Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Modified methods of nanoparticles synthesis in pH-sensitive nano-carriers production for doxorubicin delivery on MCF-7 breast cancer cell line

Purpose: Modified top-down procedure was successfully employed in the synthesis of aragonite nanoparticles (NPs) from cheaply available natural seawater cockle shells. This was with the aim of developing a pH-sensitive nano-carrier for effective delivery of doxorubicin (DOX) on MCF-7 breast cancer cell line. Methods: The shells were cleaned with banana pelts, ground using a mortar and pestle, and stirred vigorously on a rotary pulverizing blending machine in dodecyl dimethyl betane solution. This simple procedure avoids the use of stringent temperatures and unsafe chemicals associated with NP production. The synthesized NPs were loaded with DOX to form DOX-NPs. The free and DOX-loaded NPs were characterized for physicochemical properties using field emission scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, zeta potential analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction. The release profile, cytotoxicity, and cell uptake were evaluated. Results: NPs had an average diameter of 35.50 nm, 19.3% loading content, 97% encapsulation efficiency, and a surface potential and intensity of 19.1±3.9 mV and 100%, respectively. A slow and sustained pH-specific controlled discharge profile of DOX from DOX-NPs was observed, clearly showing apoptosis/necrosis induced by DOX-NPs through endocytosis. The DOX-NPs had IC50 values 1.829, 0.902, and 1.0377 µg/mL at 24, 48, and 72 hrs, while those of DOX alone were 0.475, 0.2483, and 0.0723 µg/mL, respectively. However, even at higher concentration, no apparent toxicity was observed with the NPs, revealing their compatibility with MCF-7 cells with a viability of 92%. Conclusions: The modified method of NPs synthesis suggests the tremendous potential of the NPs as pH-sensitive nano-carriers in cancer management because of their pH targeting ability toward cancerous cells.
Environmental correlates of species richness and composition of riparian anuran communities in rainforests of northwestern Borneo: a metacommunity perspective

The diversity of stream anurans in Southeast Asia is highly endangered by habitat loss and fragmentation. To optimise conservation planning, their distribution patterns and habitat requirements need to be better understood. In this study, we investigated the distribution and habitat requirements of stream-associated anurans across four sites in north-western Borneo. The sites showed differences in species richness and composition. At a local scale, only microhabitat parameters and stream dynamics had a significant explanatory power on species composition. At a regional scale, environmental variables and geographical distances were both correlated with species composition, with adjacent locations having more similar species assemblages than distant locations. In order to protect the diversity of riparian anurans of north-western Borneo, protected areas need to include distant sites within the same region in addition to a diversity of habitats.
Concentration and accumulation of micronutrients in robust coffee

Knowledge on the dynamics of micronutrients in coffee tree assists nutritional diagnosis and fertilization management. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the concentration and accumulation of micronutrients in the leaves and fruits of Coffea canephora. The experiment was managed in crops propagated for 2.5 years in a split-plot-in-time scheme in which the main plots consisted of fertilized and not-fertilized plants, and the subplots stipulated the evaluation periods. The berries and leaves were collected every 28 days, starting from the first flowering to full maturity. The micronutrient content was determined by laboratory chemical analysis, and the accumulation of nutrients in the fruit (mg) was calculated by multiplying the dry matter of the berry (g) × nutrient concentration (mg kg−1). The results showed that fertilization infers the zinc concentration in the fruits and the concentration for manganese, iron and zinc in the leaves in the determined periods. Micronutrient accumulation curves followed the simple sigmoidal model, with accumulation increasing considerably as a function of fruit growth. Thus, fertilization based on micronutrients must be divided over stages with higher accumulation rates, considering the specific requirement of each nutrient.
Understanding the malleability of implicit stereotyping and implicit prejudice toward female leadership: a longitudinal field study on municipality employees in Turkey

