Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Influence of long-term survival on resistance of Salmonella enterica serovar typhimurium and Escherichia coli O157:H7 to physical or chemical food processes

Under adverse conditions in the natural environment or in food processing facilities bacteria may enter a long-term-survival (LTS) phase and maintain a stable concentration of viable cells for months or years. In this LTS phase, pathogens may become resistant to antimicrobial processes that would typically inactivate them in the exponentialor stationary phase of their life cycle. In this regard, the resistance of LTS phase Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium, Salmonella PT 30 and Escherichia coli O157:H7 to ultraviolet (UV) radiation, desiccation or cinnamaldehyde in model systems and in food products was investigated. Exponential-, stationary, and LTS phase cells were cultured in tryptic soy broth supplemented with 0.6% yeast extract (TSBYE; 35°C) for 4 h, 24 h and 14 days, respectively. In the UV resistance experiment, cells from each physiological state were exposed to UV light in saline (80 μW/cm) and apple juice (820 μW/cm). The LTS S. Typhimurium consistently exhibited the highest UV resistance. In both saline and apple juice, D-values of LTS S. Typhimurium were significantly higher than D-values of the other two physiological states of cells. The LTS cells also had the least sub-lethal injury in the surviving population. Both S. Typhimurium and S. PT30 in the LTS phase were the most resistant to desiccation on paper discs and on raw almonds, and to hot air drying of almonds at 100°C. The LTS E. coli O157:H7 exhibited the highest resistance to cinnamaldehyde in carrot juice and apple juice compared to stationary phase cells. These results indicate that the LTS state cross-protects S. enterica and E. coli O157:H7 against UV radiation, desiccation and cinnamaldehyde. Additionally, we demonstrated that LTS cells are highly tolerant to antibiotics compared
Pairwise Markov properties for regression graphs

With a sequence of regressions, one may generate joint probability distributions. One starts with a joint, marginal distribution of context variables having possibly a concentration graph structure and continues with an ordered sequence of conditional distributions, named regressions in joint responses. The involved random variables may be discrete, continuous or of both types. Such a generating process specifies for each response a conditioning set that contains just its regressor variables, and it leads to at least one valid ordering of all nodes in the corresponding regression graph that has three types of edge: one for undirected dependences among context variables, another for undirected dependences among joint responses and one for any directed dependence of a response on a regressor variable. For this regression graph, there are several definitions of pairwise Markov properties, where each interprets the conditional independence associated with a missing edge in the graph in a different way. We explain how these properties arise, prove their equivalence for compositional graphoids and point at the equivalence of each one of them to the global Markov property. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Ethyl Iso-allocholate from a Medicinal Rice Karungkavuni Inhibits Dihydropteroate Synthase in Escherichia coli: A Molecular Docking and Dynamics Study

Rice (Oryza sativa) is the grain of life. It is one among the main cereal crops and it is the staple food for most of the world’s population. Medicinal rice varieties have defensive and therapeutic properties against many human disorders. Drug resistance has become a major problem in recent years. Escherichia coli have developed resistance to most of the antibiotics including sulfonamides that target dihydropteroate synthase. In the present study, we attempt to identify a novel inhibitor for the dihydropteroate synthase from a medicinal rice variety – “Karungkavuni”. The phytochemical composition of the rice “Karungkavuni” is analyzed through Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The isolated compounds with reported antimicrobial activity are subjected to molecular docking procedures to understand the binding behaviour of the ligands with the target. Our analysis reveals that, ethyl iso-allocholate and 9,12,15-octadecatrienoic acid- 2,3-dihydroxypropyl ester as the best binding compounds. Molecular dynamics studies reveal dihydropteroate synthase-ethyl iso-allocholate complex is more stable than other ligands throughout the simulation. Our study demonstrates that ethyl iso-allocholate compound isolated from “Karungkavuni” can serve as a potent inhibitor for dihydropteroate synthase.
Does exploratory behavior or activity in a wild mouse explain susceptibility to virus infection?

