Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Low-velocity impact behavior of hollow core woven sandwich composite: Experimental and numerical study

Low-velocity impact analysis of 3D woven hollow core sandwich composite was conducted experimentally and numerically. Damage modes, perforation loads, load-time and energy-time curves, contact time, force-displacement and deflection-energy relationships were studied for three energy levels on specimens with different thicknesses utilizing both FE simulations and low-velocity impact tests. According to the results, contact stiffness and perforation load decreased with the panel thickness, whereas panels of higher thicknesses exhibited higher energy absorption capacity. The FE model consisting of glass fabric and surrounding resin reasonably predicted the impact behavior and damage modes. Subsequently, it could be inferred that FE simulation is capable to be used instead of time-consuming experiments to study impact properties of such materials.
Cerebral malaria in children: using the retina to study the brain

Cerebral malaria is a dangerous complication of Plasmodium falciparum infection, which takes a devastating toll on children in sub-Saharan Africa. Although autopsy studies have improved understanding of cerebral malaria pathology in fatal cases, information about in vivo neurovascular pathogenesis is scarce because brain tissue is inaccessible in life. Surrogate markers may provide insight into pathogenesis and thereby facilitate clinical studies with the ultimate aim of improving the treatment and prognosis of cerebral malaria. The retina is an attractive source of potential surrogate markers for paediatric cerebral malaria because, in this condition, the retina seems to sustain microvascular damage similar to that of the brain. In paediatric cerebral malaria a combination of retinal signs correlates, in fatal cases, with the severity of brain pathology, and has diagnostic and prognostic significance. Unlike the brain, the retina is accessible to high-resolution, non-invasive imaging. We aimed to determine the extent to which paediatric malarial retinopathy reflects cerebrovascular damage by reviewing the literature to compare retinal and cerebral manifestations of retinopathy-positive paediatric cerebral malaria. We then compared retina and brain in terms of anatomical and physiological features that could help to account for similarities and differences in vascular pathology. These comparisons address the question of whether it is biologically plausible to draw conclusions about unseen cerebral vascular pathogenesis from the visible retinal vasculature in retinopathy-positive paediatric cerebral malaria. Our work addresses an important cause of death and neurodisability in sub-Saharan Africa. We critically appraise evidence for associations between retina and brain neurovasculature in health and disease, and in the process we develop new hypotheses about why these vascular beds are susceptible to sequestration of parasitized erythrocytes.
Community composition and population genetics of insect pathogenic fungi in the genus Metarhizium from soils of a long-term agricultural research system.

Fungi in the genus Metarhizium are insect pathogens able to function in other niches, including soil and plant rhizosphere habitats. In agroecosystems, cropping and tillage practices influence soil fungal communities with unknown effects on the distribution of Metarhizium, whose presence can reduce populations of crop pests. We report results from a selective media survey of Metarhizium in soils sampled from a long-term experimental farming project in the mid-Atlantic region. Field plots under soybean cultivation produced higher numbers of Metarhizium colony-forming units (cfu) than corn or alfalfa. Plots managed organically and via chisel-till harboured higher numbers of Metarhizium cfu than no-till plots. Sequence typing of Metarhizium isolates revealed four species, with M. robertsii and M. brunneum predominating. The M. brunneum population was essentially fixed for a single clone as determined by multilocus microsatellite genotyping. In contrast, M. robertsii was found to contain significant diversity, with the majority of isolates distributed between two principal clades. Evidence for recombination was observed only in the most abundant clade. These findings illuminate multiple levels of Metarhizium diversity that can be used to inform strategies by which soil Metarhizium populations may be manipulated to exert downward pressure on pest insects and promote plant health.
The effects of education program on knowledge and intention of breast cancer screening in Taiwan.

