Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Host Restriction Factor Interferon-Inducible Transmembrane Protein 3 Inhibits Vaccinia Virus Infection

Interferons (IFNs) establish dynamic host defense mechanisms by inducing various IFN-stimulated genes that encodes many antiviral innate immune effectors. IFN-inducible transmembrane (IFITM) proteins have been identified as intrinsic antiviral effectors, which block the entry of a broad spectrum of enveloped RNA viruses by interrupting virus-endosomal fusion. However, antiviral activity of IFITM proteins against mammalian DNA virus has not been demonstrated till date. Here, we sought to investigate the antiviral activities and mechanisms of interferon-inducible transmembrane protein 3 (IFITM3) protein against poxvirus infection. Analysis of expression kinetics of cell endogenous IFITM3 protein indicated that vaccinia virus (VACV) infection suppressed its translation, which was independent of IRF3 phosphorylation triggered by VACV. Although silencing of endogenous IFITM proteins did not affect their baseline antiviral effects in the cell, it has reduced the IFN-α-mediated inhibition of VACV infection, and also modulated VACV-induced cell death. Moreover, we discovered that overexpression of IFITM3 significantly restricted VACV infection, replication and proliferation mainly by interfering with virus entry processes prior to the virus nucleocapsid entry into the cytoplasm. Interestingly, IFITM3 overexpression showed an impact on virus binding. Furthermore, IFITM3 interfered with the cytosolic entry of virus through low pH-dependent fashion. Taken together, our findings provide the first evidence of exogenously expressed IFITM3 protein restricting infection of an enveloped DNA virus, thus expanding their antiviral spectrum. This study further explores the complex mechanism and provides novel insights into the interaction between virus infection and host defense.
Blood Amyloid Beta Levels in Healthy, Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer’s Disease Individuals: Replication of Diastolic Blood Pressure Correlations and Analysis of Critical Covariates

Plasma amyloid beta (Aβ) levels are being investigated as potential biomarkers for Alzheimer’s disease. In AB128 cross-sectional study, a number of medical relevant correlates of blood Aβ40 or Aβ42 were analyzed in 140 subjects (51 Alzheimer’s disease patients, 53 healthy controls and 36 individuals diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment). We determined the association between multiple variables with Aβ40 and Aβ42 levels measured in three different blood compartments called i) Aβ directly accessible (DA) in the plasma, ii) Aβ recovered from the plasma matrix (RP) after diluting the plasma sample in a formulated buffer, and iii) associated with the remaining cellular pellet (CP). We confirmed that diastolic blood pressure (DBP) is consistently correlated with blood DA Aβ40 levels (r=-0.19, P=0.032). These results were consistent in the three phenotypic groups studied. Importantly, the observation resisted covariation with age, gender or creatinine levels. Observed effect size and direction of Aβ40 levels/DBP correlation are in accordance with previous reports. Of note, DA Aβ40 and the RP Aβ40 were also strongly associated with creatinine levels (r=0.599, P<<0.001) and to a lesser extent to urea, age, hematocrit, uric acid and homocysteine (p<0.001). DBP and the rest of statistical significant correlates identified should be considered as potential confounder factors in studies investigating blood Aβ levels as potential AD biomarker. Remarkably, the factors affecting Aβ levels in plasma (DA, RP) and blood cell compartments (CP) seem completely different.
Simulation and experimental validation of gaps and bridging in the automated fiber placement process

Abstract With the increasing demand for carbon fiber-reinforced parts in the aerospace industry, automated manufacturing methods such as automated fiber placement (AFP) are being established. To utilize AFP’s strong potential on multiple-curved surfaces such as chamfered sandwich structures, it is important to analyze and control emerging effects like gaps, bridging, and steering. An analytical relationship between path generation and effects of the AFP manufacture of chamfered sandwich structures have been found with good agreement to experimental tests. The deformation behavior of an industrially used compaction roller has been analyzed numerically and experimentally. The results show a nonuniform deformation behavior on flat and curved surfaces and the limited deformability of the compaction roller.
Query-Aware Locality-Sensitive Hashing for Approximate Nearest Neighbor Search

