Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fabrication of genistein-loaded biodegradable TPGS-b-PCL nanoparticles for improved therapeutic effects in cervical cancer cells

Genistein is one of the most studied isoflavonoids with potential antitumor efficacy, but its poor water solubility limits its clinical application. Nanoparticles (NPs), especially biodegradable NPs, entrapping hydrophobic drugs have promising applications to improve the water solubility of hydrophobic drugs. In this work, TPGS-b-PCL copolymer was synthesized from ε-caprolactone initiated by d-α-tocopheryl polyethylene glycol 1000 succinate (TPGS) through ring-opening polymerization and characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, gel permeation chromatography, and thermogravimetric analysis. The genistein-loaded NPs were prepared by a modified nanoprecipitation method and characterized in the aspects of particle size, surface charge, morphology, drug loading and encapsulation efficiency, in vitro drug release, and physical state of the entrapped drug. The TPGS-b-PCL NPs were found to have higher cellular uptake efficiency than PCL NPs. MTT and colony formation experiments indicated that genistein-loaded TPGS-b-PCL NPs achieved the highest level of cytotoxicity and tumor cell growth inhibition compared with pristine genistein and genistein-loaded PCL NPs. Furthermore, compared with pristine genistein and genistein-loaded PCL NPs, the genistein-loaded TPGS-b-PCL NPs at the same dose were more effective in inhibiting tumor growth in the subcutaneous HeLa xenograft tumor model in BALB/c nude mice. In conclusion, the results suggested that genistein-loaded biodegradable TPGS-b-PCL nanoparticles could enhance the anticancer effect of genistein both in vitro and in vivo, and may serve as a potential candidate in treating cervical cancer.
Hookah smoking and lung cancer in the Kashmir valley of the Indian subcontinent.

BACKGROUND The literature about the causal relationship between lung cancer and tobacco smoking mostly concerns cigarettes. Hookah smoking is popular in the Kashmir valley of the Indian subcontinent, and is generally believed to be innocuous because of the passage of the smoke through water before inhalation. OBJECTIVE To determine the relationship of hookah smoking to lung cancer in Kashmir. MATERIALS AND METHODS In a case-control design, 251 cases of lung cancer and 500 age-matched controls were studied. A predefined questionnaire was administered through a personal interview regarding various smoking and dietary patterns and the results compared through statistical analyses. RESULTS There were 194 (178 current) ever-smokers amongst the cases and 223 (134 current) amongst controls. Smokers had a 4.2 times risk of lung cancer compared to non smokers (OR 4.23, 95% CI 3.0-5.96, p < 0.0001). There were 120 hookah smokers amongst the cases and 100 amongst the controls and hookah smokers were nearly six times at risk for lung cancer as compared to nonsmokers (OR 5.83, (95% CI 3.95-8.60, p < 0.0001). Cigarette smokers were commoner amongst cases (46 vs 64 in controls; OR 3.49, 95% CI 2.18-5.60, p=0.000). The severity of smoking was associated with a higher risk of lung cancer (Chi-square 72.1, p 0.000). The practice of changing water of the hookah after each session proved non-existent. CONCLUSION Hookah smoking is associated with a significantly higher risk for lung cancer in Kashmiri population, with about 6 fold elevated risk as compared to non-smoking controls.
Correction: Mutations in the 5' NTR and the Non-Structural Protein 3A of the Coxsackievirus B3 Selectively Attenuate Myocarditogenicity

