Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Threshold-based energy-efficient routing for transmission of critical physiological parameters in a wireless body area network under emergency scenarios

In current study and design, the technology used in wireless body area networks has revolutionized the future of healthcare systems by remote and personalized monitoring to improve diagnosis and evolution of many pervasive diseases at early stages. In this paper, we proposed an energy-efficient computing technique to transmit the emergency data during critical conditions using bio-sensors and highly advanced nodes. During transmission and communication, energy consumption is minimized by applied threshold values to the sensed data and found the most efficient path using the cost value metric to decrease the energy consumption of the entire network. For optimizing energy constraints and to maintain a balance throughout the network lifetime, a suitable transceiver characteristic is selected and used in the design. Obtained results exhibit an increased stability period, network lifetime, throughput, remaining energy after data communication and a reduction in path loss, propagation delay compared to existing advanced node direct and multi-hop routing techniques.
Comparative Study of Extracellular Proteolytic, Cellulolytic, and Hemicellulolytic Enzyme Activities and Biotransformation of Palm Kernel Cake Biomass by Lactic Acid Bacteria Isolated from Malaysian Foods

Biotransformation via solid state fermentation (SSF) mediated by microorganisms is a promising approach to produce useful products from agricultural biomass. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) that are commonly found in fermented foods have been shown to exhibit extracellular proteolytic, β-glucosidase, β-mannosidase, and β-mannanase activities. Therefore, extracellular proteolytic, cellulolytic, and hemicellulolytic enzyme activities of seven Lactobacillus plantarum strains (a prominent species of LAB) isolated from Malaysian foods were compared in this study. The biotransformation of palm kernel cake (PKC) biomass mediated by selected L. plantarum strains was subsequently conducted. The results obtained in this study exhibited the studied L. plantarum strains produced versatile multi extracellular hydrolytic enzyme activities that were active from acidic to alkaline pH conditions. The highest total score of extracellular hydrolytic enzyme activities were recorded by L. plantarum RI11, L. plantarum RG11, and L. plantarum RG14. Therefore, they were selected for the subsequent biotransformation of PKC biomass via SSF. The hydrolytic enzyme activities of treated PKC extract were compared for each sampling interval. The scanning electron microscopy analyses revealed the formation of extracellular matrices around L. plantarum strains attached to the surface of PKC biomass during SSF, inferring that the investigated L. plantarum strains have the capability to grow on PKC biomass and perform synergistic secretions of various extracellular proteolytic, cellulolytic, and hemicellulolytic enzymes that were essential for the effective biodegradation of PKC. The substantial growth of selected L. plamtraum strains on PKC during SSF revealed the promising application of selected L. plantarum strains as a biotransformation agent for cellulosic biomass.
Management of Athletes With G6PD Deficiency: Does Missing an Enzyme Mean Missing More Games?

Context: Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency is likely the most prevalent enzyme deficiency on the planet, with an estimated 4.9% of people, or approximately 330 million individuals, across the globe affected by the disease. In the United States, 4% to 7% of the population is likely affected, but each year our nation’s major sport leagues become more international. It is important for medical professionals who treat athletes to understand how this genetic condition can affect the athletes we are working with, especially because exercise in itself results in oxidative stress. Evidence Acquisition: PubMed was searched for relevant articles published from 1980 to 2018. The search terms G6PD, athletes, military, and sports were used. Study Design: Clinical review. Level of Evidence: Level 4. Results: Though some case reports suggest a potential impact on athlete safety and performance, controlled studies demonstrate limited impact of exercise on oxidative stress in G6PD-deficient individuals. The care of athletes with G6PD deficiency does not drastically differ from the care of athletes without this condition. Most of the medications and supplements that are regularly given to athletes should not negatively affect their health. Conclusion: Although the care of athletes with G6PD deficiency is for the most part no different from the care of other athletes, there are certain situations (visiting areas where malaria is endemic) and medications for which it is important to recognize how your management should change. G6PD deficiency is not regularly screened for but could be considered if an athlete has known sickle cell disease or when traveling to areas where malaria is prevalent. Expanding our knowledge of G6PD deficiency will allow for better care of athletes.
Is evidence-informed urban health planning a myth or reality? Lessons from a qualitative assessment in three Asian cities

