Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Toward a Deuterium Feather Isoscape for Sub-Saharan Africa: Progress, Challenges and the Path Ahead

A key challenge to the application of continent-wide feather isoscapes for geographic assignment of migrant birds is the lack of ground-truthed samples. This is especially true for long-distance Palearctic-Afrotropical migrants. We used spatially-explicit information on the δ 2H composition of archived feathers from Green-backed/Grey-backed Camaroptera, to create a feather δ 2H isoscape for sub-Saharan Africa. We sampled from 34 out of 41 sub-Saharan countries, totaling 205 sampling localities. Feather samples were obtained from museum collections (n = 224, from 1950 to 2014) for δ 2H assay. Region, altitude, annual rainfall and seasonal patterns in precipitation were revealed as relevant explanatory variables for spatial patterns in feather δ 2H. Predicted feather δ 2H values ranged from -4.0 ‰ to -63.3 ‰, with higher values observed in the Great Rift Valley and South Africa, and lower values in central Africa. Our feather isoscape differed from that modelled previously using a precipitation δ 2H isoscape and an assumed feather-to-precipitation calibration, but the relatively low model goodness fit (F10,213 = 5.98, p<0.001, R2 = 0.18) suggests that other, non-controlled variables might be driving observed geographic patterns in feather δ 2H values. Additional ground-truthing studies are therefore recommended to improve the accuracy of the African feather δ 2H isoscape.
Estrus Cycle Status Defined by Vaginal Cytology Does Not Correspond to Fluctuations of Circulating Estrogens in Female Mice

ABSTRACT Gender-oriented studies in shock, trauma, and/or sepsis require accurate monitoring of hormonal fluctuations as estrogens may influence various end points. Yet, monitoring is challenging in small laboratory animals: e.g., despite its subjectivity, vaginal smears are the major method for determination of estrus cycle phases in mice. Using female mice of different age, we aimed to (a) characterize general age-related changes in systemic estrogens and (b) examine the utility of determination of the estrus cycle by vaginal smears and/or impedance simultaneously comparing them with oscillation of systemic estrogens. In this study, 3-, 15-, and 20-month-old mice underwent vaginal smear and impedance examination each morning for 22 days. Ten hours after each morning checkup, feces were collected, and a second vaginal smear performed. Blood was collected on days 15 and 22. In 3-month-old females, estrus (by smears) was three times more frequent than in older mice, but mean concentrations of plasma and fecal estrogens never decreased with age. Collectively (not individually) plotted fecal estrogens values increased in the proestrus/estrus interphase (by smears) in 3-month-old mice only. Impedance typically peaked (4.5 &OHgr; in 3-month-old mice) in the estrus phase, and only the prediction of estrus (highest area under the curve = 0.87 in 3-month-old) but not of other phases was possible. Regardless of age, individual cycle phase (by smears) never correlated with corresponding fecal estrogens, and estrus could not be predicted. In conclusion, while the fecal estrogens oscillation and frequency of estrus phase were affected by age, the systemic hormone release persisted. In mice, vaginal cytology did not reflect changes of systemic (fecal) estrogens, whereas impedance accurately identified estrus. The flaws and advantages of the examined monitoring methods should be considered in the design of future shock studies.
Seismic stability of slope using modified pseudo-dynamic method

Abstract The paper presents evaluation of factor of safety of slope assuming circular failure surface under seismic loading condition. The centre of most critical circle is located using Fellenius method. Adopting limit equilibrium method, under the influence of weight of potential sliding mass and seismic inertia forces, factor of safety is evaluated applying new pseudo-dynamic method based on visco-elastic behaviour of soil which satisfies zero-stress boundary condition and considers soil amplification inherent to soil properties. Results are presented and compared with available results from literature. Detailed parametric studies are also carried out to observe the variation of safety factor at different soil strength and seismic forces and these can serve as very good criteria for design of slopes.
Regulatory T Cells Are Protective in Systemic Inflammation Response Syndrome Induced by Zymosan in Mice