Locality-Sensitive Hashing (LSH) and its variants are the well-known indexing schemes for the c-Approximate Nearest Neighbor (c-ANN) search problem in high-dimensional Euclidean space. Traditionally, LSH functions are constructed in a query-oblivious manner in the sense that buckets are partitioned before any query arrives. However, objects closer to a query may be partitioned into different buckets, which is undesirable. Due to the use of query-oblivious bucket partition, the state-of-the-art LSH schemes for external memory, namely C2LSH and LSB-Forest, only work with approximation ratio of integer c ≥ 2. In this paper, we introduce a novel concept of query-aware bucket partition which uses a given query as the "anchor" for bucket partition. Accordingly, a query-aware LSH function is a random projection coupled with query-aware bucket partition, which removes random shift required by traditional query-oblivious LSH functions. Notably, query-aware bucket partition can be easily implemented so that query performance is guaranteed. We propose a novel query-aware LSH scheme named QALSH for c-ANN search over external memory. Our theoretical studies show that QALSH enjoys a guarantee on query quality. The use of query-aware LSH function enables QALSH to work with any approximation ratio c > 1. Extensive experiments show that QALSH outperforms C2LSH and LSB-Forest, especially in high-dimensional space. Specifically, by using a ratio c < 2, QALSH can achieve much better query quality.
Facial Expression Analysis under Partial Occlusion

Automatic machine-based Facial Expression Analysis (FEA) has made substantial progress in the past few decades driven by its importance for applications in psychology, security, health, entertainment, and human–computer interaction. The vast majority of completed FEA studies are based on nonoccluded faces collected in a controlled laboratory environment. Automatic expression recognition tolerant to partial occlusion remains less understood, particularly in real-world scenarios. In recent years, efforts investigating techniques to handle partial occlusion for FEA have seen an increase. The context is right for a comprehensive perspective of these developments and the state of the art from this perspective. This survey provides such a comprehensive review of recent advances in dataset creation, algorithm development, and investigations of the effects of occlusion critical for robust performance in FEA systems. It outlines existing challenges in overcoming partial occlusion and discusses possible opportunities in advancing the technology. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first FEA survey dedicated to occlusion and aimed at promoting better-informed and benchmarked future work.
Distorted weight perception correlates with disordered eating attitudes in Kuwaiti college women

Abstract Objective We investigated the presence of disordered eating attitudes and weight perception among young women at body mass index (BMI) values that correspond to underweight, normal weight, overweight, and obese weight status. Method Data were collected from 1,147 female undergraduate students (89% Kuwaiti nationals) recruited from Kuwait University through employment of the eating attitude test (EAT‐26) together with an anonymous, self‐administered questionnaire to determine the prevalence of symptomatology indicative of anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. Results The mean EAT‐26 scores differed significantly between the weight categories. More students with overweight and obesity scored above the established EAT‐26 cut off value indicating at risk of disordered eating compared to students who were at a normal weight or underweight (52.1% vs. 38.8%, respectively, X 2(1) =16.1, p < . 001). Logistic regression analyses showed significantly higher odds ratios (ORs) for the groups with overweight and obesity for dieting and bulimic behaviors, while women at normal and underweight had higher ORs for restrictive oral control behaviors associated with anorexia nervosa. Distorted weight perception was found in all weight categories. Discussion The high proportion of disordered eating attitudes among Kuwaiti college women could not be attributed to obesity alone as the type of disordered eating behavior varied more by weight perception than by weight status. The high levels of eating disorder related symptoms could be due to a combination of the social influences, diet, and lifestyle of college students. Such factors need to be considered by healthcare professionals as early as possible with more focused programs towards promotion of healthy weight for college students.
Genome-wide discovery of novel M1T1 group A streptococcal determinants important for fitness and virulence during soft-tissue infection