The widespread underrepresentation of women in senior leadership positions and discrimination against them has been mostly explained using socio-cognitive processes, such as stereotypic and prejudicial attitudes against women’s leadership. Any reduction in such unfavorable attitudes of employees seems to be necessary before we can see more gender balance in senior leadership. There are divergent theories and contradicting results on how malleable stereotypes and prejudices toward women management are especially for their implicit (i.e. automatic, sub-conscious, uncontrollable and unintentional) components. The present study aims to examine the malleability of the implicit stereotypic and prejudicial attitudes toward female leadership. I consider dynamic views of role congruity theory and implicit leadership theories as well as divergent theories on the malleability of stereotypes and prejudice, namely intergroup contact theory, the associative-propositional evaluation model and the backlash effect arguments. I investigate the presence and extent of change (alpha or gamma change) in implicit attitudes toward female leadership of employees following exposure to a female leader at work. I conducted a three-phase (three-month interval) longitudinal field study in the municipality context. Longitudinal data were collected from civil servants of metropolitan district municipalities which had a woman mayor for the first time in their history (n = 147, 46.3% females) and those with male municipality mayors (n = 160, 56.7% females). The results suggest no significant overall difference in implicit stereotyping or the change trajectory of implicit prejudice toward female leadership (via latent growth modelling) following exposure to a female leader. Participant gender, female leader’s perceived characteristics (i.e., success & agency/communality) as well as employees’ perceived quantity and quality of interaction with the female mayor significantly moderated the exposure’s influence over implicit stereotyping and implicit prejudice. I discuss the implications of this study on contradicting theoretical explanations concerning the malleability of implicit attitudes toward female leadership as well as dynamic arguments of leadership theories.
Staphylococcal slime layers and biofilm from different origins

ABSTRACT: The genus Staphylococcus comprises some of the most important pathogenic bacteria for both humans and animals. It is responsible for bovine mastitis and canine otitis, besides being present in the microbiota of animals and as a contaminant in food. Its pathogenesis is related to the formation of capsule and biofilm, which contribute to its infectivity. The objective of this study was to observe the production of slime layer and formation of biofilm, which are related to the resistance to antimicrobial agents and presence of icaA and icaD genes, in 41 isolates of Staphylococcus spp. from different origins, provided by the Universidade Federal de Pelotas (UFPEL), Laboratório Regional de Diagnóstico (LRD). Strains of Staphylococcus spp. were cultivated in Congo red agar for capsule detection. Biofilm formation was detected using the 96-well microplate testing. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed using the plate diffusion method. Part of the analyzed samples produced slime layer (36.6%) and formed biofilm (17.1%). However, six of those that formed biofilms were susceptible to the eight antibiotics tested in the antibiogram. In tests to determine the minimum bactericidal and inhibitory concentrations, gentamicin resistance of biofilm-forming strains was greater than that of non-forming strains. Ampicillin was the least effective antimicrobial drug (51%), followed by tetracycline (71%), neomycin (73%), and erythromycin (73%). Some isolates presented the icaA (6) and icaD (11) genes. Therefore, we suggested that the origin of an isolate can determine its expression of virulence factor and resistance to certain antibiotics.
Effects of Pioglitazone On the Lipid Profile, Serum Antioxidant Capacity, and UCP1 Gene Expression in Mouse Brown Adipose Tissue.

