Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of habitat and landscape characteristics on medium and large mammal species richness and composition in northern Uruguay

The increasing world population and demand for food and other products has accelerated the conversion of natural habitats into agricultural lands, plantations and urban areas. Changes in habitat and landscape characteristics due to land-use change can have a significant effect on species presence, abundance, and distribution. Multi-scale approaches have been used to determine the proper spatial scales at which species and communities are responding to habitat transformation. In this context, we evaluated medium and large mammal species richness and composition in gallery forest (n = 10), grassland (n = 10), and exotic tree plantation (n = 10) in a region where grasslands have been converted into exotic tree plantations. We quantified mammal species richness and composition with camera traps and track surveys. The composition of the mammal community was related with local habitat variables, and landscape variables measured at seven spatial scales. We found 14 mammal species in forest, 11 species in plantation, and 7 mammal species in grassland. Two species are exotics, the wild boar Sus scrofa Linnaeus, 1758 and the European hare Lepus europaeus Pallas, 1778. The most common species are the crab-eating fox Cerdocyon thous Linnaeus, 1766, the nine-banded armadillo Dasypus novemcinctus Linnaeus, 1758 and the gray brocket deer Mazama gouazoubira G. Fischer, 1814 which are generalist species. Our results showed significant differences in mammal species richness and composition among the three habitat types. Plantations can have positive and negative effects on the presence of species restricted to grasslands. Positive effects are reflected in a wider local distribution of some forest species that rarely use grassland. The most important habitat and landscape variables that influenced mammal species richness and composition were vertical structure index, canopy cover, tree species diversity, percentage of grass, and the percentage of forest and grassland at the landscape scale of 0.1 km. We advise the following important measures for conservation of this mammal community: 1) reduce logging and cattle grazing in gallery forest, and 2) increase grassland buffer zones between plantation and forest.
New Body Scales Reveal Body Dissatisfaction, Thin-Ideal, and Muscularity-Ideal in Males

The aim of the current study was to develop, test, and retest two new male body dissatisfaction scales: The Male Body Scale (MBS; consisting of emaciated to obese figures) and the Male Fit Body Scale (MFBS; consisting of emaciated to muscular figures). These scales were compared to the two most commonly used visually based indices of body dissatisfaction (Stunkard Figure Rating Scale, SFRS; and Somatomorphic Matrix, SM). Male participants rated which body figure on each scale most represented their current figure, then their ideal figure, and then rated which one of the three scales (MBS, MFBS, and SFRS) best represented their current and ideal body overall. Finally, they completed the Drive for Muscularity Scale (DMS), the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q 6.0), and their actual body composition was calculated. This was followed by a retest and manipulation check 2 to 6 weeks later. Participants’ actual body mass index, fat- and muscularity-percentage were all highly related to their current body figure choice, and both new scales were consistently valid and more reliable between test and retest than the SFRS and SM body dissatisfaction scores. Importantly, each scale was sensitive to different types of body dissatisfaction within males. Specifically, the MBS revealed that males’ desire for the thin-ideal significantly corresponded to higher eating disorder tendencies as identified by EDE-Q 6.0 scores, while the MFBS revealed much higher body dissatisfaction toward the larger, muscularity-ideal, predicting higher drive for muscularity as identified by DMS scores. Results validated the new scales, and inform male-focused eating disorder research.
Micromechanical analysis on tensile modulus of structured magneto-rheological elastomer

This paper proposed a micromechanical model to investigate the tensile modulus of structured magnetorheological elastomers (MRE) to understand its anisotropic properties. A three parameter representative volume element (RVE) model was presented to describe the microscopic structure, where particles could be organized in layer-like or chain-like structure. And the tensile modulus is defined as a ratio of stress to strain in the stretched direction. We then applied effective medium theory to derive a theoretical model for the modulus of MRE in the absence of magnetic field, considering the influence of particles configuration and volume fraction. In addition, the effect of magnetic field on magneto-induced stress inside MRE is evaluated to further establish a multi-scale model which explains the magneto-rheological effect of structured MRE. The proposed model was then compared with finite element analysis and ‘free energy’ model. It demonstrated that the proposed model match better with the finite element solutions than that of ‘free energy’ method. The advantage of the proposed model is that it couples the magnetic field and displacement field, and considers the influence of both particles spatial energy and the relative position on magneto-rheological effect. The stiffer or softer of MREs induced by an applied magnetic field under tensile stress is predicted that is conformed to previous studies.
Behaviours Associated with Acoustic Communication in Nile Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus)