Abstract City governments are well-positioned to effectively address urban health challenges in the context of rapid urbanization in Asia. They require good quality and timely evidence to inform their planning decisions. In this article, we report our analyses of degree of data-informed urban health planning from three Asian cities: Dhaka, Hanoi and Pokhara. Our theoretical framework stems from conceptualizations of evidence-informed policymaking, health planning and policy analysis, and includes: (1) key actors, (2) approaches to developing and implementing urban health plans, (3) characteristics of the data itself. We collected qualitative data between August 2017 and October 2018 using: in-depth interviews with key actors, document review and observations of planning events. Framework approach guided the data analysis. Health is one of competing priorities with multiple plans being produced within each city, using combinations of top-down, bottom-up and fragmented planning approaches. Mostly data from government information systems are used, which were perceived as good quality though often omits the urban poor and migrants. Key common influences on data use include constrained resources and limitations of current planning approaches, alongside data duplication and limited co-ordination within Dhaka’s pluralistic system, limited opportunities for data use in Hanoi and inadequate and incomplete data in Pokhara. City governments have the potential to act as a hub for multi-sectoral planning. Our results highlight the tensions this brings, with health receiving less attention than other sector priorities. A key emerging issue is that data on the most marginalized urban poor and migrants are largely unavailable. Feasible improvements to evidence-informed urban health planning include increasing availability and quality of data particularly on the urban poor, aligning different planning processes, introducing clearer mechanisms for data use, working within the current systemic opportunities and enhancing participation of local communities in urban health planning.
Insect Sterol Nutrition: Physiological Mechanisms, Ecology, and Applications.

Insects, like all eukaryotes, require sterols for structural and metabolic purposes. However, insects, like all arthropods, cannot make sterols. Cholesterol is the dominant tissue sterol for most insects; insect herbivores produce cholesterol by metabolizing phytosterols, but not always with high efficiency. Many insects grow on a mixed-sterol diet, but this ability varies depending on the types and ratio of dietary sterols. Dietary sterol uptake, transport, and metabolism are regulated by several proteins and processes that are relatively conserved across eukaryotes. Sterol requirements also impact insect ecology and behavior. There is potential to exploit insect sterol requirements to (a) control insect pests in agricultural systems and (b) better understand sterol biology, including in humans. We suggest that future studies focus on the genetic mechanism of sterol metabolism and reverse transportation, characterizing sterol distribution and function at the cellular level, the role of bacterial symbionts in sterol metabolism, and interrupting sterol trafficking for pest control. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Entomology, Volume 65 is January 7, 2020. Please see http://www.annualreviews. org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.
Human Oral Stem Cells, Biomaterials and Extracellular Vesicles: A Promising Tool in Bone Tissue Repair

Tissue engineering and/or regenerative medicine are fields of life science exploiting both engineering and biological fundamentals to originate new tissues and organs and to induce the regeneration of damaged or diseased tissues and organs. In particular, de novo bone tissue regeneration requires a mechanically competent osteo-conductive/inductive 3D biomaterial scaffold that guarantees the cell adhesion, proliferation, angiogenesis and differentiation into osteogenic lineage. Cellular components represent a key factor in tissue engineering and bone growth strategies take advantage from employment of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), an ideal cell source for tissue repair. Recently, the application of extracellular vesicles (EVs), isolated from stem cells, as cell-free therapy has emerged as a promising therapeutic strategy. This review aims at summarizing the recent and representative research on the bone tissue engineering field using a 3D scaffold enriched with human oral stem cells and their derivatives, EVs, as a promising therapeutic potential in the reconstructing of bone tissue defects.
Safety of Performing a Graded Exercise Test Early after Stroke and Transient Ischemic Attack

Low cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is a predictor of stroke risk and poor outcome poststroke. Fitness levels are rarely assessed in the acute phase and it is unclear if it is safe for stroke survivors and people with transient ischemic attack (TIA) to perform a graded exercise test to assess fitness.
Butyrylcholinesterase Protein Ends in the Pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s Disease—Could BCHE Genotyping Be Helpful in Alzheimer’s Therapy?

