Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
CEMP-s Stars: AGB Yield Predictions and Thermohaline Mixing

CS 29497–030 and CS 31062–050 belong to a sample of C‐rich, s‐process rich and extremely metal‐poor stars (CEMP–s+r). To explain the s–process enrichment, we considered these stars to be extrinsic asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars, belonging to binary systems where the more massive AGB companion polluted the observed star (of ∼0.8 M⊙) with efficient stellar winds. To explain the r–process enrichment, we assumed that the parental cloud was already enriched in r‐process elements.For the main sequence CS 29497–030 we hypothesize that the primary AGB had an initial mass of ∼1.3 M⊙ and underwent a very limited number of third dredge up episodes. A very small dilution between AGB winds and envelope mass of the observed star is derived by comparing AGB nucleosynthesis yields and observed abundances, consistent with the fact that dwarf stars of ∼0.8 M⊙ are characterized by a limited subphotospheric convective zone. This is compatible with moderate thermohaline mixing (e.g., [l]). AGB models of higher initial ma.
Commentary: Comparison of newer hand-held ultrasound devices for post-dive venous gas emboli quantification to standard echocardiography

We read with interest the study by Karimpour et al. (2022) comparing two new portable devices to standard echography on the task of Venous Gas Embolism (VGE) detection in scuba divers. In operating conditions of open water dives, the authors compared portable 2D echograph Butterfly iQ and Doppler ultrasound device O’Dive to a 2D echograph Vivid Q currently used for VGE detection in research. There are however several important aspects of the study that need to be considered.
Exploring leadership behaviors of the coaches of champion teams

Participation in sports at school is highly valued since it is believed that it develops students’ social skills and adds to personal development. Owing to the fact that the behaviors of the coaches have an important effect on the development of the student athletes, this quantitative study was designed with the aim to evaluate the perceptions of young student athletes of the champion school teams of their coaches’ leadership behaviors. The study also sought to determine the variables affecting these perceptions. A total of 236 young student athletes who were the members of the champion teams of basketball, handball, volleyball, futsal, badminton, wrestling and swimming in the period of 2021–2022 evaluated their coaches’ leadership qualities. One of the major results was that the young student athletes had positive perceptions of their coaches. Adopting Chelladurai’s model, training and instruction was found to be particularly important in achieving high performance. More specifically, the Mann Whitney U test results revealed that the athletes’ perceptions differed by gender and by being involved in team or individual sports; however, Kruskal-Wallis test revealed perceptions did not differ by age. The significance of this study lies in its practical implications for sport coaches, coaching practice, physical education teachers and practitioners in sport psychology.
Lysine specific demethylase 1 is a molecular driver and therapeutic target in sarcoma

Sarcomas are a diverse group of tumors with numerous oncogenic drivers, and display varied clinical behaviors and prognoses. This complexity makes diagnosis and the development of new and effective treatments challenging. An incomplete understanding of both cell of origin and the biological drivers of sarcomas complicates efforts to develop clinically relevant model systems and find new molecular targets. Notably, the histone lysine specific demethylase 1 (LSD1) is overexpressed in a number of different sarcomas and is a potential therapeutic target in these malignancies. With the ability to modify histone marks, LSD1 is a key player in many protein complexes that epigenetically regulate gene expression. It is a largely context dependent enzyme, having vastly different and often opposing roles depending on the cellular environment and which interaction partners are involved. LSD1 has been implicated in the development of many different types of cancer, but its role in bone and soft tissue sarcomas remains poorly understood. In this review, we compiled what is known about the LSD1 function in various sarcomas, to determine where knowledge is lacking and to find what theme emerge to characterize how LSD1 is a key molecular driver in bone and soft tissue sarcoma. We further discuss the current clinical landscape for the development of LSD1 inhibitors and where sarcomas have been included in early clinical trials.
Canine melanoma: A review of diagnostics and comparative mechanisms of disease and immunotolerance in the era of the immunotherapies

