator behavior in high‐risk situations that are brief and infrequent. An animal should also allocate more antipredator effort to high‐risk situations and more feeding to low‐risk situations, with an increase in the relative degree of risk in high‐risk situations. However, the need to feed leaves an animal with little choice but to decrease its allocation of antipredator effort to high‐risk situations as they become more frequent or lengthy; here, antipredator effort in low‐risk situations may drop to low levels as an animal allocates as much feeding as possible to brief periods of low risk. These conclusions hold under various scenarios of interrupted feeding, state‐dependent behavior, and stochastic variation in risk situations. Our analysis also suggests that a common experimental protocol, in which prey animals are maintained under low risk and then exposed to a brief “pulse” of high risk, is likely to overestimate the intensity of antipredator behavior expected under field situations or chronic exposure to high risk.
Pattern of medication selling and self-medication practices: A study from Punjab, Pakistan

Background Access to medicines without prescription is a major contributing factor for self-medication practices. This study was designed to examine the ratio of non-prescribed medicines sales and self-medication practices in Punjab, Pakistan. This study also evaluates the reasons for self-medication within its communities. Methods An observational study was conducted in 272 systemically selected pharmacies to analyze medicines-related sales, with or without prescription. A cross-sectional survey was performed between June 2015 and November 2016. Consumers were interviewed about their self-medication practices. Results Of the pharmacies surveyed, 65.3% participated in the study. A total of 4348 medicines were purchased for self-medication by 3037 consumers (15.2% of all study participants), of which 873 (28.7%) participated in an interview. Majority (81.2%) medicine purchaser, (90.9%) interview participants, and (59.4%) drug users were male. On average, each community pharmacy sold 7.9 medicines without prescription each day, to an average of 5.5 customers. Many participants (28.9%) had matriculation in their formal education. The medicines most often sold for self-medication were analgesics and antipyretics(39.4%). More than 25% of participants reported fever symptoms and 47.8% assumed their illness was too trivial to consult a doctor. Media advertisements were the most common source of information for participants (46.7%). Conclusion Many types of medicines were often sold without prescription from community pharmacies. Self-medication was common practice for a wide range of illnesses. Pakistan also needs effective implementation of policies to monitor medication sales. Public education about rational medication and limits to advertising medicine are very necessary.
Broken replication forks trigger heritable DNA breaks in the terminus of a circular chromosome

It was recently reported that the recBC mutants of Escherichia coli, deficient for DNA double-strand break (DSB) repair, have a decreased copy number of their terminus region. We previously showed that this deficit resulted from DNA loss after post-replicative breakage of one of the two sister-chromosome termini at cell division. A viable cell and a dead cell devoid of terminus region were thus produced and, intriguingly, the reaction was transmitted to the following generations. Using genome marker frequency profiling and observation by microscopy of specific DNA loci within the terminus, we reveal here the origin of this phenomenon. We observed that terminus DNA loss was reduced in a recA mutant by the double-strand DNA degradation activity of RecBCD. The terminus-less cell produced at the first cell division was less prone to divide than the one produced at the next generation. DNA loss was not heritable if the chromosome was linearized in the terminus and occurred at chromosome termini that were unable to segregate after replication. We propose that in a recB mutant replication fork breakage results in the persistence of a linear DNA tail attached to a circular chromosome. Segregation of the linear and circular parts of this “σ-replicating chromosome” causes terminus DNA breakage during cell division. One daughter cell inherits a truncated linear chromosome and is not viable. The other inherits a circular chromosome attached to a linear tail ending in the chromosome terminus. Replication extends this tail, while degradation of its extremity results in terminus DNA loss. Repeated generation and segregation of new σ-replicating chromosomes explains the heritability of post-replicative breakage. Our results allow us to determine that in E. coli at each generation, 18% of cells are subject to replication fork breakage at dispersed, potentially random, chromosomal locations.
Nitric oxide inhibits lung sodium transport through a cGMP-mediated inhibition of epithelial cation channels.