The 5’ non-translated region (NTR) is an important molecular determinant that controls replication and virulence of coxsackievirus B (CVB)3. Previous studies have reported many nucleotide (nt) sequence differences in the Nancy strain of the virus, including changes in the 5’ NTR with varying degrees of disease severity. In our studies of CVB3-induced myocarditis, we sought to generate an infectious clone of the virus for routine in vivo experimentation. By determining the viral nt sequence, we identified three new nt substitutions in the clone that differed from the parental virus strain: C97U in the 5’ NTR; a silent mutation, A4327G, in non-structural protein 2C; and C5088U (resulting in P1449L amino acid change) in non-structural protein 3A of the virus leading us to evaluate the role of these changes in the virulence properties of the virus. We noted that the disease-inducing ability of the infectious clone-derived virus in three mouse strains was restricted to pancreatitis alone, and the incidence and severity of myocarditis were significantly reduced. We then reversed the mutations by creating three new clones, representing 1) U97C; 2) G4327A and U5088C; and 3) their combination together in the third clone. The viral titers obtained from all the clones were comparable, but the virions derived from the third clone induced myocarditis comparable to that induced by wild type virus; however, the pancreatitis-inducing ability remained unaltered, suggesting that the mutations described above selectively influence myocarditogenicity. Because the accumulation of mutations during passages is a continuous process in RNA viruses, it is possible that CVB3 viruses containing such altered nts may evolve naturally, thus favoring their survival in the environment. PLOS ONE | DOI:10.1371/journal.pone. 0131052 June 22, 2015 1 / 17 a11111
The Phoenix of Bipolarity: Reply to Watson and Tellegen (1999)

In their commentary on our review (J. A. Russell & J. M. Carroll, 1999), D. Watson and A. Tellegen (1999) agreed that when various factors, including activation, are taken into account, the structure of self-reported affect includes a bipolar dimension contrasting pleasant with unpleasant feelings. Agreement on this the central conclusion of our review may surprise readers familiar with the widespread claim that pleasant and unpleasant affect are not bipolar opposites but are largely independent of one another.
Evaluation Of Antioxidant And Carbohydrate Hydrolyzing Enzyme Inhibitory Activities Of Trilepisium Madagascariense ficalho Seeds Hemagglutinin

A lectin was partially purified and characterized from the seed of T. madagascariense by ammonium sulphate precipitation and gel filtration on Sephadex G-100 and its antioxidant capacities and ability to inhibit two carbohydrate hydrolyzing enzymes implicated in Diabetes mellitus were investigated. T. madagascariense seed lectin (TMSLec) agglutinated non-specifically red blood cell from the human ABO system with preference for enzyme-treated red blood cell and also rat and rabbit erythrocytes were agglutinated. It exhibited sugar binding specificity towards galactose. Its molecular mass as determined by gel filtration was estimated to be 45kDa. The lectin had optima pH between 3.0 and 7.0 and was active up to 40 O C and EDTA had no effect on the hemagglutinating activity. Tryptophan was observed to play an important role in the lectin activity. A drastic reduction in lectin activity was recorded when treated with glutaraldehyde and urea. It significantly scavenged DPPH free radicals in a concentration dependent manner and contain 215.7mg of ascorbic acid equivalent per gram of the TMSLec when antioxidant was assessed by FRAP assay.The lectin significantly inhibited the activity of alpha amylase and alpha glucosidase in-vitro with IC50 of 0.13 ± 0.01 mg/ml and 0.836 ± 0.01 mg/ml respectively. The study revealed the presence of lectin in the seeds of T. madagascariense and that the lectin possess not only remarkable antioxidants activities but also exhibited inhibitory potential against alpha amylase and alpha glucosidase. It could therefore be useful in the management of diabetes.
Social Class, Culture, and Cognition

There are competing accounts of the relationship among social class, culture, and cognition. An interactive hypothesis suggests the relationship between social class and cognitive tendencies varies inasmuch as societies differ in their endorsement of those cognitive tendencies. An alternative additive hypothesis suggests that class-related environments promote differences in cognition. The authors addressed the validity of these accounts by simultaneously examining the effects of class among Americans (an independent society) and Russians (an interdependent society). Consistent with the additive hypothesis, lower social class was associated with more holistic cognition and more interdependent self-views in both countries. In Study 1, people from lower social class backgrounds and Russians displayed less dispositional bias. In Study 2, people from lower social class backgrounds and Russians demonstrated more contextual attention, more nonlinear reasoning about change, and more interdependent self-views (less self-inflation). Furthermore, in Study 2 differences in self-views mediated country and class effects on cognitive tendencies.
TEC response to the 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake in comparison with other strong earthquakes