Background Pioglitazone increases insulin sensitivity and improves glycemic control in type 2 diabetics. In this study, we evaluated the effects of pioglitazone on the uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1) expression in mouse brown adipose tissue (BAT), and on recovery from oxidative stress due to a high-fat diet. Methods 30 mice were divided into three groups: group 1 received a normal diet, group 2 received a high-fat diet, and group 3 received a high-fat diet plus 30 mg/kg pioglitazone. After treatment, the cholesterol, triglyceride, paraoxonase 1 (PON1), total serum antioxidant capacity (TAC), malondialdehyde (MDA), and specific activity of hepatic catalase were measured. BAT UCP1 expression was evaluated at both the mRNA and protein levels. Results The weights differed between the groups (p<0.05). Serum MDA was greater and TAC, liver catalase, and PON1 were less than in group 2 than in group 1 (p<0.05). In Serum MDA was less and catalase activity was greater in group 3 than in group 2 (p<0.05). UCP1 gene expression was less in group 2 than in group 1 (p<0.05) but greater than in group 3 (p<0.05). Conclusion Pioglitazone may have a protective role in high-fat-diet-induced oxidative stress by increasing the antioxidant capacity. Moreover, it can induce weight loss by increasing UCP1 mRNA and protein expression.
Chemical and mineralogical properties of post-mining sites in two gold mining concessions in Ghana

Mining companies adopt different post-mining management practices to rehabilitate mined sites to enhance environmental management and sustainability. The study assessed the chemical and mineralogical properties of some post-mining land management options from two gold mines in the Western Region of Ghana. Samples of waste rock (WR), mine tailings (MTs), mine soils and un-mined soils were analysed for soil pH, cation exchange capacity (CEC), exchangeable cations, soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (Ntotal), concentrations of some heavy metals (HMs) and mineralogy by ICP-AES and X-ray diffraction techniques. The results revealed pH values of 4.2-4.6 in un-mined soils and 4.6-5.4 in mine soils. The MTs and WR were alkaline due to CaCO3 (4.8-5.8 g kg-1). Virtually all the samples contained kaolinite, muscovite and quartz. The MTs contained ankerite, bobierrite, clinoclase and greenalite, which were not present in the WR. These minerals were most probably neo-formed out of the chemical constituents of the tailings and contamination during the disposal. Mine soils from three-year-old reclaimed mine site planted with oil palm had substantial SOC and Ntotal contents among all the post-mining sites which also reflected slightly on the CEC status. This showed the influence of soil management practices such as mulching, cover cropping with Pueraria phaseoloides, erosion control and fertiliser application. The HMs contents in the mine tailings occurred in the order of Pb > As > Cd and revealed relatively higher contents in the abandoned MTs compared to reclaimed ones but they were all in the range of those in uncontaminated soils elsewhere.
Characterization of the complete chloroplast genome of Moringa oleifera Lam. (Moringaceae), an important edible species in India

Abstract Moringa oleifera Lam. is a member of the Moringaceae family which includes 13 species. The plant is cultivated throughout tropical and subtropical areas due to its adaptability, also used worldwide as nutritional supplement and traditional medicine. In this study, the complete chloroplast genome (cp) of M. oleifera was sequenced, assembled, and analyzed. Our results indicated that the cp genome of M. oleifera was 160,600 bp in length, containing a large single copy (LSC, 88,727 bp) region and a small single copy (SSC, 18,883 bp) region which separated by two reduced inverted repeats (IRs, 26,495 bp). A total of 108 unique genes were identified, including 74 protein-coding genes, 30 transfer RNA (tRNA) genes, and four ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes. The overall GC content of M. oleifera cp genome was 36.8%. Most of the 47 simple sequence repeats (SSRs) were mononucleotides motifs of A/T types and were found to be located in non-coding regions. Phylogenetic analysis of M. oleifera showed that M. oleifera was the base group of Rhoeadales with strongly bootstrap supported which is consist with morphological taxonomy.
Using an epidemiological approach to investigate sex differences in the manifestation of ADHD in youth and adulthood