Abstract Exploration and activity are often described as trade-offs between the fitness benefits of gathering information and resources, and the potential costs of increasing exposure to predators and parasites. More exploratory individuals are predicted to have higher rates of parasitism, but this relationship has rarely been examined for virus infections in wild populations. Here, we used the multimammate mouse Mastomys natalensis to investigate the relationship between exploration, activity, and infection with Morogoro virus (MORV). We characterized individual exploratory behavior (open field and novel object tests) and activity (trap diversity), and quantified the relationship between these traits and infection status using linear regression. We found that M. natalensis expresses consistent individual differences, or personality types, in exploratory behavior (repeatability of 0.30, 95% CI: 0.21–0.36). In addition, we found a significant contrasting effect of age on exploration and activity where juveniles display higher exploration levels than adults, but lower field-activity. There was however no statistical evidence for a behavioral syndrome between these 2 traits. Contrary to our expectations, we found no correlation between MORV infection status and exploratory behavior or activity, which suggests that these behaviors may not increase exposure probability to MORV infection. This would further imply that variation in viral infection between individuals is not affected by between-individual variation in exploration and activity.
Investigating the effects of IL-36γ on signal transduction in human dermal fibroblasts

Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin condition affecting around 2% of the population. IL-36γ is a member of the IL-1 family of cytokines and has emerged as a pivotal cytokine in psoriasis pathophysiology. The mTOR pathway serves as a key integrator of a wide range of environmental cues, and functions as a central regulator of cellular processes involved with growth and repair. Inhibitors of mTOR have been successfully used in the treatment of several immune mediated conditions, however have been relatively unsuccessful in psoriasis. It has not been studied how mTOR inhibition affects the contribution of stromal cells to psoriasis. We assessed signal transduction downstream of IL-36γ, in primary dermal fibroblasts, with a particular focus on the mTOR axis, and identified a negative role in AKT activation, which could be attributed to feedback loops involved in mTOR signalling. It was demonstrated that NFκB is necessary for cytokine induction by IL-36γ in fibroblasts. We established that mTORC1 negatively regulated cytokine induction, through inhibition with rapamycin. However, we were unable to demonstrate a clear reciprocal effect from the upregulation of mTOR via RNA interference.
Corporate reforms to Australian universities: views from the academic heartland

This paper presents survey findings relating to academics' work attitudes, values and responses to corporate reforms within eight Australian universities. Academics (n= 1,041) responded to the Academic Work Environment Survey, a diagnostic questionnaire designed to examine the quality of academic work life within universities in Australia (Winter, Taylor, & Sarros, 2000). Academics indicated strong positive responses to items indicative of corporate reforms across the higher education sector (i.e., decreased public funding, rise of consumerism, business-related managerial practices, quality assurance mechanisms, appraisal systems), reported high levels of role overload (stress) and moderate levels of job involvement and organisational commitment. Value conflict statements indicated academics felt market behaviour mechanisms and business-related principles were compromising the primary goals of teaching, learning and scholarship and exerting a strong negative effect on academic morale and productivity. Role overload and work motivation responses suggested a perceived violation in the 'psychological contract' between academics and their universities (work stress and poor recognition and rewards practices are cited as evidence of contract violation). The paper concludes by discussing the types of university leadership and work structures needed to reduce value conflict in academe and build trust between academics and university managers.
The effects of low dose capsaicin on substance P expression in rat duodenum