Systemic inflammation response syndrome (SIRS) is a key and mainly detrimental process in the pathophysiology of multiple organ dysfunction syndrome. The balance of pro-inflammation and anti-inflammation controls the initiation and development of SIRS. However, the endogenous counterregulatory immune mechanisms that are involved in the development of SIRS are not well understood. CD4+CD25+Foxp3 (forkhead box P3)+ regulatory T lymphocytes (Treg cells) play a key role in the immunological balance of the body. Thus, our aim was to investigate the contribution of these key immunomodulators (Treg cells) to the immune dysfunction that is observed in zymosan-induced SIRS in mice. We first evaluated the level of Treg cells in the lung of mice 6 h, 1 d, 2 d, 3 d, 5 d, and 7 d after the injection of zymosan or normal saline by western blot, real-time PCR and flow cytometry. We found that the number of Treg cells and the levels of the Treg cell-related transcription factor (Foxp3) and cytokines (IL-10) in the zymosan-treated group significantly decreased on day 1 and day 2 and significantly increased on day 5 compared with the NS-treated group. In the next experiment, the mice were injected with 200 μg of anti-CD25 mAb (clone PC61) to deplete the Treg cells and then injected with zymosan 2 days later. The number of Treg cells decreased by more than 50% after the injection of the PC61 mAb. In addition, the expression of the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 also decreased. Moreover, the depletion of the Treg cells profoundly increased the mice'mortality and the degree of lung tissue injury. In conclusion, Treg cells tend to play a protective role in pathogenesis of the zymosan-induced generalized inflammation, and IL-10 signaling is associated with their immunomodulatory effect.
An origami-inspired cargo drone

Multicopters stand to revolutionize parcel delivery because of their capability to operate in areas with unsuitable road infrastructure and precisely maneuver in cluttered environments. However, current multicopters for delivery can be dangerous for people, and are difficult to store and transport. Safety issues arise because users are exposed to unshielded spinning propellers. Transportation to the place of deployment and storage is often impaired by the large size that is required for heavy lifting. This paper addresses these limitations by proposing the integration of a quadcopter into a foldable protective cage. The cage provides an all-round protective structure that physically separates the propellers from the environment, ensuring the safety of people. The drone and the cage can be easily folded with a single movement, significantly reducing its size for ease of storage and transportation. This design has been validated with a quadcopter that can lift parcels up to 500 g and reduce its storage volume by 92% when folded.
Clinical results of coracoacromial ligament transfer in acromioclavicular dislocations: A review of published literature

Acromioclavicular joint dislocations are common injuries, which typically occur with trauma in young men. Treatment recommendations for these injuries are highly variable and controversial. There are greater than 100 surgical techniques described for operative treatment of this injury. One of the most widely recommended methods of surgical reconstruction for acromioclavicular joint dislocations is to utilize the coracoacromial ligament for stabilization of the distal clavicle. Several modifications of this procedure have been described which have involved adjunct coracoclavicular fixation or fixation across acromioclavicular joint. Although the literature is replete with descriptive papers, there is paucity of studies evaluating the surgical outcome of this procedure. We systematically reviewed the English language published literature in peer reviewed journals (Medline, EMBASE, SCOPUS) and assigned a level of evidence for available studies. We critically reviewed each paper for the flaws and biases and then evaluated the comparable clinical outcomes for various procedures and their modifications. The published literature consists entirely of case series (Level IV evidence) with variability in surgical technique and outcome measures. On review there is low level evidence to support the use of coracoacromial ligament for acromioclavicular dislocation but it has been associated with high rate of deformity recurrence. Adjunct fixation does not improve clinical results when compared to isolated coracoacromial ligament transfer. This is in part because of the high incidence of fixation related complications. Similar results are reported with coracoacromial ligament reconstruction for acute and chronic cases. The development of secondary acromioclavicular joint symptoms with distal clavicle retention is poorly reported with the incidence rate varying from 12% to 32%. Despite this, the retention or excision of distal clavicle did not affect overall clinical results except in the patients with pre existing acromioclavicular joint osteoarthritis who have inferior results with retention of distal end of clavicle. Further well designed clinical trials with validated outcome measures are required to fully evaluate the clinical results of this procedure.
Innovative Approach for Improvement of an Antibiotic-Overproducing Industrial Strain of Streptomyces albus