Late-onset Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is clinically characterized by a progressive decline of memory and other cognitive functions leading to the loss of the ability to perform everyday activities. Only a few drugs have been approved to treat AD dementia over the past century since the first AD patient was diagnosed. Drugs increasing the availability of neurotransmitters at synapses in the brain are used clinically in the treatment of AD dementia, and cholinesterase inhibitors (ChEIs) are the mainstay of the therapy. A detrimental effect on cognitive function has been reported in patients with pharmacological inhibition of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) by ChEIs and reduced butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) activity due to the single nucleotide polymorphisms. The BChE K-variant (rs1803274), the most common genetic variant of the BCHE gene, was thought to reduce enzyme activity reflecting the lower clinical response to rivastigmine in AD patients. During ChEIs therapy, patients carrying reduced-activity BChE do not present such improved attention like patients with the wild-type enzyme. On the other hand, alterations in the BCHE gene causing enzyme activity reduction may delay AD onset in patients at risk by preserving the level of cortical acetylcholine (ACh). Based on our previous results, we conclude that SNPs localized outside of the coding sequence, in 5’UTR (rs1126680) and/or intron 2 (rs55781031) of the BCHE gene, but not solely K-variant alteration (p.A539T) itself, are responsible for reduced enzyme activity. Therefore, we suspect that not BChE-K itself, but these coexisting SNPs (rs1126680 and rs55781031), could be associated with deleterious changes in cognitive decline in patients treated with ChEIs. Based on the results, we suggest that SNPs (rs1126680) and/or (rs55781031) genotyping should be performed to identify subjects at risk for lowered efficacy ChEIs therapy, and such patients should be treated with a lower rivastigmine dosage. Finally, our sequence analysis of the N-terminal end of N-BChE revealed evolutionarily conserved amino acid residues that can be involved in disulfide bond formation and anchoring of N-BChE in the cell membrane.
In vitro Acquisition and Retention of Low-Pathogenic Avian Influenza H9N2 by Musca domestica (Diptera: Muscidae)

Abstract Avian influenza virus (AIV) H9N2 emerged in the 1990s as an economically important disease in poultry and occasionally infects humans and other mammals.The aim of this study was to evaluate the acquisition and retention of H9N2 AIV on and within the house fly, Musca domestica (Linnaeus 1758), under laboratory conditions. In first experiment, 100 adult house flies were divided into control and treatment groups equally.Treatment group was fed with a meal containing H9N2 virus, while control group was supplied with an identical meal without virus. Fifteen minutes after exposure in each group, flies were washed twice to remove surface particles, disinfected and then homogenized for testing.The two external body surface washes and the homogenate samples were tested for H9N2 to distinguish exterior from interior viral load. Second experiment was performed likewise but five flies from each group were taken at 0, 6, 24, 48, 72, 96, and 120 h post-exposure. All samples were subjected to real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RRT-PCR) for detecting H9-Specific viral RNA. Results of the first experiment showed that viral RNA was detectable in both of external surface and homogenates samples. Second experiment revealed that persistence of H9N2 AIVs on external body surface and within the body of M. domestica were 24 and 96 h, respectively. Moreover, viral RNAs concentration declined during the time after exposure to AIV H9N2 either outside or within house flies. Overall, house fly was able to acquire and preserve H9N2 AIV experimentally, which may contribute the spread of virus among poultry farms.
Complete Genome Sequences and Transmission Electron Micrographs of Listeria Phages of the Genus Homburgvirus

