Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A preliminary study of 24-hour post-cesarean patient controlled analgesia: postoperative pain reports and morphine requests/utilization are greater in abstaining smokers than non-smokers.

BACKGROUND Previous clinical studies have not examined the relationship between nicotine abstinence and opioid use for postoperative analgesia. This may be important because tobacco smokers are routinely required to abstain from smoking just before and during acute post-surgical recovery. This study investigated IV morphine self-administration [patient controlled analgesia (PCA)], subjective pain/drug effects and other measures during post-operative (elective Cesarean section) recovery. MATERIAL/METHODS Seven females, selected to vary in nicotine use [4 non-using controls (CON), 3 users (NIC)], completed the protocol. Gender, time and type of surgery, and pre- and intra-operative medications were controlled. Subject assessments included the McGill Pain Questionnaire and the Profile of Mood States; drug effects were measured using the Addiction Research Center Inventory. RESULTS Mean (M +/-SD) 24-hr morphine responding (button-pressing requests) was significantly higher for NIC (M=183+/-50) than CON (M=38+/-10). Weight-adjusted morphine use (mg/kg/24 hr) was significantly higher for NIC (M=1.80+/-0.23) than CON (M=0.64+/-0.14). Although the groups reported similar pain severity following morphine loading, NIC patients reported significantly greater pain severity than CON patients after 24 hr PCA. CONCLUSIONS These preliminary data suggest that a history of nicotine use and/or short-term nicotine abstinence can modulate morphine use and analgesia during post-operative recovery. These procedures provide a model for studying patterns and determinants of analgesic self-administration in medical settings.
The Flavonoid Pathway in Tomato Seedlings: Transcript Abundance and the Modeling of Metabolite Dynamics

Flavonoids are secondary metabolites present in all terrestrial plants. The flavonoid pathway has been extensively studied, and many of the involved genes and metabolites have been described in the literature. Despite this extensive knowledge, the functioning of the pathway in vivo is still poorly understood. Here, we study the flavonoid pathway using both experiments and mathematical models. We measured flavonoid metabolite dynamics in two tissues, hypocotyls and cotyledons, during tomato seedling development. Interestingly, the same backbone of interactions leads to very different accumulation patterns in the different tissues. Initially, we developed a mathematical model with constant enzyme concentrations that described the metabolic networks separately in both tissues. This model was unable to fit the measured flavonoid dynamics in the hypocotyls, even if we allowed unrealistic parameter values. This suggested us to investigate the effect of transcript abundance on flavonoid accumulation. We found that the expression of candidate flavonoid genes varies considerably with time. Variation in transcript abundance results in enzymatic variation, which could have a large effect on metabolite accumulation. Candidate transcript abundance was included in the mathematical model as representative for enzyme concentration. We fitted the resulting model to the flavonoid dynamics in the cotyledons, and tested it by applying it to the data from hypocotyls. When transcript abundance is included, we are indeed able to explain flavonoid dynamics in both tissues. Importantly, this is possible under the biologically relevant restriction that the enzymatic properties estimated by the model are conserved between the tissues.
Neuroinflammation in Autism Spectrum Disorders: Role of High Mobility Group Box 1 Protein

The pathogenesis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) likely involves genetic and environmental factors, impacting the complex neurodevelopmental and behavioral abnormalities of the disorder. Scientific research studies emerging within the past two decades suggest that immune dysfunction and inflammation have pathogenic influences through different mechanisms, all leading to both a chronic state of low grade inflammation, and alterations in the central nervous system and immune response, respectively. The high mobility group box-1 protein (HMGB1) is an inflammatory marker which has been shown to play a role in inducing and influencing neuroinflammation. Current evidences suggest a possible role in the multiple pathogenic mechanisms of ASD. The aim of this manuscript is to review the major hypothesis for ASD pathogenesis, with specific regards to the immunological ones, and to provide a comprehensive review of the current data about the association between HMGB1 and ASD. A systematic search has been carried out through Medline via Pubmed to identify all original articles published in English, on the basis of the following keywords: “HMGB1”, “autism”, “autism spectrum disorder”, “neuroinflammation”, and “child”.
Magnetic stripes and skyrmions with helicity reversals