We used the patch-clamp technique to study the effect of nitric oxide (NO) on a cation channel in rat type II pneumocytes [alveolar type II (AT II) cells]. Single-channel recordings from the apical surface of AT II cells in primary culture showed a predominant cation channel with a conductance of 20.6 ± 1.1 (SE) pS ( n = 9 cell-attached patches) and Na+-to-K+selectivity of 0.97 ± 0.07 ( n = 7 cell-attached patches). An NO donor, S-nitrosoglutathione (GSNO; 100 μM), inhibited the basal cation-channel activity by 43% [open probability ( P o), control 0.28 ± 0.05 vs. GSNO 0.16 ± 0.03; P < 0.001; n = 16 cell-attached patches], with no significant change in the conductance. GSNO reduced the P o by reducing channel mean open and increasing mean closed times. GSNO inhibition was reversed by washout. The inhibitory effect of NO was confirmed by using a second donor of NO, S-nitroso- N-acetylpenicillamine (100 μM; P o, control 0.53 ± 0.05 vs. S-nitroso- N-acetylpenicillamine 0.31 ± 0.04; -42%; P < 0.05; n = 5 cell-attached patches). The GSNO effect was blocked by methylene blue (a blocker of guanylyl cyclase; 100 μM), suggesting a role for cGMP. The permeable analog of cGMP, 8-bromo-cGMP (8-BrcGMP; 1 mM), inhibited the cation channel in a manner similar to GSNO ( P o, control 0.38 ± 0.06 vs. 8-BrcGMP 0.09 ± 0.02; P < 0.05; n = 7 cell-attached patches). Pretreatment of cells with 1 μM KT-5823 (a blocker of protein kinase G) abolished the inhibitory effect of GSNO. The NO inhibition of channels was not due to changes in cell viability. Intracellular cGMP was found to be elevated in AT II cells treated with NO (control 13.4 ± 3.6 vs. GSNO 25.4 ± 4.1 fmol/ml; P < 0.05; n = 6 cell-attached patches). We conclude that NO suppresses the activity of an Na+-permeant cation channel on the apical surface of AT II cells. This action appears to be mediated by a cGMP-dependent protein kinase.
Characterization of coal fly ash and use of plants growing in ash pond for phytoremediation of metals from contaminated agricultural land

ABSTRACT Mobilization of heavy metals around coal power plants due to improper disposal of fly ash (FA) and wastewater have led to release of pollutants into the environment. For protection of inimitable natural resources, application of economical and effective technologies is needed such as phytoremediation is cost-effective, ecofriendly and a better option for elimination of metal from contaminated sites. Twelve plant species were sampled from ash dyke of Singrauli and screened for accumulation of metals for this study. Mobilization ratio of metals from soil to plant was evaluated to determine translocation factor. CILLAS analyzer, Raman spectroscopy and SEM-EDX were used for characterization of particle size, functional groups and morphology of fly ash. Results showed mean metal concentrations in contaminated soil for Fe, Mn, Cr, Zn, Ni, Cu, Cd and Pb were 909.4, 60.6, 9.5, 134.8, 13.6, 26.7, 2.9 and 25.4 µg g−1 respectively. Enrichment factors for soil, root and shoot for a contaminated site were 1.9, 3.8 & 4.3 for Zn and 2.7, 3.5 & 3.8 for Cd. Six hyper-accumulators with absorption efficiency >1 viz. I. carnea, S. nigrum, S. munja, T. angustifolia, C. dactylon and P. hysterophorus were identified which may be cultivated successively to reclaim and restore damaged agricultural land.
Silver Ion Release from Polymethyl Methacrylate Silver Nanocomposites

Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) silver nanocomposites were prepared by the thermal reduction of silver(I) trifluoroacetate. Transmission electron microscopic investigations reveal that the silver nanoparticles were spherical and their particle sizes were between 5 nm and 50 nm. The particles were distributed randomly in the PMMA matrix. Immersion of the nanocomposites in water led to a release of silver ions. The silver ion release from the PMMA silver nanocomposites was measured by anodic stripping voltammetry. When a nanocomposite sample having a surface area of 36.8 cm2 and a silver content of 0.12 wt% was immersed in water, the silver ion concentration in the surrounding water was about 0.05 mg/l after two days. This is sufficient to kill bacteria. Using conventional silver powder as a filler, a silver content 30 times higher is necessary to achieve the same silver ion concentration in the surrounding water under the same conditions. The silver ion concentration in the water increased with increasing nanosilver content of the composites. The composites incorporating conventional silver powder are not transparent. In contrast, PMMA silver nanocomposites containing less than 0.25 wt% silver show a translucency sufficient for use in packaging materials.
Synergistic anticancer effects of ruxolitinib and calcitriol in estrogen receptor-positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive breast cancer cells