We registered near-field global positioning system (GPS) total electron content (TEC) response to the Wenchuan Earthquake on 12 May 2008. The Wenchuan Earthquake (magnitude 8.0) occurred at 06:28 UT as the result of motion on a northeast striking reverse fault (thrust fault) on the northwestern margin of the Sichuan Basin. The earthquake reflects tectonic stresses resulting from the convergence of crustal material slowly moving from the high Tibetan Plateau, to the west, against a strong crust underlying the Sichuan Basin and southeastern China. We found that intensive N-shaped shock-acoustic waves with a plane waveform and with a half-period of about 200 s propagated south-eastwards with a velocity 580 m s − 1 for a distance of about 1000 km from the epicentre. The wavefront of N-shaped disturbance was parallel with the earthquake rupture direction (from southwest to northeast). The main directional lobe of shock-acoustic wave emitter is directed southeastwards, i.e. transversely to the rupture. We speculate that the above properties of TEC response are determined by the geodynamics of the Wenchuan Earthquake. No noticeable TEC response to that earthquake was found in far-field regions in South Korea and Japan. We compared TEC response to the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake with other strong earthquakes.
Machine Learning and Social Robotics for Detecting Early Signs of Dementia

This paper presents the EACare project, an ambitious multi-disciplinary collaboration with the aim to develop an embodied system, capable of carrying out neuropsychological tests to detect early signs of dementia, e.g., due to Alzheimer's disease. The system will use methods from Machine Learning and Social Robotics, and be trained with examples of recorded clinician-patient interactions. The interaction will be developed using a participatory design approach. We describe the scope and method of the project, and report on a first Wizard of Oz prototype.
Isolation of sporopollenin-like biopolymer from Aspergillus niger and its characterisation

The study sought to isolate asporopollenin-like biopolymer from Aspergillus niger (A. niger) spore. The spore exine (Sp-exine) from A. niger was isolated using four different methods. The highest isolation efficiency (9.32 %) was found for the method based on H2SO4 treatment. Optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images showed that the isolated Sp-exine had a spherical shape with a spun morphology and was highly uniform in size. The elemental compositions of the bodies of the Sp-exine materials, as well as their surfaces, were observed by means of CHN combustion analysis and SEM with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX), respectively. The result demonstrates C, H and O to be the main structural elements in all the Sp-exine samples. Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy coupled with solid state 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (solid state 13C NMR) spectroscopy and UV-Vis spectroscopy were used to compare the changes in the functional groups of the Sp-exine samples isolated using the different methods. A thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) study demonstrated all the Sp-exine samples showed high thermal stability. Among all tested methods, the treatment with H2SO4 and alcoholic potassium hydroxide exhibited the best results in removing cellular and other contents with minimal drastic effect on the structure and morphology and is proposed as the best method for isolating Sp-exine since it required minimal isolation time and showed good isolation efficiency.
Microkernel dedicated for dynamic partial reconfiguration on ARM-FPGA platform

This paper describes the first implementation of a custom micro-kernel on a ARM-FPGA platform capable of managing reconfigurable hardware parts dynamically. After describing the structure of the proposed micro-kernel, we will focus on a custom specific system task dealing with the reconfiguration management, which is associated to a dedicated scheduling mechanism. We will describe the hardware platform on which the microkernel has been ported and provide a use case application in order to demonstrate the feasibility of the approach. At the end of this paper, we will provide quantitative results in terms of reconfiguration overhead and microkernel timing performances.
Joint analysis of stressors and ecosystem services to enhance restoration effectiveness