It was recently realized that topological spin textures do not merely have mathematical beauty but can also give rise to unique functionalities of magnetic materials. An example is the skyrmion—a nano-sized bundle of noncoplanar spins—that by virtue of its nontrivial topology acts as a flux of magnetic field on spin-polarized electrons. Lorentz transmission electron microscopy recently emerged as a powerful tool for direct visualization of skyrmions in noncentrosymmetric helimagnets. Topologically, skyrmions are equivalent to magnetic bubbles (cylindrical domains) in ferromagnetic thin films, which were extensively explored in the 1970s for data storage applications. In this study we use Lorentz microscopy to image magnetic domain patterns in the prototypical magnetic oxide–M-type hexaferrite with a hint of scandium. Surprisingly, we find that the magnetic bubbles and stripes in the hexaferrite have a much more complex structure than the skyrmions and spirals in helimagnets, which we associate with the new degree of freedom—helicity (or vector spin chirality) describing the direction of spin rotation across the domain walls. We observe numerous random reversals of helicity in the stripe domain state. Random helicity of cylindrical domain walls coexists with the positional order of magnetic bubbles in a triangular lattice. Most unexpectedly, we observe regular helicity reversals inside skyrmions with an unusual multiple-ring structure.
In vitro expansion of human glioblastoma cells at non-physiological oxygen tension irreversibly alters subsequent in vivo aggressiveness and AC133 expression

Among markers of glioblastoma initiating cells, AC133 has been shown to be associated with glioblastoma resistance and malignancy. Recently, it was demonstrated that increasing oxygen tension (pO2) down-regulated AC133 expression in glioblastoma cells in vitro. In order to better understand extrinsic factor regulation of AC133, this work aimed to investigate the relationship between cell culture pO2, AC133 expression, and tumor development and phenotype. Using treatments with CoCl2 and HIF-1α shRNA knockdowns on non-sorted human primary glioblastoma cells cultured at low (3%) versus high (21%) oxygen tension, we established a responsibility for low pO2 in the maintenance of high levels of AC133 expression, with a major but non-exclusive role for HIF-1α. We also demonstrated that human glioblastoma cells previously cultured under high oxygen tension can lose part of their aggressiveness when orthotopically engrafted in SCID mice or lead to tumors with distinct phenotypes and no re-expression of AC133. These observations showed that the specific pO2 microenvironment irreversibly impacts glioblastoma cell phenotypes, highlighting the pertinence of culture conditions when extrapolating data from xenogenic models to human cells in their source environment. They also raised AC133 as a marker of non-exposure to oxygenated areas rather than a marker of aggressiveness or low pO2 niches.
A comparative study of multiple approaches to soil hydraulic parameter scaling applied at the hillslope scale

Soil hydraulic parameters were upscaled from a 30 m resolution to a 1 km resolution using four different aggregation schemes across the Little Washita watershed in Oklahoma. A topography‐based aggregation scheme, a simple homogenization method, a Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC)‐based stochastic technique, and a Bayesian neural network (BNN) approach to the upscaling problem were analyzed in this study. The equivalence of the upscaled parameters was tested by simulating water flow for the watershed pixels in HYDRUS‐3‐D, and comparing the resultant soil moisture states with data from the electronically scanned thin array radiometer (ESTAR) airborne sensor during the SGP97 hydrology experiment. The watershed was divided into pixels of 1 km resolution and the effective soil hydraulic parameters obtained for each pixel. The domains were then simulated using the physics‐based HYDRUS‐3‐D platform. Simulated soil moisture states were compared across scales, and the coarse scale values compared against the ESTAR soil moisture data products during the SGP97 hydrology experiment period. Results show considerable correlations between simulated and observed soil moisture states across time, topographic variations, location, elevation, and land cover for techniques that incorporate topographic information in their routines. Results show that the inclusion of topography in the hydraulic parameter scaling algorithm accounts for much of the variability. The topography‐based scaling algorithm, followed by the BNN technique, were able to capture much of the variation in soil hydraulic parameters required to generate equivalent soil moisture states in a coarsened domain. The homogenization and MCMC methods, which did not account for topographic variations, performed poorly in providing effective soil hydraulic parameters at the coarse scale.
Chromosomal abnormalities in couples with repeated fetal loss: An Indian retrospective study