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common and impairing neurodevelopmental disorder, defined by maladaptive levels of inattentive and hyperactive/impulsive behaviours. In youth, more males than females receive a diagnosis and the literature is clear in identifying that females with ADHD may be underdiagnosed compared to males. The sex ratio balances out in adulthood, but the diagnosis in adulthood is less common in comparison to youth and is based on age-appropriate adaptations of behavioural symptom descriptions developed to reflect ADHD in childhood. Research has uncovered a wider range of traits that are characteristic of the disorder and could form part of the core symptomatology, which have the potential to aid diagnosis in adults, such as excessive spontaneous mind wandering. In this thesis, I capitalise on the strengths of epidemiological datasets to investigate sex differences in ADHD across the lifespan and aim to uncover factors that may influence differential referral and diagnostic rates. The first two empirical chapters examine sex differences in youth. Specifically, I examine whether different factors are associated with meeting diagnostic criteria in females versus males, whether sex-dependent biases in parental perceptions of ADHD symptoms exist, and whether the predictive associations of symptoms on being diagnosed and treated for ADHD differs in males and females. The last two empirical chapters investigate ADHD in adulthood and whether a new measure based on the internal subjective experience of ADHD symptoms excessive mind wandering could have clinical utility in ADHD diagnosis and add to our understanding of sex differences in the manifestation of ADHD. My findings suggest that females’ ADHD symptoms may need to be made more prominent by additional behavioural and emotional problems for them to receive clinical recognition for their ADHD, and that in the absence of prominent externalising problems females may be more easily missed in the ADHD diagnostic process. Furthermore, sex differences in parental perceptions of ADHD behaviours and impairment were demonstrated, indicating that parents may be less sensitive to ADHD symptoms and impairment in females which could lead to under-referral. My findings also suggest that excessive mind wandering is a common co-occurring feature of adult ADHD that has specific effects on impairment, and that a newly developed measure of mind wandering The Mind Excessively Wandering Scale (MEWS) – could have clinical utility as an
Performances of Rabbit Fed Diets with Graded Levels of Bean Offal (Phaseolus vulgaris L.)

This work was carried out in collaboration among all authors. Authors MKH and FLB designed the study, performed the statistical analysis, wrote the protocol and wrote the first draft of the manuscript. Author NF managed the analyses of the study. Author TA managed the literature searches and read the final draft. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. Aims: The aim of the feed intake was significantly higher in the control diet T0 (3251±554.96 g) as compared to T22.5 (31412±554.96 g). Weight gain of rabbit fed dietT22.5 was higher (3173±284.93 g) as compared to those fed on control diet T0 that recorded the lowest values (2986.67±284.93 g). Cost of production per kg of live weight was significantly higher (p<0.05) with rabbit fed on control diet T0 (7835.79±278.62 FCFA) whereas the lowest value was recorded with rabbit under diet T30 (7232.06±278.62 FCFA). Conclusion: It is concluded that up to 22% of bean offal could be included in rabbit diet to reduce cost of feed and improve performances.
Managing virtual appointments in chronic care

Abstract Virtual appointments between patients and healthcare providers can offer a cost-effective alternative to traditional office appointments for managing chronic conditions. Virtual appointments increase contact with the physician by either substituting or complementing office appointments, leading to improved health outcomes. The true value of virtual appointments cannot be realized until they are truly integrated with the office appointment systems. In this study, we introduce a capacity allocation model to study the use of virtual appointments in a chronic care setting. Specifically, we develop a finite horizon stochastic dynamic program to determine which patients to schedule for office and virtual appointments that maximizes aggregate health benefits across a cohort of patients. Optimal policy characterization for this problem is challenging. We find that, under certain conditions, a myopic heuristic, where the sickest patients are scheduled for office appointments and the next sickest patients are scheduled for virtual appointments, is optimal. We show that the myopic heuristic performs well even in more general settings. Our findings further show that virtual appointments serve a dual purpose: they may reduce the number of office appointments and may trigger follow-up office appointments.
Interrelations of Tillage and Weed Control for Soybean (Glycine max) Production