AIMS The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a breast cancer screening educational program on women's knowledge and intention to seek breast cancer screening in Taiwan. MATERIALS AND METHOD This study describes the knowledge and intention of breast cancer screening changes during the period pre and post group education. A pre-test and post-test were used in both the experimental and the control groups. A convenience sampling was used. Two structured questionnaires were used. RESULTS The mean knowledge of breast cancer screening scores (pre-test and post-test) of the experimental group participants were 12.6 and 14.0. Then the mean knowledge of breast cancer screening scores (pre-test and post-test) of the control group participants were 11.8 and 12.1. The mean intention of breast cancer screening scores (pre-test and post-test) of the experimental group participants were 11.4 and 13.5. And the mean intention of breast cancer screening scores (pre-test and post-test) of the control group participants were 11.6 and 12.4. An independent-t test was applied to examine the differences among the two groups, revealing that the average post-test knowledge score differ significantly between the two groups (t=4.18, p<.00); and the post-test intention also demonstrate a marked statistical difference (t=2.07, p<.05). A paired-t test was applied to examine the differences of each group, revealing that the total average scores of the experimental group participants on the knowledge of breast cancer screening scale clearly differ statistically (t=-5.54, p<.00); and the pre-test and post-test intention testing also demonstrate a marked statistical difference (t=-7.70, p<.00). CONCLUSIONS These findings are helpful in understanding the knowledge and intention of breast cancer screening changes during the period pre and post group education. It is expected that these results can offer a reference for clinical breast cancer prevention.
Prevalence of and risk factors for paratuberculosis in purebred beef cattle.

OBJECTIVE To estimate the prevalence of paratuberculosis in purebred beef cattle in Texas and identify risk factors for seropositivity. DESIGN Epidemiologic survey. ANIMALS 4,579 purebred cattle from 115 beef ranches in Texas. PROCEDURE Blood was collected, and serum was analyzed for antibodies with a commercial ELISA. Fecal samples were collected and frozen at -80 degrees C until results of the ELISA were obtained, and feces from seropositive cattle were submitted for mycobacterial culture. Herd owners completed a survey form on management factors. RESULTS Results of the ELISA were positive for 137 of the 4,579 (3.0%) cattle, and 50 of the 115 (43.8%) herds had at least 1 seropositive animal. Results of mycobacterial culture were positive for 10 of the 137 (7.3%) seropositive cattle, and 9 of the 50 (18%) seropositive herds had at least 1 animal for which results of mycobacterial culture were positive. Risk factors for seropositivity included water source, use of dairy-type nurse cows, previous clinical signs of paratuberculosis, species of cattle (Bos taurus vs Bos indicus), and location. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Results suggested that seroprevalence of paratuberculosis among purebred beef cattle in Texas may be greater than seroprevalence among beef cattle in the United States as a whole; however, this difference could be attributable to breed or regional differences in infection rates or interference by cross-reacting organisms. Veterinarians should be aware of risk factors for paratuberculosis as well as the possibility that unexpected serologic results may be found in some herds.
Tobacco-Specific Carcinogens Induce Hypermethylation, DNA Adducts, and DNA Damage in Bladder Cancer

Smoking is a major risk factor for the development of bladder cancer; however, the functional consequences of the carcinogens in tobacco smoke and bladder cancer–associated metabolic alterations remain poorly defined. We assessed the metabolic profiles in bladder cancer smokers and non-smokers and identified the key alterations in their metabolism. LC/MS and bioinformatic analysis were performed to determine the metabolome associated with bladder cancer smokers and were further validated in cell line models. Smokers with bladder cancer were found to have elevated levels of methylated metabolites, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, DNA adducts, and DNA damage. DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1) expression was significantly higher in smokers than non-smokers with bladder cancer. An integromics approach, using multiple patient cohorts, revealed strong associations between smokers and high-grade bladder cancer. In vitro exposure to the tobacco smoke carcinogens, 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone and benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) led to increase in levels of methylated metabolites, DNA adducts, and extensive DNA damage in bladder cancer cells. Cotreatment of bladder cancer cells with these carcinogens and the methylation inhibitor 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine rewired the methylated metabolites, DNA adducts, and DNA damage. These findings were confirmed through the isotopic-labeled metabolic flux analysis. Screens using smoke-associated metabolites and DNA adducts could provide robust biomarkers and improve individual risk prediction in bladder cancer smokers. Noninvasive predictive biomarkers that can stratify the risk of developing bladder cancer in smokers could aid in early detection and treatment. Cancer Prev Res; 10(10); 588–97. ©2017 AACR.
Vocalizations of minimally verbal children with autism spectrum disorder across the school year