Sunulan calismanin amaci, dusuk doz kapsaisinin (CAP) duodenumun histomorfometrik yapisi ve substans P (SP) ekspresyonu uzerine etkisini incelemektir. Calismada kullanilan ratlar (21 gunluk), kontrol grubu, CAP enjekte edilen grup ve cozucu solusyon enjekte edilen olmak uzere uc gruba ayrildi. Kontrol grubuna enjeksiyon yapilmadi. 20 gun boyunca CAP grubuna cozucu solusyon icerisinde hazirlanan 0.5 mg/kg kapsaisin, tasiyici grubuna ise sadece cozucu solusyon subkutan enjekte edildi. Ratlar her gun tartildi. Deney sonrasi dokular alinarak, doku kesitlerine histomorfometrik incemeler icin Crossman’in uclu boyamasi, SP ekspresyonunu belirlemek icin ise isaretlenmis streptavidin-biotin immunohistokimyasal teknigi uygulandi. CAP uygulanan grupta canli agirlik kazanci kontrol gruplarina gore dusuktu, fakat gruplar arasinda istatiksel farklilik gozlenmedi. Dusuk doz CAP duodenumun kript derinligini etkilemezken, villus uzunlugu CAP uygulanan grupta diger gruplara gore daha yuksek belirlendi (p<0.05). SP immunreaksiyonu duodenumun yuzey epitelinde, Lieberkuhn kriptlerinde, ve Brunner bezlerinde, diger gruplara gore CAP grubunda daha siddetli gozlendi. Sonuc olarak dusuk doz CAP, SP ekspresyonunu arttirdi ve duodenumda olumlu histomorfometrik degisiklere sebep oldu. Dusuk doz CAP uygulamasi sonucu artan SP ekspresyonu sindirim fizyolojisinin duzenlenmesinde onemli rol oynayabilir
Changes in underground roosting patterns to optimize energy conservation in hibernating bats

Non-migratory bats in colder climates use hibernation to survive winter. By reducing metabolic rate (i.e., using torpor), bats can survive winter on stored fat reserves. During hibernation, bats arouse from torpor and may move within the hibernaculum, a process called “internal migration”. We hypothesized that internal migration occurs to optimize hibernation energetics in that bats move to select a microclimate to minimize energy expenditure both by seeking cooler areas of the hibernacula and avoiding those with large temperature fluctuations. Early in the winter, we observed that 62% of bats were roosting in the warmer, less energy efficient, deepest 50% of an abandoned mine hibernaculum. Late in the season, there was a shift towards the cooler entrance area, thereby decreasing energy demands during the torpid period, with 78% of bats in the mine roosting within 50 m of the entrance. Although there was no significant effect of hibernation period (i.e., early vs. late winter) on the number of bats in huddles, the largest huddles occurred close to the entrance in late winter. To fully understand and manage bat populations, it is important to understand that hibernation is a dynamic process with bats moving and interacting with one another throughout the season.
Multiple Antibiotic Resistance, Antibiogram and Phenotypic Detection of Metallo-Beta-Lactamase (MBL) from Escherichia coli of Poultry Origin

Background: Bacteria produce antibiotic-degrading enzymes such as carbapenemases. Carbapenemases are a consortium of carbapenem-hydrolyzing enzymes such as metallo-β-lactamase (MBL) that gives Gram-negative bacteria the exceptional ability to degrade and render the carbapenems inefficacious. Aim: This study evaluated the antibiogram, multiple antibiotic resistance and occurrence of MBL-producing E. coli from cloacal swabs of poultry birds in a local poultry farm in Abakaliki, Nigeria. Materials and methods: A total of 40 cloacal swab samples from the cloacal region of poultry birds were bacteriologically analyzed for the isolation of E. coli. E. coli isolates were identified using standard microbiology techniques and the antibiogram of the isolates was determined using the disk diffusion technique. The multidrug resistance nature of the E. coli isolates was determined using multiple antibiotics resistance index (MARI) protocol while MBL production was phenotypically confirmed using the inhibition based assay. Results: A total of 29 (72.5%) E. coli isolates was recovered from the 40 cloacal swab samples. The E. coli isolates were highly resistant to imipenem (31%), meropenem (58.6%), ertapenem (75.9%), cefotaxime (55.2%), ciprofloxacin (89.7%), cefoxitin (93.1%). and ceftazidime (69.0%). MBL production was phenotypically detected in 3 (10.3%) E. coli isolates out of the 29 isolates of E. coli recovered in this study. The resistant E. coli isolates were multiply resistant to antibiotics in the class of fluoroquinolones, cephalosporins, aminoglycosides and carbapenems; and they had a multiple antibiotic resistance of 0.4 on average. Conclusion: This presumptive study has shown that E. coli isolates of poultry origin produce MBL. The emergence and spread of drug resistant bacteria in the community can be contained if we use antibiotics rationally and find alternative measures for promoting animal growth without the use of antimicrobial agents.
Post-tonsillectomy haemorrhage in Australia—a multivariable analysis of risk factors