The Janus kinase (JAK)1 and JAK2 inhibitor, ruxolitinib, and the active form of vitamin D (calcitriol) were previously reported to possess anticancer effects in breast cancer. The present study investigated the combined effects of ruxolitinib and calcitriol on an estrogen receptor (ER)-positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive, breast cancer cell line. The ER and HER2-positive MCF7-HER18 breast cancer cell line was used to investigate the combination effect of ruxolitinib and calcitriol. A bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) assay was used to investigate cell growth inhibition. The synergism of this combination therapy was examined using the Chou-Talalay method. Cell cycle analysis was performed by flow cytometry, and apoptosis was evaluated by flow cytometry following Annexin V-fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) and propidium iodide (PI) staining. Alterations in protein expression levels were analyzed by western blotting. The BrdU assay indicated that combination treatment using ruxolitinib and calcitriol produced a synergistic anti-proliferative effect in MCF7-HER18 breast cancer cells. Annexin V-FITC/PI staining and cell cycle analysis identified a synergistic increase in apoptosis and sub-G1 arrest in the presence of ruxolitinib and calcitriol. Western blot analysis revealed that these synergistic effects of ruxolitinib and calcitriol were associated with reduced protein levels of JAK2, phosphorylated JAK2, c-Myc proto oncogene protein, cyclin-D1, apoptosis regulator Bcl-2 and Bcl-2-like protein 1, and with increased levels of caspase-3 and Bcl-2-associated agonist of cell death proteins. The results of the present study demonstrated the synergistic anticancer effects of ruxolitinib and calcitriol in ER and HER2-positive MCF7-HER18 breast cancer cells. Based on these findings, ruxolitinib and calcitriol may have potential as a combination therapy for patients with ER and HER2-positive breast cancer.
Deferoxamine promotes mesenchymal stem cell homing in noise‐induced injured cochlea through PI3K/AKT pathway

Over 5% of the world's population suffers from disabling hearing loss. Stem cell homing in target tissue is an important aspect of cell‐based therapy, which its augmentation increases cell therapy efficiency. Deferoxamine (DFO) can induce the Akt activation, and phosphorylation status of AKT (p‐AKT) upregulates CXC chemokine receptor‐4 (CXCR4) expression. We examined whether DFO can enhance mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) homing in noise‐induced damaged cochlea by PI3K/AKT dependent mechanism.
Effect of heating on the hemodynamic responses to vasoactive agents.

During hyperthermia, vasoconstrictor tone in the viscera is lost despite high levels of sympathetic neural outflow and plasma catecholamines, suggesting that vascular responsiveness to adrenergic receptor stimulation is reduced. The purpose of this study was to determine whether adrenoceptor-mediated control of vascular resistance is altered at high body core temperatures. The hemodynamic responses to adrenoceptor agonists were examined in chloralose-anesthetized rats heated to colonic temperatures (Tco) of 37, 39, and 41.5°C. Elevating Tco to 39°C did not alter the hemodynamic responses to any of these agents. Further heating to 41.5°C markedly attenuated the hemodynamic responses to α- and β-adrenoceptor agonists. Similarly, the regional and systemic hemodynamic responses to ANG II and endothelin were also reduced at 41.5°C. In contrast, the hemodynamic responses to endothelium-dependent and -independent vasodilator agents were unchanged or slightly reduced at 41.5°C. The blunted hemodynamic responses observed at 41.5°C indicate that vascular reactivity to vasoconstrictor agents is reduced with hyperthermia and suggest that this nonspecific change in vascular responsiveness may contribute the circulatory collapse associated with high body temperatures.
Single vs two implant-retained overdentures for edentulous mandibles: a systematic review.