Background Sound production is widespread among fishes and accompanies many social interactions. The literature reports twenty-nine cichlid species known to produce sounds during aggressive and courtship displays, but the precise range in behavioural contexts is unclear. This study aims to describe the various Oreochromis niloticus behaviours that are associated with sound production in order to delimit the role of sound during different activities, including agonistic behaviours, pit activities, and reproduction and parental care by males and females of the species. Methodology/Principal Findings Sounds mostly occur during the day. The sounds recorded during this study accompany previously known behaviours, and no particular behaviour is systematically associated with sound production. Males and females make sounds during territorial defence but not during courtship and mating. Sounds support visual behaviours but are not used alone. During agonistic interactions, a calling Oreochromis niloticus does not bite after producing sounds, and more sounds are produced in defence of territory than for dominating individuals. Females produce sounds to defend eggs but not larvae. Conclusion/Significance Sounds are produced to reinforce visual behaviours. Moreover, comparisons with O. mossambicus indicate two sister species can differ in their use of sound, their acoustic characteristics, and the function of sound production. These findings support the role of sounds in differentiating species and promoting speciation. They also make clear that the association of sounds with specific life-cycle roles cannot be generalized to the entire taxa.
Critical Care Pharmacists and Medication Management in an ICU Recovery Center

Background: Many patients experience complications following critical illness; these are now widely referred to as post–intensive care syndrome (PICS). An interprofessional intensive care unit (ICU) recovery center (ICU-RC), also known as a PICS clinic, is one potential approach to promoting patient and family recovery following critical illness. Objectives: To describe the role of an ICU-RC critical care pharmacist in identifying and treating medication-related problems among ICU survivors. Methods: A prospective, observational cohort study was conducted of all outpatient appointments of a tertiary care hospital’s ICU-RC between July 2012 and December 2015. The pharmacist completed a full medication review, including medication reconciliation, interview, counseling, and resultant interventions, during the ICU-RC appointment. Results: Data from all completed ICU-RC visits were analyzed (n = 62). A full medication review was performed in 56 (90%) of these patients by the pharmacist. The median number of pharmacy interventions per patient was 4 (interquartile range = 2, 5). All 56 patients had at least 1 pharmacy intervention; 22 (39%) patients had medication(s) stopped at the clinic appointment, and 18 (32%) patients had new medication(s) started. The pharmacist identified 9 (16%) patients who had an adverse drug event (ADE); 18 (32%) patients had ADE preventive measures instituted. An influenza vaccination was administered to 13 (23%) patients despite an inpatient protocol to ensure influenza vaccination prior to discharge. A pneumococcal vaccination was administered to 2 (4%) patients. Conclusions: Use of a critical care pharmacist resulted in the identification and treatment of multiple medication-related problems in an ICU-RC as well as implementation of preventive measures.
Early Life Influences Kidney Function at Age 63–64 Years, but So Does Adult Body Size: Results from the Newcastle Thousand Families Birth Cohort

Background It is suggested that impaired fetal growth can affect kidney development, resulting in fewer glomeruli being formed and reduced kidney function later in life. The aim of this study was to investigate early life variables in relation to adult kidney function, and compare these to the influence of later life variables. Methods Detailed information was collected prospectively regarding 1,142 babies, born in 1947 in Newcastle upon Tyne. At the age of 63–64 years, 335 participants had serum creatinine successfully measured and completed a lifestyle questionnaire. These measurements were used to calculate their estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). Results Body mass index (BMI) and being female were significantly negatively associated with eGFR. Birth weight was significantly positively associated with eGFR. In sex-specific analyses, BMI and cigarette smoking remained significant for males (n = 154), with a near significant association for birth weight, whereas none of the variables remained significant for females (n = 181). Conclusions The findings suggest that sex, size at birth and BMI may be important variables influencing adult kidney function. However, as only a small amount of variance in eGFR was explained by these variables, additional longitudinal studies would be beneficial for assessing lifecourse influences on kidney function.
Risk Factors for Acute Mesenteric Ischemia in Critically Ill Burns Patients—A Matched Case–Control Study

Objective: Burn-induced shock can lead to tissue hypoperfusion, including the gut. We performed this study to describe burn patients at risk of acute mesenteric ischemia (AMI) with the aim to identify potential modifiable risk factors. Methods: Retrospective case–control study including adult severely burned patients between August 2012 and March 2017. Patients who developed AMI were matched to severely burned patients without AMI at a ratio of 1:3 (same year of admission, Abbreviated Burn Severity Index [ABSI], and Simplified Acute Physiology Score II [SAPSII]). Univariate and multiple regression analyses were performed. Results: Of 282 severely burned patients, 15 (5%) were diagnosed with AMI. In the AMI group, patients had a median (interquartile range) total body surface area (TBSA), SAPSII, and ABSI of 55 (25–63)%, 53 (39–70), and 11 (8–13), respectively. The AMI mechanism in all patients was nonocclusive. Decreased cardiac index within the first 24 h (H24 CI), higher sequential organ failure assessment score on day 1 (D1 SOFA), and hydroxocobalamin use were associated with AMI. Odds ratios were 0.18 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.03–0.94), 1.6 (95% CI, 1.2–2.1), and 4.6 (95% CI, 1.3–15.9), respectively, after matching. Multiple regression analysis showed that only decreased H24 CI and higher D1 SOFA were independently associated with AMI. Ninety-day mortality was higher in the AMI group (93% vs. 46% [P = 0.001]). Conclusions: Burns patients with initial low cardiac output and early multiple organ dysfunction are at high risk of nonocclusive AMI.
Microwave assisted green synthesis of silver nanoparticles using leaf extract of elephantopus scaber and its environmental and biological applications