Background: Tonsillectomy is a common procedure in otolaryngology and currently, there are limited multivariable analyses regarding factors associated with secondary post-tonsillectomy haemorrhage (PTH) in an Australian metropolitan setting. This study aims to provide further analysis of various factors associated with secondary PTH in an Australian metropolitan health service. Methods: A retrospective review was conducted for all elective tonsillectomies performed at Western Health, Australia between December 2011 and December 2015. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed. Results: A total of 1,257 tonsillectomies were included. Secondary PTH was observed in 87 (6.9%) patients with 35 (2.8%) returning to theatre. No differences in PTH were found between surgical techniques, month of tonsillectomy, same day discharge and surgeon experience. Multivariable analysis showed that patients receiving ibuprofen (OR =2.07; 95% CI =1.08, 3.99), as well as a 1-year increase in age (OR =1.03; 95% CI =1.01, 1.05) were associated with significantly increased odds of PTH. Conclusions: Tonsillectomy is a common procedure in otolaryngology and this study provides updated local data for a more accurate comparison of surgical outcome.
Advances in Diagnostic Approaches for Viral Etiologies of Diarrhea: From the Lab to the Field

The applications of correct diagnostic approaches play a decisive role in timely containment of infectious diseases spread and mitigation of public health risks. Nevertheless, there is a need to update the diagnostics regularly to capture the new, emergent, and highly divergent viruses. Acute gastroenteritis of viral origin has been identified as a significant cause of mortality across the globe, with the more serious consequences seen at the extremes of age groups (young and elderly) and immune-compromised individuals. Therefore, significant advancements and efforts have been put in the development of enteric virus diagnostics to meet the WHO ASSURED criteria as a benchmark over the years. The Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent (ELISA) and Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) are the basic assays that provided the platform for development of several efficient diagnostics such as real-time RT-PCR, loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP), polymerase spiral reaction (PSR), biosensors, microarrays and next generation sequencing. Herein, we describe and discuss the applications of these advanced technologies in context to enteric virus detection by delineating their features, advantages and limitations.
Improving inference using probabilistic expectations

The focus of this paper is on the use of probabilistic expectations in economic modeling and the effect of rounding on such modeling. A bootstrap algorithm is proposed to obtain empirical parameter estimate bounds, confidence intervals and diagnostic distributions for partially identified models. The algorithm leads to stricter parameter bounds and confidence intervals than those obtained through standard estimation methods. Using the results from the algorithm the effect of focal point answers and probability weighting are assessed for predicting wealth based on the subjective survival probability. The analysis showed that deleting respondents who gave focal point answers did not improve inference and the results for using probability weighting were inconclusive.
Serum butyrylcholinesterase activity and phenotype associations with lipid profile during various phases of menstrual cycle in young healthy women with regular menses, a preliminary report

Objectives: In this study the association of phenotypes and activity of butyrylcholin-esterase (BuChE) with serum level of lipid-lipoprotein and apolipoproteins during var-ious phases of menstrual-cycle was determined. Methods: The study population consisted of 22 healthy women aged 19–25 years with regular menstrual cycles, 26–30 days in length. The serum levels of lipids, apolipoproteins, and BuChE activity were determined during menses (days 1-2 after the beginning of menstruations), follicular (days 7-8) and luteal (days 21-22) phases of the menstrual cycle. Results: There were significant differences in the level of serum BuChE activity dur-ing three phases of the menstrual cycle (P=0.049). The activity of serum BuChE was the highest during follicular phase (890 ± 292 IU/L), the modest during the menses phase (831 ± 222 IU/L) and the lowest during luteal phase (707 ±211 IU/L). We found a significant positive correlation between BuChE activity with the levels of low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C, r=0.34, P=0.038) in the follicular and in the menses phase with LDL-C (r=0.4, P =0.025) and triacylglycerol (r=0.47, P=0.033). In addi-tion, carriers of the non-UU phenotypes (non-wild type low BuChE activity) had signif-icantly lower levels of serum high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and apolipoprotein A1 (APOA1) compared to UU phenotype (usual or wild type) during menstrual cycle. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate that serum BuChE activity elevates during menstrual cycle. It is low during luteal phase and reaches to a high level in follicular-phase. The lipid profiles are also affected by BuChE activity throughout the menstru-al-cycle in reproductive aged, regularly cycling and young healthy women.
Fan Noise Source Diagnostic Test: Rotor Alone Aerodynamic Performance Results