BACKGROUND: Recurrent pregnancy loss is a common occurrence and a matter of concern for couples planning the pregnancy. Chromosomal abnormalities, mainly balanced rearrangements, are common in couples with repeated miscarriages. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the contribution of chromosomal anomalies causing repeated spontaneous miscarriages and provide detailed characterization of a few structurally altered chromosomes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective cytogenetic study was carried out on 4859 individuals having a history of recurrent miscarriages. The cases were analyzed using G-banding and fluorescence in situ hybridization wherever necessary. RESULTS: Chromosomal rearrangements were found in 170 individuals (3.5%). Translocations were seen in 72 (42.35%) cases. Of these, reciprocal translocations constituted 42 (24.70%) cases while Robertsonian translocations were detected in 30 (17.64%) cases. 7 (4.11%) cases were mosaic, 8 (4.70%) had small supernumerary marker chromosomes and 1 (0.6%) had an interstitial microdeletion. Nearly, 78 (1.61%) cases with heteromorphic variants were seen of which inversion of Y chromosome (57.70%) and chromosome 9 pericentromeric variants (32.05%) were predominantly involved. CONCLUSIONS: Chromosomal analysis is an important etiological investigation in couples with repeated miscarriages. Characterization of variants/marker chromosome enable calculation of a more precise recurrent risk in a subsequent pregnancy thereby facilitating genetic counseling and deciding further reproductive options.
Human papillomavirus in oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas in korea: Use of G1 cycle markers as new prognosticators

Human papillomavirus (HPV)‐related oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) exhibits distinct patterns worldwide, but its prevalence has not been extensively evaluated in Korea. The E7 oncogene‐mediated carcinogenesis and its meaning are yet to be uncovered for oropharyngeal SCCs.
Brain Training Games Enhance Cognitive Function in Healthy Subjects

Background Brain training games (BTG) are believed to play a major role in improving cognitive functions. The current study evaluated if BTG showed positive impact on attention and memory functions compared with baseline visit in healthy subjects. Material/Methods The study was carried out from October 2015 until April 2016 in the Department of Physiology, College of Medicine, King Saud University and in King Khalid University Hospital (KKUH), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. We enrolled 51 normal healthy subjects to use a computerized cognitive training game (Lumosity) for exercises that target a range of cognitive functions, including attention, processing speed, visual memory, and executive functions for about 15 min per day, at least 7 days per week, for 3 weeks. The control (n=21) group did not perform the training. Both groups took the CANTAB test before and 3 weeks after training for various cognitive functions (flexibility, memory, attention, speed, and problem solving). Serum samples were used to study the brain-derived growth factor (BDNF) and apolipoprotein (Apo) E (APOE) levels. Results A significant improvement in Lumosity performance index was observed in the active group compared to the control group by the end of training (p-value 0.001). After the training, a statistically significant difference in most of the CANTAB measures, such as attention-switching task (AST), mean correct latency, AST switching cost, AST mean correct latency (congruent), AST mean correct latency (incongruent), AST mean correct latency (blocks 3 and 5) [non-switching blocks], AST mean correct latency (block 7) [switching block], and MOT mean correct latency (all P=0.000). However, in the control group, significant improvements were not observed. A positive correlation between pattern recognition memory (PRM) and APOE was found and people who had higher ApoE levels had faster response. Conclusions An improvement in different cognitive domains was noted, including attention and motor speed. However, this study warrants further research to determine the long-term effect on other cognitive functions and in different groups (e.g., elderly vs. adults).
Regionally clustered ABCC8 polymorphisms in a prospective cohort predict cerebral oedema and outcome in severe traumatic brain injury