Melanomas in humans and dogs are highly malignant and resistant to therapy. Since the first development of immunotherapies, interest in how the immune system interacts within the tumor microenvironment and plays a role in tumor development, progression, or remission has increased. Of major importance are tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) where distribution and cell frequencies correlate with survival and therapeutic outcomes. Additionally, efforts have been made to identify subsets of TILs populations that can contribute to a tumor-promoting or tumor-inhibiting environment, such as the case with T regulatory cells versus CD8 T cells. Furthermore, cancerous cells have the capacity to express certain inhibitory checkpoint molecules, including CTLA-4, PD-L1, PD-L2, that can suppress the immune system, a property associated with poor prognosis, a high rate of recurrence, and metastasis. Comparative oncology brings insights to comprehend the mechanisms of tumorigenesis and immunotolerance in humans and dogs, contributing to the development of new therapeutic agents that can modulate the immune response against the tumor. Therapies that target signaling pathways such as mTOR and MEK/ERK that are upregulated in cancer, or immunotherapies with different approaches such as CAR-T cells engineered for specific tumor-associated antigens, DNA vaccines using human tyrosinase or CGSP-4 antigen, anti-PD-1 or -PD-L1 monoclonal antibodies that intercept their binding inhibiting the suppression of the T cells, and lymphokine-activated killer cells are already in development for treating canine tumors. This review provides concise and recent information about diagnosis, comparative mechanisms of tumor development and progression, and the current status of immunotherapies directed toward canine melanoma.
COVID-19 inhibits spermatogenesis in the testes by inducing cellular senescence

Introduction: COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) has been linked to organ damage in humans since its worldwide outbreak. It can also induce severe sperm damage, according to research conducted at numerous clinical institutions. However, the exact mechanism of damage is still unknown. Methods: In this study, testicular bulk-RNA-seq Data were downloaded from three COVID-19 patients and three uninfected controls from GEO to evaluate the effect of COVID-19 infection on spermatogenesis. Relative expression of each pathway and the correlation between genes or pathways were analyzed by bioinformatic methods. Results: By detecting the relative expression of each pathway and the correlation between genes or pathways, we found that COVID-19 could induce testicular cell senescence through MAPK signaling pathway. Cellular senescence was synergistic with MAPK pathway, which further affected the normal synthesis of cholesterol and androgen, inhibited the normal synthesis of lactate and pyruvate, and ultimately affected spermatogenesis. The medications targeting MAPK signaling pathway, especially MAPK1 and MAPK14, are expected to be effective therapeutic medications for reducing COVID-19 damage to spermatogenesis. Conclusion: These results give us a new understanding of how COVID-19 inhibits spermatogenesis and provide a possible solution to alleviate this damage.
Unraveling the central and bridge psychological symptoms of people living with HIV: A network analysis

Background People living with HIV (PLWH) experience multiple psychological symptoms. Few studies have provided information on central and bridge psychological symptoms among PLWH. This information has implications for improving the efficiency and efficacy of psychological interventions. Our study aimed to identify the central and bridge psychological symptoms of PLWH and to explore the interconnectedness among symptoms and clusters. Methods Our study used data from the HIV-related Symptoms Monitoring Survey, a multisite, cross-sectional study conducted during 2017–2021. We used R to visualize the network of 16 symptoms and analyzed the centrality and predictability indices of the network. We further analyzed the bridge symptoms among the three symptom clusters. Results A total of 3,985 participants were included in the analysis. The results suggested that sadness had the highest strength (rS = 9.69) and predictability (70.7%) compared to other symptoms. Based on the values of bridge strength, feeling unsafe (rbs = 0.94), uncontrollable worry (rbs = 0.82), and self-abasement (rbs = 0.81) were identified as bridge symptoms. We also found a strong correlation between sadness and self-abasement (r = 0.753) and self-loathing and self-blame (r = 0.744). Conclusion We found that sadness was the central psychological symptom of PLWH, indicating that sadness was the center of the psychological symptom network from a mechanistic perspective and could be a target for intervention. Deactivating bridge symptoms, including “feeling unsafe,” “self-abasement,” and “uncontrollable worry,” could be more effective in preventing symptom activation from spreading (e.g., one symptom activating another).
Diversity of coral-associated pit crabs (Crustacea: Decapoda: Cryptochiridae) from Hong Kong, with description of two new species of Lithoscaptus A. Milne-Edwards, 1862

Highly specialized cryptochirid crabs are obligate symbionts of scleractinian corals in tropical and subtropical seas. General morphologies of cryptochirid crabs remain poorly described due to their small size and difficulties in collection; thus, the current inventory is probably an underestimation. In the present study, we sampled cryptochirid crabs from coral communities in Hong Kong. In the literature, only Cryptochirus hongkongensis (now Neotroglocarcinus hongkongensis) with unknown hosts had been recorded in Hong Kong since 1936. In addition to morphological examination, identification in the present study is further supported by sequence divergence of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) and 16S ribosomal DNA markers. Six operative taxonomic units (OTUs), representing four species and one species complex with two species, were revealed among our material: Cryptochirus coralliodytes, Lithoscaptus paradoxus, Lithoscaptus doughnut sp. nov., Lithoscaptus scottae sp. nov., and Xynomaia sheni species complex. Morphological description of these species is provided, including description of the two new pseudocryptic species. The hosts of the genus Lithoscaptus belong largely to the Merulinidae, while L. doughnut sp. nov. inhabits the Plesiastreidae.
A machine-learning approach to estimating public intentions to become a living kidney donor in England: Evidence from repeated cross-sectional survey data