The Group A Streptococcus remains a significant human pathogen causing a wide array of disease ranging from self-limiting to life-threatening invasive infections. Epithelium (skin or throat) colonization with progression to the subepithelial tissues is the common step in all GAS infections. Here, we used transposon-sequencing (Tn-seq) to define the GAS 5448 genetic requirements for in vivo fitness in subepithelial tissue. A near-saturation transposon library of the M1T1 GAS 5448 strain was injected subcutaneously into mice, producing suppurative inflammation at 24 h that progressed to prominent abscesses with tissue necrosis at 48 h. The library composition was monitored en masse by Tn-seq and ratios of mutant abundance comparing the output (12, 24 and 48 h) versus input (T0) mutant pools were calculated for each gene. We identified a total of 273 subcutaneous fitness (scf) genes with 147 genes (55 of unknown function) critical for the M1T1 GAS 5448 fitness in vivo; and 126 genes (53 of unknown function) potentially linked to in vivo fitness advantage. Selected scf genes were validated in competitive subcutaneous infection with parental 5448. Two uncharacterized genes, scfA and scfB, encoding putative membrane-associated proteins and conserved among Gram-positive pathogens, were further characterized. Defined scfAB mutants in GAS were outcompeted by wild type 5448 in vivo, attenuated for lesion formation in the soft tissue infection model and dissemination to the bloodstream. We hypothesize that scfAB play an integral role in enhancing adaptation and fitness of GAS during localized skin infection, and potentially in propagation to other deeper host environments.
A Comparison of Vector and Raster GIS Methods for Calculating Landscape Metrics Used in Environmental Assessments

GIS-based measurements that combine native raster and native vector data are commonly used in environmental assessments. Most of these measurements can be calculated using either raster or vector data formats and processing methods. Raster processes are more commonly used because they can be significantly faster computationally than vector, but error is introduced in converting vector data to raster. This conversion error has been widely studied and quantified, but the impact on environmental assessment results has not been investigated. We examined four GIS-based measurements commonly used in environmental assessments for approximately 1000 watersheds in the state of Maryland and Washington, D.C. Each metric was calculated using vector and raster methods, and estimated values were compared using a paired t-test, Spearman rank correlation, and cluster analyses. Paired t-tests were used to determine the statistical significance of quantitative differences between methods, and Spearman rank correlation and cluster analyses were used to evaluate the impact of the differences on environmental assessments. Paired t-test results indicated significant quantitative differences between methods for three of the four metrics. However, Spearman ranks and cluster analyses indicated that the quantitative differences would not affect environmental assessment results. Spearman rank correlations between vector and raster values were greater than 0.98 for all comparisons. Cluster analyses resulted in identical assignment for 88 percent to over 98 percent of watersheds analyzed among vector and various raster methods.
Realized heritability of tonic immobility in White Leghorn hens: a replicated single generation test.

Fearfulness was measured as latency to recover from induced tonic immobility using White Leghorn hens from a population originated by crossing three different strains selected for egg number and egg weight. Realized heritability was calculated in a single generation selection experiment with eight replicates, each consisting of 76 40-wk-old females from which 21% were selected for decreased tonic immobility duration. A randomly selected control population was maintained for each replicate. Separately from this experiment, fear differences between ages and sexes were investigated at 1, 2, 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, 24, 28, and 32 wk. The realized heritability (.32 +/- .10) indicates that induced tonic immobility should respond to selection. It was numerically higher than the estimate calculated by half-sib analysis of variance in the base population (.18 +/- .07); the logarithmic transformation did not yield higher heritability estimates. Crossing effects were evaluated in two different crossbreds, i.e., Leghorn x Castellana and Buff Prat x White Prat, which suggested important negative heterotic effects for this fear-related trait (-31% and -54%, respectively). Significant (P < .05) quadratic and cubic variation between 1 and 32 wk of age was obtained in females and males, respectively; the involvement of these age effects make it difficult to generalize about realized heritability for tonic immobility. Tonic immobility increased from 32 to 72 wk. Differences between the sexes were apparent, males showing longer tonic immobility durations than females except in the postjuvenile period before sexual maturity, suggesting a relationship between this trait and hormonal changes.
Joblessness and Lost Earnings after Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome in a 1‐Year National Multicenter Study