Little is known about the language trajectories of minimally verbal school-aged children with autism spectrum disorders. The present investigation conducted observations across two elementary schools over an entire school year to analyze the vocal language development of nine minimally verbal children with autism spectrum disorder between the ages of 6 and 10 years, and their educational service providers. A Language Environment Analysis™ device automatically recorded and disaggregated over 743 h of data on child vocalizations, and vocal interactions with adults. Vocalizations did not increase for eight of the nine participants, and conversational counts between participants and adults were near zero across the entire year. These results speak to the need for additional research examining language development and potential intervention strategies among minimally verbal children with autism spectrum disorder.
Role of contraction duration in inducing fast‐to‐slow contractile and metabolic protein and functional changes in engineered muscle

The role of factors such as frequency, contraction duration and active time in the adaptation to chronic low‐frequency electrical stimulation (CLFS) is widely disputed. In this study we explore the ability of contraction duration (0.6, 6, 60, and 600 sec) to induce a fast‐to‐slow shift in engineered muscle while using a stimulation frequency of 10 Hz and keeping active time constant at 60%. We found that all contraction durations induced similar slowing of time‐to‐peak tension. Despite similar increases in total myosin heavy (MHC) levels with stimulation, increasing contraction duration resulted in progressive decreases in total fast myosin. With contraction durations of 60 and 600 sec, MHC IIx levels decreased and MHC IIa levels increased. All contraction durations resulted in fast‐to‐slow shifts in TnT and TnC but increased both fast and slow TnI levels. Half‐relaxation slowed to a greater extent with contraction durations of 60 and 600 sec despite similar changes in the calcium sequestering proteins calsequestrin and parvalbumin and the calcium uptake protein SERCA. All CLFS groups resulted in greater fatigue resistance than control. Similar increases in GLUT4, mitochondrial enzymes (SDH and ATPsynthase), the fatty acid transporter CPT‐1, and the metabolic regulators PGC‐1α and MEF2 were found with all contraction durations. However, the mitochondrial enzymes cytochrome C and citrate synthase were increased to greater levels with contraction durations of 60 and 600 sec. These results demonstrate that contraction duration plays a pivotal role in dictating the level of CLFS‐induced contractile and metabolic adaptations in tissue‐engineered skeletal muscle. J. Cell. Physiol. 230: 2489–2497, 2015. © 2015 The Authors. Journal of Cellular Physiology Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Oxidative Damage in Embryo and Placenta of Streptozotocin-induced Diabetic Rats Salwa K El- Nabarawy

Background: Maternal type 1 diabetes is associated with an increased risk for fetal malformations. The mechanism by which diabetes caused teratogenic disorders is not fully known. Previous studies have demonstrated that many teratogenic diabetic cases were related to free radical oxygen species. This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of maternal diabetes on both embryo and placenta by estimating theoxidative and DNA damage in embryo and placenta of diabetic mellitus- induced rats. The possible role of olive leaves extract of Olea europaea ( O. europaea ) plant in repairing the damage was also assessed. Material and Methods:. Diabetes mellitus was induced by streptozotocin (STZ) by a single intraperitoneal injection (35 mg/kg b wt). O.europaea leaves water extract was administered orally (550 mg/ 100g b wt/ day) for 5days before pregnancy and18 days after. Malondealdehyde (MDA) level, glutathione peroxidase (Gpx) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities and glycogen concentration were measured in term embryo and placenta homogenates of diabetic and control rats. Moreover, the evaluation of DNA damage was carried out by the Alkaline Comet Assay usingembryos and placentas taken from STZ-induced diabetic and control pregnant rats. Results: the results showed an elevation in MDA level of the diabetic groups of both embryo and placenta compared to that of the control. This was accompanied by reduction in Gpx and SOD activities indicating oxidative damage. Glycogen level was reduced in diabetic groups of embryo and placenta. Both oxidative and hyperglycemic status were improved in the groups treated with olive leaves water extract. The percentage of tail DNA and tail moment values were also higher in both embryo and placenta of the diabetic -induced rats. DNA damage seems to be partly ameliorated in groups treated with O.europaea leaveswater extract. Conclusion: This study indicated that maternal hyperglycemic condition in diabetic- induced pregnant rats could generate oxidative and DNA damage to embryo and placenta that could be ameliorated by oral doses of olive leaves water extract.
Heterochrony and allometry: the analysis of evolutionary change in ontogeny