With increasing pressure placed on natural systems by growing human populations, both scientists and resource managers need a better understanding of the relationships between cumulative stress from human activities and valued ecosystem services. Societies often seek to mitigate threats to these services through large-scale, costly restoration projects, such as the over one billion dollar Great Lakes Restoration Initiative currently underway. To help inform these efforts, we merged high-resolution spatial analyses of environmental stressors with mapping of ecosystem services for all five Great Lakes. Cumulative ecosystem stress is highest in near-shore habitats, but also extends offshore in Lakes Erie, Ontario, and Michigan. Variation in cumulative stress is driven largely by spatial concordance among multiple stressors, indicating the importance of considering all stressors when planning restoration activities. In addition, highly stressed areas reflect numerous different combinations of stressors rather than a single suite of problems, suggesting that a detailed understanding of the stressors needing alleviation could improve restoration planning. We also find that many important areas for fisheries and recreation are subject to high stress, indicating that ecosystem degradation could be threatening key services. Current restoration efforts have targeted high-stress sites almost exclusively, but generally without knowledge of the full range of stressors affecting these locations or differences among sites in service provisioning. Our results demonstrate that joint spatial analysis of stressors and ecosystem services can provide a critical foundation for maximizing social and ecological benefits from restoration investments.
Responses to Chemical Exposure by Foraminifera: Distinguishing Dormancy From Mortality

viii 1: Introduction 1 1.1: Deepwater Horizon Oil spill 1 1.2: Amphistegina as bioindicators 2 1.3: Bioassay organisms for hydrocarbons and dispersants 4 1.4: Foraminifers as bioassay organisms 5 1.5: Objectives 10 2: Methods 10 2.1: Standard collection and culture methods 10 2.2: Experimental methods 12 2.2.1: Preliminary experiments 13 2.2.2: Revised methods – propylene glycol 15 2.2.3: 2-butoxyethanol toxicity 20 2.3: Statistical analysis 22 3: Results 23 3.1: Preliminary propylene glycol experiment 23 3.2: The second propylene glycol experiment 25 3.2.1: Acute response 25 3.2.2: Chronic responses – mortality 26 3.2.3: Chronic responses – growth 29 3.2. 4: Chronic responses – visual 33 3.3: Experiments with 2-butoxyethanol 35 4: Discussion 37 4.1: Dormancy as a response to toxic exposure 37 4.2: Responses of Amphistegina gibbosa to toxic exposures 41 4.3: Designing a bioassay protocol for A. gibbosa 53 4.3.1: Bioassay protocol based primarily on visual observations 53 4.3.2: Bioassay protocol based primarily on physiological observation.54 4.4: Recommendations for further documentation of dormancy in A.gibbosa . 56
Locomotor function of forelimb protractor and retractor muscles of dogs: evidence of strut-like behavior at the shoulder

SUMMARY The limbs of running mammals are thought to function as inverted struts. When mammals run at constant speed, the ground reaction force vector appears to be directed near the point of rotation of the limb on the body such that there is little or no moment at the joint. If this is true, little or no external work is done at the proximal joints during constant-speed running. This possibility has important implications to the energetics of running and to the coupling of lung ventilation to the locomotor cycle. To test if the forelimb functions as an inverted strut at the shoulder during constant-speed running and to characterize the locomotor function of extrinsic muscles of the forelimb, we monitored changes in the recruitment of six muscles that span the shoulder (the m. pectoralis superficialis descendens, m. pectoralis profundus, m. latissimus dorsi, m. omotransversarius, m. cleidobrachialis and m. trapezius) to controlled manipulations of locomotor forces and moments in trotting dogs (Canis lupus familiaris Linnaeus 1753). Muscle activity was monitored while the dogs trotted at moderate speed (approximately 2 m s–1) on a motorized treadmill. Locomotor forces were modified by (1) adding mass to the trunk, (2) inclining the treadmill so that the dogs ran up- and downhill (3) adding mass to the wrists or (4) applying horizontally directed force to the trunk through a leash. When the dogs trotted at constant speed on a level treadmill, the primary protractor muscles of the forelimb exhibited activity during the last part of the ipsilateral support phase and the beginning of swing phase, a pattern that is consistent with the initiation of swing phase but not with active protraction of the limb during the beginning of support phase. Results of the force manipulations were also consistent with the protractor muscles initiating swing phase and contributing to active braking via production of a protractor moment on the forelimb when the dogs decelerate. A similar situation appears to be true for the major retractor muscles of the forelimb. The m. pectoralis profundus and the m. latissimus dorsi were completely silent during the support phase of the ipsilateral limb when the dogs ran unencumbered and exhibited little or no increase in activity when the dogs carried added mass on their backs to increase any retraction torque during the support phase of constant-speed running. The most likely explanation for these observations is that the ground force reaction vector is oriented very close to the fulcrum of the forelimb such that the forelimb functions as a compliant strut at the shoulder when dogs trot at constant speed on level surfaces. Because the moments at the fulcrum of the pectoral girdle appear to be small during the support phase of a trotting step, a case can be made that it is the activity of the extrinsic appendicular muscles that produce the swing phase of the forelimb that explain the coupled phase relationship between ventilatory airflow and the locomotor cycle in trotting dogs.
Family of High Modulus (HMG) Nylon Based Plastics Increases Mileage and Reduce Weight