Abstract The fabrication of spherical silver nanoparticles using the phytoreducing agent Elephantopus scaber is reported here. Irradiation of the reaction mixture under a domestic microwave oven enabled the formation of stable silver nanoparticles and was confirmed by UV-vis spectral portrait. Chemical components inherent in the aqueous leaf extract which reduces the monovalent silver were identified by FT-IR spectroscopy. The crystal structure of the synthesized nanoparticles was established as face centred cube by the powder XRD analysis. The TEM images suggest an average particle size of 37.86 nm to the silver nanoparticles. The prepared silver nanocatalysts can successfully reduce various organic nitro compounds, namely, 4-nitrophenol, 2-nitroaniline and 4-nitroaniline. The environmental pollution caused by dyes like eosin Y is effectively wiped off within a short span of time using the prepared nanocatalysts. The free radical quenching efficacy of the plant extract and the silver nanoparticles were checked by employing DPPH assay bestowing ascorbic acid reference. The potential of the nanoparticles as antimicrobials against six human disease causing pathogens were tested through the well diffusion pathway. The newly developed silver nanoparticles produced IC50 value 15.68 ± 0.15 μg/mL on human skin carcinoma cells, A375 and 65.49 ± 0.40 μg/mL on fibroblast cells, L929 when the cytotoxicity is studied employing MTT assay. Elephantopus scaber showed IC50 value 50.55 ± 0.17 μg/mL against A375 cells. Graphical Abstract
Influence of different instrumentation modalities on the surface characteristics and biofilm formation on dental implant neck, in vitro

OBJECTIVES To evaluate surface characteristics of implants after using different instruments and biofilm formation following instrumentation. MATERIAL AND METHODS Thirty-five commercially available dental implants were embedded into seven plastic models, attached to a phantom head and randomly assigned to seven instrumentation groups: (1) stainless steel (SSC) or (2) titanium curettes (TC); air-polisher using glycine-based (3) perio (PP) or (4) soft (SP) powders or (5) erythritol powder (EP); and an ultrasonic device using (6) stainless steel (PS) or (7) plastic-coated instruments (PI). Half of each implant neck in each group (n = 5) was treated once (30 s), while the other half was left uninstrumented (control). An eighth (8) treatment group used a bur/polisher to smooth two implants (SM). Following instrumentation implants were rinsed (5 ml Ringer's solution), analysed under a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and subjected twice (separately) to bacterial colonization with Streptococcus gordonii (2 h) and a mixed culture (S. gordonii, Actinomyces naeslundii, Fusobacterium nucleatum, Porphyromonas gingivalis and Tannerella forsythia; 24 h). RESULTS Visual assessment of SEM pictures revealed surface modifications (smoothening to roughening) following instrumentation. These alterations differed between the instrument groups and from the control. Quantitative scoring of the photographs revealed that SSC caused a significantly rougher surface compared to other instruments (P < 0.05), except for SP (P = 0.057) and PP (P = 0.108). After bacterial colonization no significant differences (P > 0.05) were evident between instrumented or control surfaces in either culture. CONCLUSIONS Overall, no significant differences were observed in the surface characteristics (except for SSC) or bacterial colonization based on one-time instrumentation.
Pathway Analysis Using Information from Allele-Specific Gene Methylation in Genome-Wide Association Studies for Bipolar Disorder