Background Living kidney organ donors offer a cost-effective alternative to deceased organ donation. They enable patients with life-threatening conditions to receive grafts that would otherwise not be available, thereby creating space for other patients waiting for organs and contributing to reducing overall waiting times for organs. There is an emerging consensus that an increase in living donation could contribute even more than deceased donation to reducing inequalities in organ donation between different population sub-groups in England. Increasing living donation is thus a priority for National Health Service Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) in the United Kingdom. Methods Using the random forest model, a machine learning (ML) approach, this study analyzed eight waves of repeated cross-sectional survey data collected from 2017 to 2021 (n = 14,278) as part of the organ donation attitudinal tracker survey commissioned by NHSBT in England to identify and help predict key factors that inform public intentions to become living donors. Results Overall, around 58.8% of the population would consider donating their kidney to a family member (50.5%), a friend (28%) or an unknown person (13.2%). The ML algorithm identified important factors that influence intentions to become a living kidney donor. They include, in reducing order of importance, support for organ donation, awareness of organ donation publicity campaigns, gender, age, occupation, religion, number of children in the household, and ethnic origin. Support for organ donation, awareness of public campaigns, and being younger were all positively associated with predicted propensity for living donation. The variable importance scores show that ethnic origin and religion were less important than the other variables in predicting living donor intention. Conclusion Factors influencing intentions to become a living donor are complex and highly individual in nature. Machine learning methods that allow for complex interactions between characteristics can be helpful in explaining these decisions. This work has identified important factors and subgroups that have higher propensity for living donation. Interventions should target both potential live donors and recipients. Research is needed to explore the extent to which these preferences are malleable to better understand what works and in which contexts to increase live organ donation.
Case Report: Effect of low energy availability and training load on sleep in a male combat sport athlete

Purpose The aim of this case report was to describe the sleep responses in a male combat sport athlete, who was engaging in both chronic (CWL) and acute (AWL) weight loss practices in order to reduce body mass for a national competition. Methods During the first seven weeks of training (Phases 1 and 2), the athlete adhered to a daily energy intake (EI) equating to their resting metabolic rate (1700 kcal·day−1) followed by a reduction in EI (1200–1300 kcal·day−1) in the 5 days before weighing in (Phase 3). Nocturnal sleep was monitored throughout the 8-week training period using wristwatch actigraphy and frequent measurements of body mass/composition, daily exercise energy expenditure and training load (TL) were taken. Results The athlete was in a state of low energy availability (LEA) during the entire training period. There was a very large decrease in LEA status during phase 3 compared with phases 1 and 2 (3 vs. 20 kcal·kgFFM·day−1) and there was a small decrease in TL during phase 3 compared with phase 2 (410 vs. 523 AU). The athlete's sleep efficiency increased throughout the training period, but total sleep time displayed a small to moderate decrease in phase 3 compared with phases 1 and 2 (386 vs. 429 and 430 min). However, correlational analysis demonstrated trivial to small, non-significant relationships between sleep characteristics and the athlete's LEA status and TL. Conclusion These findings suggest that CWL and AWL practices that cause fluctuations in LEA and TL may be implemented without compromising the sleep of combat sport athletes.
Intra-oceanic subduction in the southeastern Paleo-Asian ocean: Evidence from early Permian gabbro of the Diyanmiao ophiolite in central Inner Mongolia, North China

