Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Changes in crude protein fractions of forage legumes during the spring growth and summer regrowth period

SUMMARY Only a few previous studies have analysed the crude protein (CP) fractions of the Cornell Net Carbohydrate and Protein System during the growth period of forage legumes. The objective of the present study was to investigate the changes in CP fractions during the spring growth and summer–autumn regrowth period of five forage legume species (alfalfa (also known as lucerne, Medicago sativa L.), birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus L.), kura clover (Trifolium ambiguum M.B.), red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) and white clover (Trifolium repens L.)) grown in binary mixtures with perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) and also in pure stands (two red clover cultivars). Additionally, the specific polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity was measured photometrically in the leaves of pure red clover swards. In both pure and mixed cropping, CP fraction A increased with advancing maturity, except for the legumes from mixed cropping in the summer–autumn growth period 2004 and 2005. The variation of CP fraction A was mostly positively related to the N yield and the amount of dinitrogen fixation. Although CP fraction A of pure red clover was negatively correlated with the specific PPO activity in the spring growth period, the specific PPO activity was less relevant for the variation of CP fraction A with respect to the whole growing season. CP fraction B generally made up the largest proportion of the CP. Pure red clover stands showed reducing amounts of CP fraction C during the growth period, whereas in legumes grown with ryegrass an increase was usually observed. Despite these differences, there was generally an increase of CP fraction C when the content of non-structural carbohydrates decreased. Red clover and birdsfoot trefoil herbage contained the highest proportions of CP fraction C in the CP, regardless of growth period and year. In conclusion, red clover and birdsfoot trefoil had a more favourable CP composition for ruminant nutrition compared to the other legume species, and in red clover this could not be clearly attributed to the specific PPO activity.
Depth Plane Separation Affects Both Lightness Contrast and Assimilation

Lightness contrast and assimilation are two opposite phenomena: contrast occurs when a gray target perceptually acquires a complementary color than the bordering, inducing, surfaces; assimilation is when a gray target perceptually acquires the same color component as the inducers. Previous research has shown that both phenomena are affected by the manipulation of depth between the inducers and target. However, different results have been reported; it is not clear whether contrast persists when inducers are non-coplanar with the target. Previous studies differ for the spatial configuration of the stimuli and the technique adopted to manipulate depth. The aim of this research was to measure the effects of manipulating the depth between inducers and target in comparable conditions. Results show that contrast persists, but largely reduces, after depth manipulation while assimilation reverses to contrast. Furthermore, interesting asymmetries between white and black inducers emerged with white inducers favoring contrast and black inducers favoring assimilation. These results provide further evidence that high-level processes of visual processing are involved in both phenomena, with important consequences for lightness theories.
The assessment of seasonal variability in emergent macrophyte communities

Abstract Data on seasonal variability in emergent macrophyte communities in regard to the composition of statistically significant indicator species remain incomplete. It was recognized by the authors as a potentially significant scientific issue and was defined as the main objective of this study. Information on the floristic composition of the communities included in this paper were collected in the Central Balkan Peninsula. Using a combination of cluster analysis and indicator species analysis, 11 emergent macrophyte communities were established. The seasonal dynamic of these communities did not include statistically significant modification of either the floristic composition or the species abundances according to the results of permutational multivariate analysis of variance (PERMANOVA). Nevertheless, seasonal variability in three communities –the Sparganium erectum community, Scirpus lacustris community and Typha angustifolia community – was registered in regard to the composition of their statistically significant indicator species. Disturbances primarily related to water level fluctuation in their habitats initiated a significant increase or decrease in the abundances of particular species. These slight structural changes were sufficient to induce a changeability in these communities in terms of the composition of their statistically significant indicator species over the growing season without a significant impact on the PERMANOVA results. This relatively “concealed” changeability of plant communities could have serious consequences on the processes of both defining and describing vegetation units because the indicator species are often used as “diagnostic species”. Consequently, future ecological studies should be more focused on investigating seasonal variability in diverse vegetation types in order extend our knowledge in this area.
Identification of Cooperative Gene Regulation Among Transcription Factors, LncRNAs, and MicroRNAs in Diabetic Nephropathy Progression

The pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy (DN) is accompanied by alterations in biological function and signaling pathways regulated through complex molecular mechanisms. A number of regulatory factors, including transcription factors (TFs) and non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs, including lncRNAs and miRNAs), have been implicated in DN; however, it is unclear how the interactions among these regulatory factors contribute to the development of DN pathogenesis. In this study, we developed a network-based analysis to decipher interplays between TFs and ncRNAs regulating progression of DN by combining omics data with regulatory factor-target information. To accomplish this, we identified differential expression programs of mRNAs and miRNAs during early DN (EDN) and established DN. We then uncovered putative interactive connections among miRNA–mRNA, lncRNA–miRNA, and lncRNA–mRNA implicated in transcriptional control. This led to the identification of two lncRNAs (MALAT1 and NEAT1) and the three TFs (NF-κB, NFE2L2, and PPARG) that likely cooperate with a set of miRNAs to modulate EDN and DN target genes. The results highlight how crosstalk among TFs, lncRNAs, and miRNAs regulate the expression of genes both transcriptionally and post-transcriptionally, and our findings provide new insights into the molecular basis and pathogenesis of progressive DN.
Prognostic and Immunological Value of Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2 in Pan-Cancer

Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) plays a pivotal role in the renin–angiotensin system and is closely related to coronavirus disease of 2019. However, the role of ACE2 in cancers remains unclear. We explored the pan-cancer expression patterns and prognostic value of ACE2 across multiple databases, including Oncomine, PrognoScan, Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis, and Kaplan–Meier Plotter. Then, we investigated the correlations between ACE2 expression and immune infiltration in cancers. We found that tumor tissues had higher expression levels of ACE2 compared with normal tissue in the kidney and the liver and lower expression levels in the lung. High expression levels of ACE2 were beneficial to survival in ovarian serous cystadenocarcinoma, liver hepatocellular carcinoma, kidney renal papillary cell carcinoma, and kidney renal clear cell carcinoma, although this was not the case in lung squamous cell carcinoma. For those with a better prognosis, there were significant positive correlations between ACE2 expression and immune infiltrates, including B cells, CD8 + T cells, CD4 + T cells, neutrophils, macrophages, and dendritic cells. In conclusion, ACE2 could serve as a pan-cancer prognostic biomarker and is correlated with immune infiltrates.
Caffeine Targets SIRT3 to Enhance SOD2 Activity in Mitochondria

Caffeine is chemically stable and not readily oxidized under normal physiological conditions but also has antioxidant effects, although the underlying molecular mechanism is not well understood. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) 2 is a manganese-containing enzyme located in mitochondria that protects cells against oxidative stress by scavenging reactive oxygen species (ROS). SOD2 activity is inhibited through acetylation under conditions of stress such as exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Sirtuin 3 (SIRT3) is the major mitochondrial nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+)-dependent deacetylase, which deacetylates two critical lysine residues (lysine 68 and lysine 122) on SOD2 and promotes its antioxidative activity. In this study, we investigated whether the antioxidant effect of caffeine involves modulation of SOD2 by SIRT3 using in vitro and in vivo models. The results show that caffeine interacts with SIRT3 and promotes direct binding of SIRT3 with its substrate, thereby enhancing its enzymatic activity. Mechanistically, caffeine bound to SIRT3 with high affinity (KD = 6.858 × 10–7 M); the binding affinity between SIRT3 and its substrate acetylated p53 was also 9.03 (without NAD+) or 6.87 (with NAD+) times higher in the presence of caffeine. Caffeine effectively protected skin cells from UV irradiation-induced oxidative stress. More importantly, caffeine enhanced SIRT3 activity and reduced SOD2 acetylation, thereby leading to increased SOD2 activity, which could be reversed by treatment with the SIRT3 inhibitor 3-(1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl) pyridine (3-TYP) in vitro and in vivo. Taken together, our results show that caffeine targets SIRT3 to enhance SOD2 activity and protect skin cells from UV irradiation-induced oxidative stress. Thus, caffeine, as a small-molecule SIRT3 activator, could be a potential agent to protect human skin against UV radiation.
Inhibition of miR-27b Regulates Lipid Metabolism in Skeletal Muscle of Obese Rats During Hypoxic Exercise by Increasing PPARγ Expression