ABSTRACT Working with a Streptomyces albus strain that had previously been bred to produce industrial amounts (10 mg/ml) of salinomycin, we demonstrated the efficacy of introducing drug resistance-producing mutations for further strain improvement. Mutants with enhanced salinomycin production were detected at a high incidence (7 to 12%) among spontaneous isolates resistant to streptomycin (Strr), gentamicin, or rifampin (Rifr). Finally, we successfully demonstrated improvement of the salinomycin productivity of the industrial strain by 2.3-fold by introducing a triple mutation. The Strr mutant was shown to have a point mutation within the rpsL gene (encoding ribosomal protein S12). Likewise, the Rifr mutant possessed a mutation in the rpoB gene (encoding the RNA polymerase β subunit). Increased productivity of salinomycin in the Strr mutant (containing the K88R mutation in the S12 protein) may be a result of an aberrant protein synthesis mechanism. This aberration may manifest itself as enhanced translation activity in stationary-phase cells, as we have observed with the poly(U)-directed cell-free translation system. The K88R mutant ribosome was characterized by increased 70S complex stability in low Mg2+ concentrations. We conclude that this aberrant protein synthesis ability in the Strr mutant, which is a result of increased stability of the 70S complex, is responsible for the remarkable salinomycin production enhancement obtained.
Osmostress-Induced Cell Volume Loss Delays Yeast Hog1 Signaling by Limiting Diffusion Processes and by Hog1-Specific Effects

Signal transmission progresses via a series of transient protein-protein interactions and protein movements, which require diffusion within a cell packed with different molecules. Yeast Hog1, the effector protein kinase of the High Osmolarity Glycerol pathway, translocates transiently from the cytosol to the nucleus during adaptation to high external osmolarity. We followed the dynamics of osmostress-induced cell volume loss and Hog1 nuclear accumulation upon exposure of cells to different NaCl concentrations. While Hog1 nuclear accumulation peaked within five minutes following mild osmotic shock it was delayed up to six-fold under severe stress. The timing of Hog1 nuclear accumulation correlated with the degree of cell volume loss and the cells capacity to recover. Also the nuclear translocation of Msn2, the transcription factor of the general stress response pathway, is delayed upon severe osmotic stress suggesting a general phenomenon. We show by direct measurements that the general diffusion rate of Hog1 in the cytoplasm as well as its rate of nuclear transport are dramatically reduced following severe volume reduction. However, neither Hog1 phosphorylation nor Msn2 nuclear translocation were as much delayed as Hog1 nuclear translocation. Our data provide direct evidence that signaling slows down during cell volume compression, probably as a consequence of molecular crowding. Hence one purpose of osmotic adaptation is to restore optimal diffusion rates for biochemical and cell biological processes. In addition, there may be mechanisms slowing down especially Hog1 nuclear translocation under severe stress in order to prioritize Hog1 cytosolic targets.
Binary Events and Extragalactic Planets in Pixel Microlensing

Pixel microlensing, i.e., gravitational microlensing of unresolved stars, can be used to explore distant stellar systems and, as a bonus, may be able to detect extragalactic planets. In these studies, binary lens events with multiple high-magnification peaks are crucial. Considering only those events that exhibit caustic crossings, we estimate the fractions of binary events in several pixel microlensing example surveys and compare them to the fraction of binary events in a classical survey with resolved stars. We find a considerable enhancement of the relative rate of binary events in pixel microlensing surveys relative to surveys with resolved sources. We calculate the rate distribution of binary events with respect to the time between caustic crossings. We consider possible surveys of M31 with ground-based telescopes and surveys of M87 with the Hubble Space Telescope and the Next Generation Space Telescope. For the latter, a pixel microlensing survey taking one image a day may observe on the order of 12 binary events per month.
Integrin &agr;6&bgr;1 Is the Main Receptor for Vascular Laminins and Plays a Role in Platelet Adhesion, Activation, and Arterial Thrombosis