Rationale: Following acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), joblessness is common but poorly understood. Objectives: To evaluate the timing of return to work after ARDS, and associated risk factors, lost earnings, and changes in healthcare coverage Methods: Over 12‐month longitudinal follow‐up, ARDS survivors from 43 U.S. ARDSNet hospitals provided employment and healthcare coverage data via structured telephone interviews. Factors associated with the timing of return to work were assessed using Fine and Gray regression analysis. Lost earnings were estimated using Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Measurements and Main Results: Of 922 consenting survivors, 386 (42%) were employed before ARDS (56% male; mean ± SD age, 45 ± 13 yr), with seven dying by 12‐month follow‐up. Of 379 previously employed 12‐month survivors, 166 (44%) were jobless at 12‐month follow‐up. Accounting for competing risks of death and retirement, half of enrolled and previously employed survivors returned to work by 13 weeks after hospital discharge, with 68% ever returning by 12 months. Delays in return to work were associated with longer hospitalization and older age among nonwhite survivors. Over 12‐month follow‐up, 274 (71%) survivors accrued lost earnings, averaging $26,949 ± $22,447 (60% of pre‐ARDS annual earnings). Jobless survivors experienced a 14% (95% confidence interval, 5‐22%; P = 0.002) absolute decrease in private health insurance (from 44% pre‐ARDS) and a 16% (95% confidence interval, 7‐24%; P < 0.001) absolute increase in Medicare and Medicaid (from 33%). Conclusions: At 12 months after ARDS, nearly one‐half of previously employed survivors were jobless. Post‐ARDS joblessness is associated with readily identifiable patient and hospital variables and accompanied by substantial lost earnings and a shift toward government‐funded healthcare coverage.
Evidence that an internal schema adapts swallowing to upper airway requirements

To swallow food and liquid safely, airway protection is essential. Upward and forward movements of the hyoid and larynx in the neck during swallowing vary in magnitude between individuals. In healthy human adults, hyoid and laryngeal movements during swallowing were scaled by differences in initial upper airway area before swallowing. Individuals increased laryngeal elevation during swallowing in response to increased airway opening before swallowing. We show that when upper airway protection requirements change, individuals use an internal sensorimotor scaling system to adapt movements to maintain swallow safety.
The Anticipated Renoprotective Effects of Sodium-glucose Cotransporter 2 Inhibitors

Sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2), which is specifically expressed on the apical side of proximal tubular cells, is involved in the reabsorption of most of the glucose filtered by the glomeruli, and its inhibitors are gaining publicity as potent antihyperglycemic drugs. In some clinical trials, SGLT2 inhibitors exerted cardiovascular and kidney protective effects, which appeared to be partly independent of the original glucose-lowering effect. SGLT2 inhibitors have both direct and indirect renoprotective effects. The direct effects involve the suppression of hyperplasia/hypertrophy, inflammation, and fibrosis in the proximal tubular cells, utilization of ketone bodies, restored tubuloglomerular feedback, decreased oxygen consumption, improvement in anemia, and preconditioning against ischemia/reperfusion. The indirect effects involve a reduction in insulin levels and resistance, uric acid concentration, body weight, and blood pressure. However, safety concerns remain, including consequences of an enhanced glucose load in the lower nephron, leg amputation, bone fractures, and therapeutic efficacy in patients with advanced chronic kidney disease.
The Steepness Ratio Technique: A New Method to Analyze ROSAT All-Sky Survey Extended Sources

In this first paper of a series we develop a new technique to analyze clusters of galaxies observed during the ROSAT All-Sky Survey (RASS). We call this method the steepness ratio technique (SRT). The SRT uses the convolution between the real RASS point-spread function and the cluster emission profile assumed to be a β model with the β parameter fixed to the value of 2/3. From the convolved source emission profile the SRT extracts total flux and extension (i.e., core radius) for each cluster. Using the steepness ratio (SR) and a control sample of RASS pointlike sources, we are able to assign to each RASS source a model-independent probability of extension. Potential biases arising from the hypotheses of a β-model emission profile and from a fixed β value are quantified. Tests with control samples of optically identified sources extracted from both the ROSAT survey database and from the ROSAT-PSPC pointed observations archive are performed to check the SRT output. We find that the source properties derived using the SRT on RASS data are consistent with those determined from ROSAT-PSPC pointed observations.
Mito-Nuclear Interactions Affecting Lifespan and Neurodegeneration in a Drosophila Model of Leigh Syndrome