Resent developments were oriented on two high-flow, high-modulus grades fiber-glass reinforced nylon 6 (HMG series) grades for transportation, autos and other industrial applications requiring high stiffness, high strength and high fatigue resistance. These materials combined the following improved technological (injection molding, vibration and hot plate welding, etc.) and mechanical performance properties such as greater dimensional stability, higher short-term (strength and stiffness) and long-term (fatigue and creep with the influence of temperature effects). Both HMG series grades Capron® HMG10 and Capron® HMG13 – are for injection molded parts where stiffness, strength, impact resistance, and good surface and improved appearance are preferred. The current and possible applications of these plastics includes auto mirror housing brackets, clutch pedals, clutch master cylinders, ski bindings, steering wheels, levers, auto seat frames, door handles and door lock mechanisms.
Mapping the structural organization of the brain in conduct disorder: replication of findings in two independent samples

Background Neuroimaging methods that allow researchers to investigate structural covariance between brain regions are increasingly being used to study psychiatric disorders. Structural covariance analyses are particularly well suited for studying disorders with putative neurodevelopmental origins as they appear sensitive to changes in the synchronized maturation of different brain regions. We assessed interregional correlations in cortical thickness as a measure of structural covariance, and applied this method to investigate the coordinated development of different brain regions in conduct disorder (CD). We also assessed whether structural covariance measures could differentiate between the childhood‐onset (CO‐CD) and adolescence‐onset (AO‐CD) subtypes of CD, which may differ in terms of etiology and adult outcomes. Methods We examined interregional correlations in cortical thickness in male youths with CO‐CD or AO‐CD relative to healthy controls (HCs) in two independent datasets. The age range in the Cambridge sample was 16–21 years (mean: 18.0), whereas the age range of the Southampton sample was 13–18 years (mean: 16.7). We used FreeSurfer to perform segmentations and applied structural covariance methods to the resulting parcellations. Results In both samples, CO‐CD participants displayed a strikingly higher number of significant cross‐cortical correlations compared to HC or AO‐CD participants, whereas AO‐CD participants presented fewer significant correlations than HCs. Group differences in the strength of the interregional correlations were observed in both samples, and each set of results remained significant when controlling for IQ and comorbid attention‐deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms. Conclusions This study provides new evidence for quantitative differences in structural brain organization between the CO‐CD and AO‐CD subtypes, and supports the hypothesis that both subtypes of CD have neurodevelopmental origins.
Factors affecting regional variation in growth of channel catfish

Abstract We related the length at age of channel catfish Ictalurus punctatus, an indirect measure of growth, to three climatic and five morphoedaphic variables in 144 Texas reservoirs. Growth of channel catfish ages 3 through 6 was negatively related to longitude, a factor that explained as much as 34% of the variation in length at age. Channel catfish length at age was not significantly related to latitude, conductivity, morphoedaphic index, mean depth, and maximum depth in all age-classes. Among age-7 channel catfish, length at age was positively related to reservoir area, which explained 35% of the variation in growth. A quadratic model for growing-season length explained 7–17% of the variation in length at age in all age-classes. Overall, length at age for channel catfish was greatest in reservoirs with intermediate growing seasons (approximately 270 d in length) and was lower when the growing-season length was either longer or shorter. Our results provide the first evidence that the length of growing.