Bacteriophages that infect the foodborne pathogen Listeria monocytogenes were previously isolated from New York dairy farms. The complete genome sequences for three of these Listeria phages, with genome sizes of 64.6 to 65.7 kb, are presented here. Listeria phages LP-010, LP-013, and LP-031-2 are siphoviruses that belong to the genus Homburgvirus. ABSTRACT Bacteriophages that infect the foodborne pathogen Listeria monocytogenes were previously isolated from New York dairy farms. The complete genome sequences for three of these Listeria phages, with genome sizes of 64.6 to 65.7 kb, are presented here. Listeria phages LP-010, LP-013, and LP-031-2 are siphoviruses that belong to the genus Homburgvirus.
Active or Passive Commuter? Discrepancies in Cut-off Criteria among Adolescents

Active commuting to school has health implications for young people. Previous research has shown the need to consistently define the concept of “active commuter”, given that assessment as well as comparison between studies may be hindered by current discrepancies in frequency criteria. Using a sample of 158 Spanish students (12th–13th grade, 60.8% girls), the current study aimed to compare several cut-off criteria to rigorously identify the frequency of weekly active trips to school in order to categorize adolescents as active or passive commuters, and to analyze whether the threshold living distance to school is associated with the different trip cut-off criteria. Percentages of active commuters ranged from 75% to 88.6%, varying significantly depending on the cut-off criteria (5–10 active trips/week) used. The results also support the need to be stricter in the selection of a cut-off criterion when the distance to the school becomes shorter. Our findings highlight the importance of following a standard criterion to classify individuals as active or passive commuters, considering the characteristics of the context in which each study is conducted.
Home Health Care After Skilled Nursing Facility Discharge Following Heart Failure Hospitalization

Heart failure (HF) readmission rates have plateaued despite scrutiny of hospital discharge practices. Many HF patients are discharged to skilled nursing facility (SNF) after hospitalization before returning home. Home healthcare (HHC) services received during the additional transition from SNF to home may affect readmission risk. Here, we examined whether receipt of HHC affects readmission risk during the transition from SNF to home following HF hospitalization.
Mixed-Generation PAMAM G3-G0 Megamer as a Drug Delivery System for Nimesulide: Antitumor Activity of the Conjugate Against Human Squamous Carcinoma and Glioblastoma Cells

Polyhydroxylated dendrimer was synthesized from poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimer generation 3 by addition of glycidol (G3gl). G3gl megamer was further modified by binding PAMAM G0 dendrimers by activation of G3gl with p-nitrophenylchloroformate, followed by the addition of excess PAMAM G0 and purification using dialysis. The maximum G0 binding capacity of G3gl was 12 in the case when G0 was equipped with two covalently attached nimesulide equivalents. Nimesulide (N) was converted into N-(p-nitrophenyl) carbonate derivative and fully characterized using X-ray crystallography and spectral methods. Nimesulide was then attached to G0 via a urea bond to yield G02N. The mixed generation G3gl–G02N megamer was characterized using 1H NMR spectroscopy, and its molecular weight was estimated to be 22.4 kDa. The AFM image of G3gl–G02N deposited on mica demonstrated aggregation of nimesulide-covered megamer. The height of the deposited megamer was 8.5 nm. The megameric conjugate with nimesulide was tested in vitro on three human cell lines: squamous cell carcinoma (SCC-15) and glioblastoma (U-118 MG) overexpressing cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), and normal skin fibroblasts (BJ). The conjugate efficiently penetrated into all cells and was more cytotoxic against SCC-15 than against BJ. Moreover, the conjugate produced a strong and selective antiproliferative effect on both cancer cell lines (IC50 < 7.5 µM).
Isotopic compositions of ground ice in near-surface permafrost in relation to vegetation and microtopography at the Taiga–Tundra boundary in the Indigirka River lowlands, northeastern Siberia