Hypoxic exercise may represent a novel therapeutic strategy to reduce and prevent obesity through the regulation of lipid metabolism. During hypoxic exercise, the targeting of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) by miR-27b has been proposed to be one of the mechanisms involved in the modulation of lipid metabolism. We have previously shown that miR-27b can repress PPARγ and lipid metabolism-associated factors, thereby affecting lipid metabolism during hypoxic exercise in a rat model of obesity. In the current study, we aimed to confirm the role of miR-27b in the regulation of lipid metabolism. First, miR-27b expression was either upregulated or downregulated through the injection of adeno-associated virus (AAV) 9 containing a miR-27b expression cassette or miR-27b-3p inhibitor, respectively, into the right gastrocnemius muscle of obese rats. The rats were then subjected to a 4-week program of hypoxic exercise, and a series of parameters related to lipid metabolism were systematically evaluated, including body composition, blood lipid levels, miR-27b RNA levels, and mRNA and protein levels of PPARγ and those of its downstream lipid metabolism-associated factors. No significant differences were found in body composition between rats expressing different levels of miR-27b. However, regarding blood lipids, miR-27b overexpression led to increased concentrations of triglycerides (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and free fatty acids (FFAs), while inhibition of miR-27b decreased the total cholesterol (TC) level and increased that of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). At the mRNA level, miR-27b overexpression downregulated the expression of Pparγ, but upregulated that of lipid metabolism-associated factors such as heart-type fatty acid-binding protein (H-FABP), fatty acid transport protein 1 (FATP1), adipose triglyceride lipase (ATGL), and lipoprotein lipase (LPL), whereas miR-27b inhibition elicited the opposite effect; however, inhibition of miR-27b led to elevated cholesterol 7 alpha-hydroxylase (CYP7A1) and fatty acid translocase 36 (CD36) levels. Similarly, at the protein level, miR-27b overexpression promoted a decrease in the concentration of PPARγ, whereas miR-27b inhibition led to an increase in PPARγ levels, as well as those of CYP7A1, CD36, ATGL, and LPL. Overall, our results indicated that hypoxic exercise regulates lipid metabolism via the miR-27b/PPARγ pathway and modulates ATGL and LPL expression through inducing their post-transcriptional modifications.
Reliability, Validity, and Factor Structure of Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index in Community-Based Centenarians

Background The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) is a widely used self-report questionnaire that measures general sleep quality in general populations. However, its psychometric properties have yet to be thoroughly examined in longevous persons. Objectives This study aimed to explore the reliability, validity and factor structure of the Chinese-language version of the PSQI in community-dwelling centenarians. Methods A total of 958 centenarians (mean age = 102.8 years; 81.8% females) recruited from 18 regions in Hainan, China, completed the PSQI scale. Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was used to measure the internal consistency. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were performed to explore the validity and factor structure of the PSQI in this sample. Correlations between the global PSQI score and physical function, depression symptoms, self-reported health status and subjective well-being were used to assess divergent validity. Results The Cronbach’s α coefficient of the PSQI was 0.68, and it increased to 0.78 after two components (medication use and daytime dysfunction) were removed. The Spearman correlation coefficients of the PSQI score with each component were statistically significant (P<0.01). EFA yielded a two-factor structure model of the original PSQI-7 and a one-factor structure model of the simplified PSQI-5. The one-factor model with five components (χ2/df =1.59, CFI=0.99, RMSEA=0.03) fit the data well and had good configural invariance across demographic characteristics (0.530.05). Conclusions The original PSQI showed acceptable applicability in Chinese community-dwelling centenarians, and its psychometric characteristics moderately improved after sleeping medication and daytime dysfunction were removed. Further validation studies on PSQI are needed among centenarians from varied backgrounds.
COVID-19 Place Confinement, Pro-Social, Pro-environmental Behaviors, and Residents’ Wellbeing: A New Conceptual Framework

Residents’ wellbeing in the present COVID-19 global health crisis requires a deeper understanding to determine appropriate management strategies to promote sustainable behaviors and contribute to human and planetary health. Residents’ behavior can have a profound influence in contributing to personal and global community’s health by responding effectively to emergency strategies in disease outbreaks such as the Coronavirus. It is evident that an understanding of residents’ behavior(s) pre COVID-19 across fields have relied on over-simplistic models, many of which will need to be revisited. Our interaction with people and nature while respecting social distancing has profound positive impacts on our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing. The current health pandemic has called that people be confined in their homes across many nations as a means to control the spread of the virus and save lives. This calls for research exploring the mechanisms; this paper develops and proposes a conceptual framework suggesting that place confinement promotes pro-social and household pro-environmental behaviors which could become habitual and contribute further to our people’s and our planet’s health. The proposed model concerns socio-economically favored social sectors whose survival is not as threatened by the pandemic as the poor sectors where wellbeing (and mental health) are at high risk. Some evidence shows that human connectedness to place may contribute to engagement in desirable behaviors. Interaction with other members of the household can help create meanings leading to collective actions promoting psychological wellbeing. Promoting hygienic behaviors in the household (frequent hand washing) while at the same time being conscious not to keep the water flowing when not required would contribute to a range of benefits (health, financial, biospheric, altruistic) and promote wellbeing. Engaging in pro-social behaviors may result in positive effects on psychological wellbeing, reducing mental distress giving rise to a sense of attachment and belongingness, trust and overall life satisfaction. Engaging people in low-effort pro-environmental behavior to maintain some levels of physical activity and biological harmony with natural environmental settings (e.g., gardening) may help reduce anxiety and distress. This is the first study exploring the interplay of relationships between place confinement, pro-social behavior, household pro-environmental behaviors, place attachment as a multi-dimensional construct and presenting their relationships to residents’ wellbeing. Behavioral change interventions are proposed to promote lifestyle change for people’s wellbeing and broader societal benefits.
Underwater targets detection and classification in complex scenes based on an improved YOLOv3 algorithm