Mitochondrial function requires coordinated activities of interacting proteins encoded in both the nuclear and mitochondrial genomes. Nuclear mutations cause human mitochondrial disorders that commonly exhibit unexplained clinical variability (e.g. age of onset and severity). Proper mitochondrial activity depends upon proteins encoded by genes in the nuclear and mitochondrial genomes that must interact functionally and physically in a precisely coordinated manner. Consequently, mito-nuclear allelic interactions are thought to be of crucial importance on an evolutionary scale, as well as for manifestation of essential biological phenotypes, including those directly relevant to human disease. Nonetheless, detailed molecular understanding of mito-nuclear interactions is still lacking, and definitive examples of such interactions in vivo are sparse. Here we describe the characterization of a mutation in Drosophila ND23, a nuclear gene encoding a highly conserved subunit of mitochondrial complex 1. This characterization led to the discovery of a mito-nuclear interaction that affects the ND23 mutant phenotype. ND23 mutants exhibit reduced lifespan, neurodegeneration, abnormal mitochondrial morphology, and decreased ATP levels. These phenotypes are similar to those observed in patients with Leigh syndrome, which is caused by mutations in a number of nuclear genes that encode mitochondrial proteins, including the human ortholog of ND23. A key feature of Leigh syndrome, and other mitochondrial disorders, is unexpected and unexplained phenotypic variability. We discovered that the phenotypic severity of ND23 mutations varies depending on the maternally inherited mitochondrial background. Sequence analysis of the relevant mitochondrial genomes identified several variants that are likely candidates for the phenotypic interaction with mutant ND23, including a variant affecting a mitochondrially encoded component of complex I. Thus, our work provides an in vivo demonstration of the phenotypic importance of mito-nuclear interactions in the context of mitochondrial disease.
Response of broiler chickens to addition of zinc bacitracin to diets containing salinomycin and roxarsone.

Five trials were conducted at various locations to determine the response of broiler chickens to the addition of zinc bacitracin to diets containing both salinomycin and roxarsone. Results indicate that when a combination of salinomycin and roxarsone is used as an anticoccidial, the addition of zinc bacitracin at 33 or 55 mg/kg diet will improve growth rate and feed utilization by broiler chickens. Regression of body weight and feed utilization on dietary levels of zinc bacitracin indicated that each milligram of zinc bacitracin in the diet increased the 49-day weight of broiler chickens by . 92 g and reduced the feed required per gram of gain by . 0012 g.
Low transfusion transmission of hepatitis E among 25,637 single‐donation, nucleic acid‐tested blood donors

Hepatitis E virus genotype‐3 (HEV‐gt‐3) causes autochthonous infections in western countries, with a primary reservoir in animals, especially pigs. HEV transfusion transmission has been reported, and HEV‐gt‐3 prevalence is high in some European countries. The prevalence of HEV RNA was investigated among Danish blood donors, and the prevalence of HEV transfusion‐transmitted infection (TTI) was investigated among recipients.
Fat absorption by germ-free chicks.

Abstract INTRODUCTION LITTLE information is available on the effect of intestinal flora on absorption of fat. Luckey (1963) reported that germ-free rats retained 96.8% of the fat from a synthetic diet containing 6.8% corn oil, but no data were given for the retention of fat or specific fatty acids from these diets by conventionally reared rats. Young et al. (1963) found that fatty acids were absorbed better by chicks when reared in a fumigated laboratory or when fed antibiotics than in a contaminated environment. This environmental effect on growth rate and requirement was also reported by Edwards and Boyd (1963a, b) for magnesium, phosphorus and calcium. The experiments described here were performed to compare the relative retentions of the major fatty acids of two diets by germ-free and conventionalized chicks. EXPERIMENTAL Four plastic germ-free isolators were employed with 2 cages, each containing 6 chicks, in each isolator. Operational procedures for the .