The warming trend in the Arctic region is expected to cause drastic changes including permafrost degradation and vegetation shifts. We investigated the spatial distribution of ice content and stable isotopic compositions of water in near-surface permafrost down to a depth of 1 m in the Indigirka River lowlands of northeastern Siberia to examine how the permafrost conditions control vegetation and microtopography in the Taiga–Tundra boundary ecosystem. The gravimetric water content (GWC) in the frozen soil layer was significantly higher at microtopographically high elevations with growing larch trees (i.e., tree mounds) than at low elevations with wetland vegetation (i.e., wet areas). The observed ground ice (ice-rich layer) with a high GWC in the tree mounds suggests that the relatively elevated microtopography of the land surface, which was formed by frost heave, strongly affects the survival of larch trees. The isotopic composition of the ground ice indicated that equilibrium isotopic fractionation occurred during ice segregation at the tree mounds, which implies that the ice formed with sufficient time for the migration of unfrozen soil water to the freezing front. In contrast, the isotopic data for the wet areas indicated that rapid freezing occurred under relatively non-equilibrium conditions, implying that there was insufficient time for ice segregation to occur. The freezing rate of the tree mounds was slower than that of the wet areas due to the difference of such as soil moisture and snow cover depends on vegetation and microtopography. These results indicate that future changes in snow cover, soil moisture, and organic layer, which control underground thermal conductivity, will have significant impacts on the freezing environment of the ground ice at the Taiga–Tundra boundary in northeastern Siberia. Such changes in the freezing environment will then affect vegetation due to changes in the microtopography of the ground surface.
Crystal and solution structures of human oncoprotein Musashi‐2 N‐terminal RNA recognition motif 1

Musashi‐2 (MSI2) belongs to Musashi family of RNA binding proteins (RBP). Like Musashi‐1 (MSI1), it is overexpressed in a variety of cancers and is a promising therapeutic target. Both MSI proteins contain two N‐terminal RNA recognition motifs and play roles in posttranscriptional regulation of target mRNAs. Previously, we have identified several inhibitors of MSI1, all of which bind to MSI2 as well. In order to design MSI2‐specific inhibitors and compare the differences of binding mode of the inhibitors, we set out to solve the structure of MSI2‐RRM1, the key motif that is responsible for the binding. Here, we report the crystal structure and the first NMR solution structure of MSI2‐RRM1, and compare these to the structures of MSI1‐RBD1 and other RBPs. A high degree of structural similarity was observed between the crystal and solution NMR structures. MSI2‐RRM1 shows a highly similar overall folding topology to MSI1‐RBD1 and other RBPs. The structural information of MSI2‐RRM1 will be helpful for understanding MSI2‐RNA interaction and for guiding rational drug design of MSI2‐specific inhibitors.
Violent Offending, Nonviolent Offending, and General Delinquency: Exploring the Criminogenic Risk Factors of Hong Kong Male and Female Adolescents

Limited information is known about the offending phenomenon of Hong Kong adolescents, specifically from a theoretical standpoint. Using a sample of 892 secondary school students, this study aims to explore the criminogenic risk factors of juvenile delinquency in Hong Kong adolescents. Grounded in the theoretical propositions of mainstream criminological theories (i.e., self-control, social control, social learning, general strain, and routine activity), the adolescents’ types of delinquent behavior (i.e., violent, nonviolent, and general delinquency) are examined. Findings indicate that male adolescents reported significantly higher levels of violent, nonviolent, and general delinquency than female adolescents. Relative to females, males are also reported significantly higher levels of pro-violence attitudes, deviant peer influence, alcohol and drug use, and perceived neighborhood disorganization. However, female adolescents are found to have higher levels of self-control, social bonding, and negative temperament than their male counterparts. Multivariate analyses demonstrate that deviant peer influence in addition to alcohol and drug use is found to be general risk factors for engaging in all sorts of delinquent activity. A high level of pro-violence attitudes is significantly associated with violent offending, while low self-control is a significant predictor of nonviolent offending and general delinquency. Social bonding, negative temperament, and perceived neighborhood disorganization are found to be important factors associated with general delinquency. Implications of the findings are offered to address the adolescents’ criminogenic risk factors and prevent their propensity to engage in violent, nonviolent, and general delinquency.