Abstract. The fast detection and classification of underwater targets is a key issue in the operation of intelligent underwater robots. In order to improve the detection speed of underwater targets and reduce the missed detection rate of small targets, an improved YOLOv3 algorithm named YOLOv3-Marine is proposed. The network parameters were reduced and the detection speed was increased due to improving the YOLOv3 network structure. The residual module was optimized to improve the feature extraction capabilities of the network, which greatly reduced the rate of missed detection in the case of densely distributed targets. Finally, the prediction scale module and the loss function were improved to increase the detection accuracy of small underwater targets. The final experimental results showed that the proposed YOLOv3-Marine algorithm has a higher detection speed and detection accuracy than the YOLOv3 algorithm.
Underwater image enhancement framework and its application on an autonomous underwater vehicle platform

Abstract. Underwater imaging has been increasingly employed in vision-based marine research. However, the inappropriate installation of a light source and the complex underwater environment will result in the uneven illumination and overexposure on the captured images. To address these issues, an underwater image enhancement framework for autonomous underwater vehicles platform is proposed, which consists of underwater light source optimization and illumination nonuniformity correction. The light source optimization method improves the imaging quality by computing an appropriate angle of the light casting. In this way, the center of the field of view is always well lit. In addition, an adaptive filter-based illumination correction algorithm is proposed to solve the uneven illumination caused by the artificial light source. During this process, image block segmentation and the measure of image enhancement index are applied to improve the adaptability and reduce the calculation errors of the filter parameters. A dataset with real underwater images collected under different natural conditions has been built and tested. The experimental results indicate that the proposed method is more adaptive and effective than the typical methods.
Comprehensive Study of the Effect of the Addition of Four Drag Reducing Macromolecules on the Pressure Drop and Heat Transfer Performance of Water in a Finned Tube Heat Exchanger

Abstract In the present study the effects of the addition of four drag reducing agents (DRA), including carboxy methyl cellulose with high molecular weight (DRA1) and medium molecular weight (DRA2), polyacrylamide (DRA3) and the natural polymer, xanthan gum (DRA4), to water on the pressure drop and heat transfer performance in a finned tube-heat exchanger were compared. Laminar flow (Reynolds number (Re) <1400) was studied to transfer heat between water and air in the finned tube heat exchanger. The results showed that DRA1, with a maximum %DR of 26%, and DRA4, with a maximum %DR of 5%, were the highest and the lowest obtained results, respectively. In the case of heat transfer reduction percentage (%HTR), DRA4, having more than 34.5%, was the highest, and DRA1, with about 13.7%, was the lowest result for the concentration range of 0-100 ppm and temperature range of 40–65 °C.
Synthesis and Characterization of ZnO Nanoparticles and Their Natural Rubber Composites

Abstract Nanoparticles of zinc oxide were synthesized by a solution combustion method. The average size of these particles was analyzed by using X-ray diffraction. Composites of natural rubber and the ZnO nanoparticles were prepared by a latex blending method. The matrix phase was cured by using the crosslinking agent, pentane-1,5-diylidenediamine. Effects of crosslinking and incorporation of nanoparticles on the tensile and solvent transport properties of the natural rubber were studied in detail. The nature of the dispersion of the nanoparticles was analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX). It was observed from the tensile studies that the addition of the curing agent and the ZnO nanoparticles increased the stability considerably. Incorporation of the nanoparticles also considerably increased the solvent resistance of the cured natural rubber. We suggest the addition of ZnO nanoparticles at a low loading level provided better properties compared to other reinforcements, such as carbon black and nano-clay.
Various biological effects of solar radiation on skin and their mechanisms: implications for phototherapy

ABSTRACT The skin protects our body from various external factors, such as chemical and physical stimuli, microorganisms, and sunlight. Sunlight is a representative environmental factor that considerably influences the physiological activity of our bodies. The molecular mechanisms and detrimental effects of ultraviolet rays (UVR) on skin have been thoroughly investigated. Chronic exposure to UVR generally causes skin damage and eventually induces wrinkle formation and reduced elasticity of the skin. Several studies have shown that infrared rays (IR) also lead to the breakdown of collagen fibers in the skin. However, several reports have demonstrated that the appropriate use of UVR or IR can have beneficial effects on skin-related diseases. Additionally, it has been revealed that visible light of different wavelengths has various biological effects on the skin. Interestingly, several recent studies have reported that photoreceptors are also expressed in the skin, similar to those in the eyes. Based on these data, I discuss the various physiological effects of sunlight on the skin and provide insights on the use of phototherapy, which uses a specific wavelength of sunlight as a non-invasive method, to improve skin-related disorders.