A 3-yr (1982, 1983, and 1984) study was conducted to determine the relationship between tillage and six weed control treatments for soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr. ‘Williams 79′] production on silt loam (Udollic and Mollic Ochraqualfs). Conventional tillage consisted of spring moldboard plowing and secondary tillage with a combination tool just before planting. No-tillage consisted of a foliar application of glyphosate [N-(phosphonomethyl)glycine] at the time of planting. Weed control treatments included combinations of no weed control with and without soybean plants, preemergence herbicide application only, postemergence herbicide application only, and combined preemergence and postemergence applications with and without additional handweeding. In 1982, a year of above-normal seasonal rainfall, conventional tillage had significantly greater soybean grain yields than no-tillage for all weed control treatments except the preemergence-only treatment. Yields within tillage systems and between weed control treatments in 1982 were not significantly different because adequate rainfall reduced the effect of weed competition for soil moisture. Soybean seed yields in 1983 and 1984 in no-tillage were equal to or significantly greater than those of conventional tillage. No-tillage treatments had greater soil moisture conservation and soil moisture availability resulting in less plant water stress during podfilling in periods of drought in 1983 and 1984. In all 3 yr, conventional tillage had significantly greater early weed growth than no-tillage in the treatments with and without soybean plants where no preemergence or postemergence herbicides were used. Comparing treatments with and without soybean plants indicated an average increase of 36 and 38% weed control for no-tillage and conventional tillage, respectively.
Non-Pharmacological Approaches in the Treatment of Dementia

Currently, a pharmacological disease-modifying treatment for dementia is not available, but different non-pharmacological approaches appear to be useful. In this chapter, we describe traditional treatments such as cognitive and emotion-oriented interventions, sensory and multi-sensory stimulation interventions and also potential‐ ly alternative interesting options such as behavioural therapy, animal-assisted therapy, home-adaptation therapy and assistive technologies to support patient with demen‐ tia. Many non-pharmacological treatments have reported benefits in multiple re‐ search studies, but there is a need for further Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) with an adequate sample size to improve the strength of evidence in order to apply these approaches.
Lung Cancer and Pulmonary Tuberculosis - A Comparative Population-Genetic Study

Lung Cancer and Pulmonary Tuberculosis - A Comparative Population-Genetic Study Several host genes proven to contribute to active tuberculosis (TB) and some of the localized major susceptibility loci, which influence lung cancer (LC) risk, are of considerable scientific interest, but do not confer high enough risk to be clinically relevant. Assuming that these diseases are genetically controlled, we hypothesized that retreat from optimal homozygosity level, as well as a changed variability among the patients, could be the populationgenetic parameter for prediction of illness. We performed a homozygous-recessive-characters (HRCs) test based analysis of the presence, distribution and individual combination of 23 selected genetically-controlled morpho-physiological traits in groups of LC patients, patients with pulmonary TB and healthy control subjects. This study showed: i) a statistically significant difference of the middle values of genetic homozygosity between both patients groups and the control group, ii) differences in the type of distribution, and iii) differences in the presence of certain individual combinations of such traits. The frequency of blood group O was significantly decreased in the TB group compared to the general population. According to their population-genetic structure, LC patients, TB patients and healthy controls represent three different groups. The retreat from optimal homozygosity level towards decrease that we found in both LC and TB patients support the influence of a dominant factor in development of these diseases.
Using Social Network Information in Community-Based Bayesian Truth Discovery

We investigate the problem of truth discovery based on opinions from multiple agents (who may be unreliable or biased) that form a social network. We consider the case where agents’ reliabilities or biases are correlated if they belong to the same community, which defines a group of agents with similar opinions regarding a particular event. An agent can belong to different communities for different events, and these communities are unknown a priori. We incorporate knowledge of the agents’ social network in our truth discovery framework and develop Laplace variational inference methods to estimate agents’ reliabilities, communities, and the event states. We also develop a stochastic variational inference method to scale our model to large social networks. Simulations and experiments on real data suggest that when observations are sparse, our proposed methods perform better than several other inference methods, including majority voting, TruthFinder, AccuSim, the Confidence-Aware Truth Discovery method, the Bayesian classifier combination (BCC) method, and the community BCC method.