Background— Laminins are major components of basement membranes, well located to interact with platelets upon vascular injury. Laminin-111 (&agr;1&bgr;1&ggr;1) is known to support platelet adhesion but is absent from most blood vessels, which contain isoforms with the &agr;2, &agr;4, or &agr;5 chain. Whether vascular laminins support platelet adhesion and activation and the significance of these interactions in hemostasis and thrombosis remain unknown. Methods and Results— Using an in vitro flow assay, we show that laminin-411 (&agr;4&bgr;1&ggr;1), laminin-511 (&agr;5&bgr;1&ggr;1), and laminin-521 (&agr;5&bgr;2&ggr;1), but not laminin-211 (&agr;2&bgr;1&ggr;1), allow efficient platelet adhesion and activation across a wide range of arterial wall shear rates. Adhesion was critically dependent on integrin &agr;6&bgr;1 and the glycoprotein Ib-IX complex, which binds to plasmatic von Willebrand factor adsorbed on laminins. Glycoprotein VI did not participate in the adhesive process but mediated platelet activation induced by &agr;5-containing laminins. To address the significance of platelet/laminin interactions in vivo, we developed a platelet-specific knockout of integrin &agr;6. Platelets from these mice failed to adhere to laminin-411, laminin-511, and laminin-521 but responded normally to a series of agonists. &agr;6&bgr;1-Deficient mice presented a marked decrease in arterial thrombosis in 3 models of injury of the carotid, aorta, and mesenteric arterioles. The tail bleeding time and blood loss remained unaltered, indicating normal hemostasis. Conclusions— This study reveals an unsuspected important contribution of laminins to thrombus formation in vivo and suggests that targeting their main receptor, integrin &agr;6&bgr;1, could represent an alternative antithrombotic strategy with a potentially low bleeding risk.
Human polymorphonuclear leukocyte interaction with cyclosporine A

The effects of cyclosporin A (cyA) on human polymorphonuclear leukocyte function, including phagocytosis, its associated metabolic burst, bacterial killing, and chemotaxis, were evaluated. Both Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus were used as test particles. Polymorphonuclear leukocytes incubated in 10 and 50 micrograms of cyA per ml behaved normally with respect to phagocytosis and hexose monophosphate shunt activity at both high (10:1) and low (2:1) S. aureus/leukocyte ratios. With a small bacterial inoculum, killing of S. aureus was slightly impaired at early times only in the presence of 50 micrograms of cyA per ml. Phagocytosis and killing of P. aeruginosa with both large and small bacterial inocula were unaffected by cyA. Chemotaxis was within normal limits under all conditions. In addition, polymorphonuclear leukocytes from four renal transplant recipients receiving both cyA and prednisone demonstrated normal metabolic bursts and bacterial killing with both small and large inocula of S. aureus.
Destabilized SMC5/6 complex leads to chromosome breakage syndrome with severe lung disease

The structural maintenance of chromosomes (SMC) family of proteins supports mitotic proliferation, meiosis, and DNA repair to control genomic stability. Impairments in chromosome maintenance are linked to rare chromosome breakage disorders. Here, we have identified a chromosome breakage syndrome associated with severe lung disease in early childhood. Four children from two unrelated kindreds died of severe pulmonary disease during infancy following viral pneumonia with evidence of combined T and B cell immunodeficiency. Whole exome sequencing revealed biallelic missense mutations in the NSMCE3 (also known as NDNL2) gene, which encodes a subunit of the SMC5/6 complex that is essential for DNA damage response and chromosome segregation. The NSMCE3 mutations disrupted interactions within the SMC5/6 complex, leading to destabilization of the complex. Patient cells showed chromosome rearrangements, micronuclei, sensitivity to replication stress and DNA damage, and defective homologous recombination. This work associates missense mutations in NSMCE3 with an autosomal recessive chromosome breakage syndrome that leads to defective T and B cell function and acute respiratory distress syndrome in early childhood.
Safety and Immunogenicity of Oral Inactivated Whole-CellHelicobacter pylori Vaccine with Adjuvant among Volunteers with or without Subclinical Infection