Objective ABCC8 encodes sulfonylurea receptor 1, a key regulatory protein of cerebral oedema in many neurological disorders including traumatic brain injury (TBI). Sulfonylurea-receptor-1 inhibition has been promising in ameliorating cerebral oedema in clinical trials. We evaluated whether ABCC8 tag single-nucleotide polymorphisms predicted oedema and outcome in TBI. Methods DNA was extracted from 485 prospectively enrolled patients with severe TBI. 410 were analysed after quality control. ABCC8 tag single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified (Hapmap, r2>0.8, minor-allele frequency >0.20) and sequenced (iPlex-Gold, MassArray). Outcomes included radiographic oedema, intracranial pressure (ICP) and 3-month Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) score. Proxy SNPs, spatial modelling, amino acid topology and functional predictions were determined using established software programs. Results Wild-type rs7105832 and rs2237982 alleles and genotypes were associated with lower average ICP (β=−2.91, p=0.001; β=−2.28, p=0.003) and decreased radiographic oedema (OR 0.42, p=0.012; OR 0.52, p=0.017). Wild-type rs2237982 also increased favourable 3-month GOS (OR 2.45, p=0.006); this was partially mediated by oedema (p=0.03). Different polymorphisms predicted 3-month outcome: variant rs11024286 increased (OR 1.84, p=0.006) and wild-type rs4148622 decreased (OR 0.40, p=0.01) the odds of favourable outcome. Significant tag and concordant proxy SNPs regionally span introns/exons 2–15 of the 39-exon gene. Conclusions This study identifies four ABCC8 tag SNPs associated with cerebral oedema and/or outcome in TBI, tagging a region including 33 polymorphisms. In polymorphisms predictive of oedema, variant alleles/genotypes confer increased risk. Different variant polymorphisms were associated with favourable outcome, potentially suggesting distinct mechanisms. Significant polymorphisms spatially clustered flanking exons encoding the sulfonylurea receptor site and transmembrane domain 0/loop 0 (juxtaposing the channel pore/binding site). This, if validated, may help build a foundation for developing future strategies that may guide individualised care, treatment response, prognosis and patient selection for clinical trials.
PISCES-v2: an ocean biogeochemical model for carbon and ecosystem studies

Abstract. PISCES-v2 (Pelagic Interactions Scheme for Carbon and Ecosystem Studies volume 2) is a biogeochemical model which simulates the lower trophic levels of marine ecosystems (phytoplankton, microzooplankton and mesozooplankton) and the biogeochemical cycles of carbon and of the main nutrients (P, N, Fe, and Si). The model is intended to be used for both regional and global configurations at high or low spatial resolutions as well as for short-term (seasonal, interannual) and long-term (climate change, paleoceanography) analyses. There are 24 prognostic variables (tracers) including two phytoplankton compartments (diatoms and nanophytoplankton), two zooplankton size classes (microzooplankton and mesozooplankton) and a description of the carbonate chemistry. Formulations in PISCES-v2 are based on a mixed Monod–quota formalism. On the one hand, stoichiometry of C / N / P is fixed and growth rate of phytoplankton is limited by the external availability in N, P and Si. On the other hand, the iron and silicon quotas are variable and the growth rate of phytoplankton is limited by the internal availability in Fe. Various parameterizations can be activated in PISCES-v2, setting, for instance, the complexity of iron chemistry or the description of particulate organic materials. So far, PISCES-v2 has been coupled to the Nucleus for European Modelling of the Ocean (NEMO) and Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) systems. A full description of PISCES-v2 and of its optional functionalities is provided here. The results of a quasi-steady-state simulation are presented and evaluated against diverse observational and satellite-derived data. Finally, some of the new functionalities of PISCES-v2 are tested in a series of sensitivity experiments.
Laminar Flame Combustion Diagnostics Using Imaging Fourier Transform Spectroscopy