The aerodynamic performance of an isolated fan or rotor alone model was measured in the NASA Glenn Research Center 9- by 15- Foot Low Speed Wind Tunnel as part of the Fan Broadband Source Diagnostic Test conducted at NASA Glenn. The Source Diagnostic Test was conducted to identify the noise sources within a wind tunnel scale model of a turbofan engine and quantify their contribution to the overall system noise level. The fan was part of a 1/5th scale model representation of the bypass stage of a current technology turbofan engine. For the rotor alone testing, the fan and nacelle, including the inlet, external cowl, and fixed area fan exit nozzle, were modeled in the test hardware; the internal outlet guide vanes located behind the fan were removed. Without the outlet guide vanes, the velocity at the nozzle exit changes significantly, thereby affecting the fan performance. As part of the investigation, variations in the fan nozzle area were tested in order to match as closely as possible the rotor alone performance with the fan performance obtained with the outlet guide vanes installed. The fan operating performance was determined using fixed pressure/temperature combination rakes and the corrected weight flow. The performance results indicate that a suitable nozzle exit was achieved to be able to closely match the rotor alone and fan/outlet guide vane configuration performance on the sea level operating line. A small shift in the slope of the sea level operating line was measured, which resulted in a slightly higher rotor alone fan pressure ratio at take-off conditions, matched fan performance at cutback conditions, and a slightly lower rotor alone fan pressure ratio at approach conditions. However, the small differences in fan performance at all fan conditions were considered too small to affect the fan acoustic performance.
Experimental and Numerical Investigations of Fretting Fatigue Behavior for Steel Q235 Single-Lap Bolted Joints

This work aims to investigate the fretting fatigue life and failure mode of steel Q235B plates in single-lap bolted joints. Ten specimens were prepared and tested to fit the S-N curve. SEM (scanning electron microscope) was then employed to observe fatigue crack surfaces and identify crack initiation, crack propagation, and transient fracture zones. Moreover, a FEM model was established to simulate the stress and displacement fields. The normal contact stress, tangential contact stress, and relative slipping displacement at the critical fretting zone were used to calculate FFD values and assess fretting fatigue crack initiation sites, which were in good agreement with SEM observations. Experimental results confirmed the fretting fatigue failure mode for these specimens. It was found that the crack initiation resulted from wear regions at the contact surfaces between plates, and fretting fatigue cracks occurred at a certain distance away from hole edges. The proposed FFD- relationship is an alternative approach to evaluate fretting fatigue life of steel plates in bolted joints.
Impact of acetone (photo)oxidation on HOx production in the UT/LMS based on CARIBIC passenger aircraft observations and EMAC simulations

Until a decade ago, acetone was assumed to be a dominant HOx source in the dry extra‐tropical upper troposphere (ex‐UT). New photodissociation quantum yields of acetone and the lack of representative data from the ex‐UT challenged that assumption. Regular mass spectrometric observations onboard the Civil Aircraft for the Regular Investigation of the atmosphere Based on an Instrument Container (CARIBIC) passenger aircraft deliver the first representative distribution of acetone in the UT/LMS (UT/lowermost stratosphere). Based on diverse CARIBIC trace gas data and non‐observed parameters taken from the model ECHAM5/MESSy for Atmospheric Chemistry, we quantify the HOx source in the UT/LMS from (photo)oxidation of acetone. The findings are contrasted to HOx production from ozone photolysis, overall the dominant tropospheric HOx source. It is shown that HOx production from acetone (photo)oxidation reaches up to 95% of the HOx source from ozone photolysis in autumn in the UT and on average ~61% in summer. That is, acetone is a significant source of HOx in the UT/LMS.