Bipolar disorder (BPD) is a complex psychiatric trait with high heritability. Despite efforts through conducting genome-wide association (GWA) studies, the success of identifying susceptibility loci for BPD has been limited, which is partially attributed to the complex nature of its pathogenesis. Pathway-based analytic strategy is a powerful tool to explore joint effects of gene sets within specific biological pathways. Additionally, to incorporate other aspects of genomic data into pathway analysis may further enhance our understanding for the underlying mechanisms for BPD. Patterns of DNA methylation play important roles in regulating gene expression and function. A commonly observed phenomenon, allele-specific methylation (ASM) describes the associations between genetic variants and DNA methylation patterns. The present study aimed to identify biological pathways that are involve in the pathogenesis of BPD while incorporating brain specific ASM information in pathway analysis using two large-scale GWA datasets in Caucasian populations. A weighting scheme was adopted to take ASM information into consideration for each pathway. After multiple testing corrections, we identified 88 and 15 enriched pathways for their biological relevance for BPD in the Genetic Association Information Network (GAIN) and the Wellcome Trust Case Control Consortium dataset, respectively. Many of these pathways were significant only when applying the weighting scheme. Three ion channel related pathways were consistently identified in both datasets. Results in the GAIN dataset also suggest for the roles of extracellular matrix in brain for BPD. Findings from Gene Ontology (GO) analysis exhibited functional enrichment among genes of non-GO pathways in activity of gated channel, transporter, and neurotransmitter receptor. We demonstrated that integrating different data sources with pathway analysis provides an avenue to identify promising and novel biological pathways for exploring the underlying molecular mechanisms for bipolar disorder. Further basic research can be conducted to target the biological mechanisms for the identified genes and pathways.
Paramyxovirus V Proteins Interact with the RIG-I/TRIM25 Regulatory Complex and Inhibit RIG-I Signaling

ABSTRACT Paramyxovirus V proteins are known antagonists of the RIG-I-like receptor (RLR)-mediated interferon induction pathway, interacting with and inhibiting the RLR MDA5. We report interactions between the Nipah virus V protein and both RIG-I regulatory protein TRIM25 and RIG-I. We also observed interactions between these host proteins and the V proteins of measles virus, Sendai virus, and parainfluenza virus. These interactions are mediated by the conserved C-terminal domain of the V protein, which binds to the tandem caspase activation and recruitment domains (CARDs) of RIG-I (the region of TRIM25 ubiquitination) and to the SPRY domain of TRIM25, which mediates TRIM25 interaction with the RIG-I CARDs. Furthermore, we show that V interaction with TRIM25 and RIG-I prevents TRIM25-mediated ubiquitination of RIG-I and disrupts downstream RIG-I signaling to the mitochondrial antiviral signaling protein. This is a novel mechanism for innate immune inhibition by paramyxovirus V proteins, distinct from other known V protein functions such as MDA5 and STAT1 antagonism. IMPORTANCE The host RIG-I signaling pathway is a key early obstacle to paramyxovirus infection, as it results in rapid induction of an antiviral response. This study shows that paramyxovirus V proteins interact with and inhibit the activation of RIG-I, thereby interrupting the antiviral signaling pathway and facilitating virus replication.
Head Lice among Governmental Primary School Students in Southern Jordan: Prevalence and Risk Factors

Background: Head lice, a common social and health problem among all age groups, is especially widespread among school-aged children. Aims: This study aimed to assess the prevalence of pediculosis capitis among governmental primary school students in Southern Jordan and its related risk factors. Settings and Design: A sample of 500 primary schools students aged 6–12 from two male and two female public primary schools in four educational directorates were selected randomly in this cross-sectional study. Materials and Methods: Data were collected using a modified questionnaire that was completed by the students with the help of their parents. Students were then asked to return the questionnaire a day ahead of the examination date with a signed consent from the parents. Statistical Analysis: SPSS software was used with Chi-square testing to study the significant relationship between lice infestation prevalence and the independent variables. Statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. Results and Conclusion: The overall prevalence of lice infestation was 20.4% and was significantly higher among girls than boys. The prevalence rate was higher among rural residents, those living in shared rooms, families with a monthly income of <200 Jordanian Dinar, illiterate father and mother, those living in families with more than five members, houses with fewer than three rooms, students with longer hair, those with a history of infestation in the previous year, and students who share home articles with other family members. Female gender, low socioeconomic status, a history of contact, inadequate hygiene practices, and sharing articles were the major risk factors.
Temperature Effects on Pea Plants Probed by Simultaneous Measurements of the Kinetics of Prompt Fluorescence, Delayed Fluorescence and Modulated 820 nm Reflection

Simultaneous in vivo measurements of prompt fluorescence (PF), delayed fluorescence (DF) and 820-nm reflection (MR) were made to probe response of pea leaves to 40 s incubation at high temperatures (25–50°C). We interpret our observation to suggest that heat treatment provokes an inhibition of electron donation by the oxygen evolving complex. DF, in a time range from several microseconds to milliseconds, has been thought to reflect recombination, in the dark, between the reduced primary electron acceptor QA – and the oxidized donor (P680+) of photosystem II (PSII). The lower electron transport rate through PSII after 45 and 50°C incubation also changed DF induction. We observed a decrease in the amplitude of the DF curve and a change in its shape and in its decay. Acceleration of P700+ and PC+ re-reduction was induced by 45°C treatment but after 50°C its reduction was slower, indicating inhibition of photosystem I. We suggest that simultaneous PF, MR and DF might provide useful information on assessing the degree of plant tolerance to different environmental stresses.