ABSTRACT Helicobacter pylori infection of the gastric mucosa can be found in approximately 50% of the world's population and is associated with a range of pathology, including peptic ulcer, atrophic gastritis, and gastric cancer. To explore immunization as a strategy for preventing and treating H. pylori-associated disease, we assessed the safety and immunogenicity in healthy adults of a formalin-inactivated, oral H. pylori whole-cell (HWC) vaccine, administered with or without mutant Escherichia coli heat-labile toxin (LTR192G) as a mucosal adjuvant. In a dose-response study, 23 subjects with or withoutH. pylori infection were vaccinated with either 2.5 × 106 HWC, 2.5 × 108 HWC, or 2.5 × 1010 HWC, plus 25 μg of LTR192G. Thereafter, a randomized study was conducted in which 18 H. pylori-infected subjects were assigned, in a double-blind fashion, to receive either 2.5 × 1010 HWC plus placebo-adjuvant, placebo-vaccine plus 25 μg of LTR192G, placebo-vaccine plus placebo-adjuvant, or 2.5 × 1010 HWC plus 25 μg of LTR192G. Diarrhea (six subjects), low-grade fever (five subjects), and vomiting (two subjects) were observed, usually after the first dose. Significant rises in geometric mean mucosal (fecal and salivary) anti-HWC immunoglobulin A antibodies occurred amongH. pylori-infected and uninfected subjects following inoculation with 2.5 × 1010 HWC plus 25 μg of LTR192G. Moreover, among H. pylori-negative volunteers, this regimen induced significant lymphoproliferative responses in 5 of 10 subjects and gamma interferon production responses to H. pylori sonicate in 7 of 10 subjects. There was no evidence that vaccination eradicatedH. pylori in infected volunteers. These results suggest that it is possible to stimulate mucosal and systemic immune responses in humans to H. pylori antigens by using an HWC vaccine.
Combined effect of mental disorder and low social support on care service use for mental health problems in the Dutch general population

Background. People with a mental disorder have high rates of service utilization for emotional or addiction problems. Little is known about the role of functional impairments and low social support in such service use. This article investigates: (1) whether the presence of multiple functional impairments mediates the link between mental disorder and service use; and (2) whether social support modifies that association. Methods. Data were derived from the Netherlands Mental Health Survey and Incidence Study, NEMESIS, a prospective general population study. Predictors of service use (mental disorder; functional impairments; social support) were recorded in the second wave of the study, and service use in the third wave. Results. Persons with a DSM-III-R disorder and persons with multiple functional impairments were three to seven times as likely to use primary or mental health care. People with low perceived social support were two to three times as likely to use them, and living alone increased the likelihood by 30% to 80%. The effect of mental disorder on service use was mediated by multiple functional impairments. In people with a mental disorder, low levels of social support intensified mental health service use. Conclusion. Service utilization by people with mental problems can be better understood through a model incorporating: (1) independent effects of mental disorder, functional impairments and social support on service use; (2) a mediating effect of multiple functional impairments on the link between mental disorder and service use; and (3) interaction effects of mental disorder and low social support on service use.
Oxytocin projections to the nucleus of the solitary tract contribute to the increased meal‐related satiety responses in primary adrenal insufficiency

• What is the central question of this study? Adrenalectomy‐induced hypophagia is related to enhanced activation of satiety responses in the nucleus of the solitary tract (NTS) and is reversed by oxytocin receptor antagonist. The potential role of hypothalamic oxytocin projections to the NTS in the satiety‐related responses following adrenalectomy has not been reported. • What is the main finding and its importance? Our study shows that adrenalectomy increases oxytocin projections to the NTS, and oxytocin receptor antagonist reverses the increased activation of NTS neurons induced by feeding after adrenalectomy. These data indicate that oxytocin pathways to the NTS contribute to higher satiety‐related responses, indicating that oxytocin is a mediator of hypophagia following adrenalectomy through its stimulatory effects on the NTS.