Combustion diagnostics is a mature field of inquiry with a host of pre-existing experimental research methods. Currently, however, no one method captures timeresolved scalar profile estimates of temperature and major species concentrations with a single instrument. Imaging Fourier transform spectroscopy (IFTS) has the potential to fill that void. IFTS offers several unique advantages for combustion diagnostics such as portability, ease of operation, and the combination of imaging and wide band spectral data. Moderate spectral resolution (up to 0.25 cm−1) across a wide band pass (1.5μm to 5.5μm) captures radiance from many major combustion species simultaneously. High-speed imagery existing within the interferometric measurement can be used with existing flow field analyses performed by infrared cameras. This work provides IFTS with the capability to measure time-resolved 3D imaging of scalar values in laminar axisymmetric flames. This will make IFTS a useful tool for future work in understanding combustion phenomenon, validating chemical kinetic models, verifying numerical simulations, and system performance estimate. Using an IFTS camera, data of a partially-premixed ethylene Hencken burner flame produced at equivalence ratios of 0.8, 0.9, 1.1, and 1.3 was captured. A novel calibration methodology was developed for high-temperature flame sources. A single-layer radiative transfer model retrieved path-averaged temperature, H2O, CO2 and CO column densities that agreed well with previous results. For the Φ = 1.1 flame, the spectrally estimated temperature for a single pixel T = (2318±19)K, compared to reported laser absorption measurements, T = (2348±115)K, and a NASA CEA equilibrium calculation, T = 2389 K. Near the base of the flame, absolute concentrations of H2O, CO2, and CO were (12.5±1.7)%, (10.1±1.0)%, and (3.8±0.3)%, respectively. These compared
Resistance to Botrytis cinerea Induced in Arabidopsis by Elicitors Is Independent of Salicylic Acid, Ethylene, or Jasmonate Signaling But Requires PHYTOALEXIN DEFICIENT31[W]

Oligogalacturonides (OGs) released from plant cell walls by pathogen polygalacturonases induce a variety of host defense responses. Here we show that in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), OGs increase resistance to the necrotrophic fungal pathogen Botrytis cinerea independently of jasmonate (JA)-, salicylic acid (SA)-, and ethylene (ET)-mediated signaling. Microarray analysis showed that about 50% of the genes regulated by OGs, including genes encoding enzymes involved in secondary metabolism, show a similar change of expression during B. cinerea infection. In particular, expression of PHYTOALEXIN DEFICIENT3 (PAD3) is strongly up-regulated by both OGs and infection independently of SA, JA, and ET. OG treatments do not enhance resistance to B. cinerea in the pad3 mutant or in underinducer after pathogen and stress1, a mutant with severely impaired PAD3 expression in response to OGs. Similarly to OGs, the bacterial flagellin peptide elicitor flg22 also enhanced resistance to B. cinerea in a PAD3-dependent manner, independently of SA, JA, and ET. This work suggests, therefore, that elicitors released from the cell wall during pathogen infection contribute to basal resistance against fungal pathogens through a signaling pathway also activated by pathogen-associated molecular pattern molecules.
Phylogeography of the Lacerta viridis complex: mitochondrial and nuclear markers provide taxonomic insights

Based on broad, nearly rangewide sampling, we reanalysed the phylogeography of the Lacerta viridis complex using the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene and the intron 7 of the nuclear β-fibrinogen gene. Using the mitochondrial marker, we identified in phylogenetic analyses 10 terminal clades clustering in four deeply divergent main lineages whose relationships are weakly resolved. These lineages correspond to Lacerta bilineata, L. viridis, the previously identified Adriatic or West Balkan lineage and a newly discovered fourth lineage from the Anatolian Black Sea coast and the south-eastern Balkan Peninsula. Except for the latter lineage, there is considerable phylogeographic structuring in each lineage, with higher diversity in the south of the distribution ranges. This pattern indicates the existence of two distinct microrefugia in the Italian Peninsula and Sicily and of up to seven microrefugia in the Balkan Peninsula, but of only one refugium along the Black Sea coast of Anatolia. We identified secondary contact zones of the main lineages and of terminal clades within these lineages. However, most of the formerly described putative contact zone of L. bilineata and L. viridis turned out to be a contact zone between the Adriatic lineage and L. viridis, but L. bilineata seems to be involved only marginally. Our nuclear marker could not unambiguously resolve whether there is gene flow in contact zones. Thus, further research is necessary to decide whether the four main lineages are conspecific or whether they represent distinct biological species. We restrict the name L. v. meridionalis to the newly identified genetic lineage from Turkey and south-eastern Europe, synonymize some previously recognized taxa and suggest a tentative nomenclature for the L. viridis complex.