PURPOSE To compare prosthesis and implant failure, patient satisfaction, prosthetic complications and peri-implant marginal bone loss of mandibular overdentures (IOD) supported by a single or two implants. MATERIALS AND METHODS Manual and electronic database (PubMed and Cochrane) searches were performed to identify randomised controlled trials, without language restriction, comparing single vs two implant supported mandibular overdentures. Two investigators extracted data independently. The Cochrane tool was used for assessing the quality of included studies. Meta-analyses were performed for the included RCTs. RESULTS Six publications corresponding to four RCTs were identified. Three RCTs (corresponding to five publications) were included and one trial was excluded. Follow-ups in function were 1, 3 and 5 years after loading. All included studies were considered to be at a high risk of bias. The pooled result revealed more prosthesis failures at overdentures supported by two implants at 1 year (three trials) (P = 0.02; Risk Difference: -0.12, 95% CI: -0.22, -0.02), however, there were non-significant differences at 3 years (two trials) (P = 0.22; Risk Difference: -0.32, 95% CI: -0.83, 0.19) and at 5 years (one trial) (P = 0.95; Risk Difference: 0.01, 95% CI: -0.22, 0.24). Regarding implant failures, there were more implant losses in overdentures supported by two implants at 1 year (three trials) (P = 0.02; Risk Difference: -0.12, 95% CI: -0.22, -0.02) and at 5 years (one trial) (P = 0.95; Risk Difference: -0.15, 95% CI: -0.28, -0.02), however, there were non-significant difference at 3 years (two trials) (P = 0.2; Risk Difference: -0.33, 95% CI: -0.84, 0.18). After 5 years in function, meta-analyses revealed that there were non-significant differences regarding overall prosthetic complications when mandibular overdentures supported by a single implant were compared with overdentures supported by two implants (P = 0.43; RD: 0.04, 95% CI: -0.06, 0.15). CONCLUSION Mandibular overdentures retained by a single implant have comparable results to those retained by two implants. However, this should be interpreted with caution as all the included studies were considered at a high risk of bias.
Involvement of TRPV1 in the expression and release of calcitonin gene-related peptide induced by rutaecarpine

The traditional Chinese herb Wu-Chu-Yu has been used to treat hypertension for hundreds of years. A previous study indicated that rutaecarpine was the effective component of Wu-Chu-Yu, which lowered blood pressure by elevating the expression level of calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP). The present study was performed to investigate the role of transient receptor potential cation channel subfamily V member 1 (TRPV1) in CGRP expression and release induced by rutaecarpine. Dorsal root ganglia (DRG) obtained from Sprague-Dawley rats were cultured to analyze the mRNA expression and release of CGRP. Calcium influx, as an indicator of TRPV1 activation, was measured in 293 cells with stable overexpression of TRPV1. The results demonstrated that the amount of CGRP in the cell culture supernatant and the mRNA expression of CGRPα and CGRPβ in DRG was upregulated by rutaecarpine in a concentration-dependent manner, and was inhibited by the TRPV1 receptor antagonist capsazepine. In addition, intracellular Ca2+ levels were increased by Rut in the aforementioned 293 cell line, indicating the activation of TRPV1 by Rut. Therefore, it was concluded that TRPV1 was involved in the expression and release of CGRP stimulated by rutaecarpine, which provided novel mechanistic understanding of the treatment of hypertension using the Chinese herb Wu-Chu-Yu.
Comparison of Zone-Features for Online Bengali and Devanagari Word Recognition Using HMM

This paper presents a comparative study of three feature extraction approaches for online handwritten word recognition of two major Indic scripts-Bengali and Devanagari using Hidden Markov Model (HMM). First approach uses feature extraction from whole stroke without local zone division after segmenting the word into its basic strokes. Whereas, other two approaches consider the segmentation of a word into its basic strokes and a local zone wise analysis of each online stroke. Among these two zone wise local features, one takes into account structural and directional features and other uses dominant points, detected from strokes using slope angles, to find the local features. These features are studied in HMM-based word recognition platform. From the comparative study of the word recognition results, we have noted that dominant point based local feature extraction provides best accuracies for both Bengali and Devanagari scripts. We have obtained 90.23% and 93.82% accuracies for Bengali and Devanagari scripts respectively.
Nitrated SP-A does not enhance adherence of Pneumocystis carinii to alveolar macrophages.