The connection between development and evolution has become the focus of an increasing amount of research in recent years, and heterochrony has long been a key concept in this relation. Heterochrony is defined as evolutionary change in rates and timing of developmental processes; the dimension of time is therefore an essential part in studies of heterochrony. Over the past two decades, evolutionary biologists have used several methodological frameworks to analyse heterochrony, which differ substantially in the way they characterize evolutionary changes in ontogenies and in the resulting classification, although they mostly use the same terms. This review examines how these methods compare ancestral and descendant ontogenies, emphasizing their differences and the potential for contradictory results from analyses using different frameworks. One of the two principal methods uses a clock as a graphical display for comparisons of size, shape and age at a particular ontogenic stage, whereas the other characterizes a developmental process by its time of onset, rate, and time of cessation. The literature on human heterochrony provides particularly clear examples of how these differences produce apparent contradictions when applied to the same problem. Developmental biologists recently have extended the concept of heterochrony to the earliest stages of development and have applied it at the cellular and molecular scale. This extension brought considerations of developmental mechanisms and genetics into the study of heterochrony, which previously was based primarily on phenomenological characterizations of morphological change in ontogeny. Allometry is the pattern of covariation among several morphological traits or between measures of size and shape; unlike heterochrony, allometry does not deal with time explicitly. Two main approaches to the study of allometry are distinguished, which differ in the way they characterize organismal form. One approach defines shape as proportions among measurements, based on considerations of geometric similarity, whereas the other focuses on the covariation among measurements in ontogeny and evolution. Both are related conceptually and through the use of similar algebra. In addition, there are close connections between heterochrony and changes in allometric growth trajectories, although there is no one‐to‐one correspondence. These relationships and outline links between different analytical frameworks are discussed.
Amyloid‐β protofibril levels correlate with spatial learning in Arctic Alzheimer’s disease transgenic mice

Oligomeric assemblies of amyloid‐β (Aβ) are suggested to be central in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease because levels of soluble Aβ correlate much better with the extent of cognitive dysfunctions than do senile plaque counts. Moreover, such Aβ species have been shown to be neurotoxic, to interfere with learned behavior and to inhibit the maintenance of hippocampal long‐term potentiation. The tg‐ArcSwe model (i.e. transgenic mice with the Arctic and Swedish Alzheimer mutations) expresses elevated levels of Aβ protofibrils in the brain, making tg‐ArcSwe a highly suitable model for investigating the pathogenic role of these Aβ assemblies. In the present study, we estimated Aβ protofibril levels in the brain and cerebrospinal fluid of tg‐ArcSwe mice, and also assessed their role with respect to cognitive functions. Protofibril levels, specifically measured with a sandwich ELISA, were found to be elevated in young tg‐ArcSwe mice compared to several transgenic models lacking the Arctic mutation. In aged tg‐ArcSwe mice with considerable plaque deposition, Aβ protofibrils were approximately 50% higher than in younger mice, whereas levels of total Aβ were exponentially increased. Young tg‐ArcSwe mice showed deficits in spatial learning, and individual performances in the Morris water maze were correlated inversely with levels of Aβ protofibrils, but not with total Aβ levels. We conclude that Aβ protofibrils accumulate in an age‐dependent manner in tg‐ArcSwe mice, although to a far lesser extent than total Aβ. Our findings suggest that increased levels of Aβ protofibrils could result in spatial learning impairment.
Outpatients do not need to void after short neuraxial blocks.