We investigated whether nitration of surfactant apoprotein (SP) A alters its ability to bind to mannose-containing saccharides on Pneumocystis carinii and its potential role in the mediation of P. carinii adherence to alveolar macrophages. Human SP-A was nitrated by incubation with tetranitromethane at pH 8.0 or synthetic peroxynitrite (ONOO-) at pH 7.4, which resulted in significant nitration of tyrosines in its carbohydrate recognition domain [0.63 ± 0.001 (SE) and 1.25 ± 0.02 mol nitrotyrosine/mol monomeric SP-A, respectively; n = 3 samples]. Binding of SP-A to P. carinii was calcium dependent and competitively inhibited by α-methyl-d-mannopyranoside. Nitration of SP-A by ONOO-or tetranitromethane decreases its binding to P. carinii by increasing its dissociation constant from 7.8 × 10-9 to 1.6 × 10-8 or 2.4 × 10-8 M, respectively, without significantly affecting the number of binding sites (7.1 × 106/ P. carinii organisms, assuming that the native molecular mass of oligomeric SP-A is 650 kDa). Furthermore, ONOO--nitrated SP-A failed to mediate the adherence and phagocytosis of P. carinii to rat alveolar macrophages as observed with normal SP-A. Binding of SP-A to rat alveolar macrophages was not altered by nitration. These results indicate that nitration of SP-A interferes with its ability to serve as a ligand for P. carinii adherence to alveolar macrophages at the site of the SP-A moleculeP. carinii interaction.
Intensified Sampling in Response to a Salmonella Heidelberg Outbreak Associated with Multiple Establishments Within a Single Poultry Corporation

Abstract On June 28, 2013, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) was notified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of an investigation of a multistate cluster of illnesses of Salmonella enterica serovar Heidelberg. Since case-patients in the cluster reported consumption of a variety of chicken products, FSIS used a simple likelihood-based approach using traceback information to focus on intensified sampling efforts. This article describes the multiphased product sampling approach taken by FSIS when epidemiologic evidence implicated chicken products from multiple establishments operating under one corporation. The objectives of sampling were to (1) assess process control of chicken slaughter and further processing and (2) determine whether outbreak strains were present in products from these implicated establishments. As part of the sample collection process, data collected by FSIS personnel to characterize product included category (whole chicken and type of chicken parts), brand, organic or conventional product, injection with salt solutions or flavorings, and whether product was skinless or skin-on. From the period September 9, 2013, through October 31, 2014, 3164 samples were taken as part of this effort. Salmonella percent positive declined from 19.7% to 5.3% during this timeframe as a result of regulatory and company efforts. The results of intensified sampling for this outbreak investigation informed an FSIS regulatory response and corrective actions taken by the implicated establishments. The company noted that a multihurdle approach to reduce Salmonella in products was taken, including on-farm efforts such as environmental testing, depopulation of affected flocks, disinfection of affected houses, vaccination, and use of various interventions within the establishments over the course of several months.
Thermomechanical properties of high martensitic Dual-phase steels related to dislocation structures and void damage evolution

Abstract This work provides an experimental analysis of the evolution of the microstructure of a DP1000 alloy submitted to thermomechanical loadings. A strong degradation of the mechanical properties is observed for temperatures higher than 423 K linked to microstructural damage mechanisms quantified by void density measurements. Transmission electron microscopy shows that different microstructure parameters such as ferrite grain size and shape, volume fraction of martensite and carbide precipitation need to be taken into account in order to understand the thermomechanical behaviour of DP1000 steels. A critical void area fraction and a critical equivalent plastic strain were identified from each temperature level and these parameters were considered as a fracture criterion in the Johnson–Cook model. These experimental results could help improving shaping processes of these alloys.