In Reply:—The recent editorial titled “Innocent Prattle” congratulated Dr. Li et al. for introducing new methodology to examine the epidemiologic patterns of anesthesia-related deaths at the national level. Specifically, they used International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (ICD-10) codes to identify anesthesia-related deaths from the multiple-cause-of-death data files maintained by the National Center for Health Statistics for the years 1999 –2005. They then calculated death rates from anesthesia complications based on population data and hospital surgical discharge data. Using their innovative methodology, the authors found that the number of anesthesia-related deaths averaged 316 per year and the number of deaths with an anesthesia complication as the underlying cause averaged 34 per year, for an estimated 30 million anesthetics annually. I also look forward to the application and validation by the scientific community of their techniques to monitor anesthesia safety in the future, but until such time, it is difficult to accept their claims that the United States has experienced a 97% decrease in the anesthesia-related death rate since the late 1940s and that 46.6% of anesthesia-related deaths are attributable to overdose of anesthetics and 42.5% are attributable to adverse effects of anesthetics in therapeutic use. It is incredible claims of improved anesthesia safety that previously led to my analogy to The Emperor’s New Clothes by Hans Christian Andersen. Some of our anesthesia community, like the townspeople in the fable, want to believe that we are somehow special, so they blindly accept these claims of improved anesthesia safety. In my analogy, I play the role of the child who is accused of “innocent prattle” by challenging the claims of Dr. Li et al. in an editorial of the same name. I apologize to Dr. Li et al. if my editorial led them to believe that their work was accused of being prattle. That was certainly not my intention. In fact, I see their role in my analogy as being much more noble.
Diagnosability analysis of partially observable deadlock-free Petri Nets

This paper addresses the diagnosability property of discrete event models, which is a key feature in modelbased failure diagnosis. Necessary and sufficient conditions for diagnosability of deadlock-free Interpreted Petri Nets (IPN) are given, based on the observations of reachable repetitive vectors. Afterwards, an algorithm to verify sufficient conditions for diagnosability of such models is proposed.
Thiolate-bridged dinuclear iron(tris-carbonyl)–nickel complexes relevant to the active site of [NiFe] hydrogenase

The reaction of NiBr2(EtOH)4 with a 1:2–3 mixture of FeBr2(CO)4 and Na(SPh) generated a linear trinuclear Fe–Ni–Fe cluster (CO)3Fe(μ-SPh)3Ni(μ-SPh)3Fe(CO)3, 1, whereas the analogous reaction system FeBr2(CO)4/Na(StBu)/NiBr2(EtOH)4 (1:2–3:1) gave rise to a linear tetranuclear Fe–Ni–Ni–Fe cluster [(CO)3Fe(μ-StBu)3Ni(μ-Br)]2, 2. By using this tetranuclear cluster 2 as the precursor, we have developed a new synthetic route to a series of thiolate-bridged dinuclear Fe(CO)3–Ni complexes, the structures of which mimic [NiFe] hydrogenase active sites. The reactions of 2 with SC(NMe2)2 (tmtu), Na{S(CH2)2SMe} and ortho-NaS(C6H4)SR (R = Me, tBu) led to isolation of (CO)3Fe(μ-StBu)3NiBr(tmtu), 3, (CO)3Fe(StBu)(μ-StBu)2Ni{S(CH2)2SMe}, 4, and (CO)3Fe(StBu)(μ-StBu)2Ni{S(C6H4)SR}, 5a (R = Me) and 5b (R = tBu), respectively. On the other hand, treatment of 2 with 2-methylthio-phenolate (ortho-O(C6H4)SMe) in methanol resulted in (CO)3Fe(μ-StBu)3Ni(MeOH){O(C6H4)SMe}, 6a. The methanol molecule bound to Ni is labile and is readily released under reduced pressure to afford (CO)3Fe(StBu)(μ-StBu)2Ni{O(C6H4)SMe}, 6b, and the coordination geometry of nickel changes from octahedral to square planar. Likewise, the reaction of 2 with NaOAc in methanol followed by crystallization from THF gave (CO)3Fe(μ-StBu)3Ni(THF)(OAc), 7. The dinuclear complexes, 3-7, are thermally unstable, and a key to their successful isolation is to carry out the reactions and manipulations at −40°C.