Investigation of intra-oceanic subduction can improve our understanding of plate tectonic processes and the history of continental growth. Evidence for intra-oceanic subduction in the Paleo-Asian Ocean has recently become an important focus of research, including the Diyanmiao ophiolite in central Inner Mongolia, North China. Here, we report a newly discovered occurrence of early Permian gabbro in the Diyanmiao ophiolite zone. The gabbro yields a weighted mean zircon U–Pb age of 294.4 ± 2.2 Ma. The gabbro samples are characterized by moderate SiO2 (47.32–50.51 wt%), low TiO2 (0.26–0.54 wt%) and K2O (0.04–0.75 wt%), and high Na2O (1.84–4.52 wt%) contents, high Na2O/K2O ratios (2.92–58.29), and depleted chondrite-normalized light rare Earth element patterns that are similar to N-MORB. The gabbros show slightly lower contents of high-field-strength elements (e.g., Nb, Ta, and Ti) and slightly higher contents of large-ion lithophile elements (e.g., K, Rb, Ba, and U) relative to N-MORB. In addition, the gabbros show high εNd (t) values (8.0–9.8) that are similar to those of forearc basalt in the Diyanmiao ophiolite and N-MORB. Integrating these new data with available results for ophiolite and arc-magmatic rocks of central Inner Mongolia, we propose that the studied gabbro was formed during the initial stage of intra-oceanic subduction and that the Paleo-Asian Ocean was still in a subduction setting during the early Permian.
Upper and lower bounds on dynamic correlations in the Griffiths phase

Dilute ferromagnetic spin systems are considered in the Griffiths phase below the percolation threshold. It is shown that, for relaxational dynamics, the spin autocorrelation functions are bounded both above and below by functions of the form exp(-A(1n t)d(d-1)/) (Ising systems) and exp(-Bt12/) (Heisenberg systems), establishing these as the correct asymptotic forms.
Multiple mosquito AMPs are needed to potentiate their antifungal effect against entomopathogenic fungi

Mosquito resistance to microbial infections, including fungal entomopathogens that are selected for mosquito control, depend on a range of antimicrobial effectors, among them antimicrobial peptides (AMPs). These short peptides, along the antimicrobial effector lysozyme, act by disrupting the microbial cell membrane or by interfering with microbial physiological processes. While the induction of AMPs and lysozyme during fungal entomopathogenic infections have been reported, their contribution to the mosquito antifungal response has not been evaluated. In this study, we assessed the induction of Ae. aegypti AMPs and lysozyme genes at two points of infection and against distinct entomopathogenic fungi. Our results indicate that fungal infection elicits the expression of cecropin, defensin, diptericin, holotricin, and lysozyme, but do not affect those of attacin or gambicin. We further evaluated the role of these antimicrobial effectors via RNAi-based depletion of select AMPs during challenges with two entomopathogenic fungi. Our results reveal that AMPs and lysozyme are critical to the antifungal response, acting in concert, rather than individually, to potentiate their antimicrobial effect against entomopathogenic fungi. This study further contributes to a better understanding of the mechanisms that confer resistance to entomopathogenic fungi in an important mosquito vector.
Tree rings of Rhododendron arboreum portray signal of monsoon precipitation in the Himalayan region

The Himalayas has a significant impact not just on the Indian subcontinent’s monsoon patterns but also on the global climate. Monsoon failure causing drought has become more common in recent years. As a result, it poses a major threat to ecosystem sustainability. We reported for the first time, a climatic-sensitive tree ring chronology of a broadleaf tree, Rhododendron arboreum, spanning 1732–2017 CE from the Himalayan region. We discovered that the climate during the monsoon season limits the growth of this tree in this region. The correlation analysis between tree ring chronology and climate revealed a significant positive relationship with precipitation (r = 0.63, p < 0.001) and a negative relationship with temperature (r = −0.48, p < 0.01) during the months of June–August (JJA). This strong relationship allowed us to reconstruct monsoon precipitation spanning 1780 to 2017 CE which explained 40% of the variance of the observed climate data for the calibration period. The reconstructed data are validated by the existence of a significant association with the gridded JJA precipitation data of the Climate Research Unit (CRU) of this region. The monsoon rainfall record captured extremely wet years during 1793, 1950, 2011, 2013, and 2017 and extremely dry years during 1812, 1833, 1996, 2002, 2004, and 2005. The extremely dry and wet years well coincided with major catastrophic historical and instrumental droughts and floods in the region. Furthermore, the reconstructed data are also validated by the significant positive correlation (r = 0.36, p < 0.001, n = 163) with the all Indian summer monsoon rainfall series. Such data will be useful to predict the incidence of future droughts, which can help to assess the vulnerability of the forest ecosystem to extreme events.
Extraction of Trap States at the Oxide-Silicon Interface and Grain Boundary in Polycrystalline Silicon Thin-Film Transistors

A technique to extract trap states at the oxide-silicon interface and grain boundary has been developed for polycrystalline silicon thin-film transistors with large grains. From the capacitance–voltage characteristic, the interface traps can be extracted. The potential and carrier density are also extracted. From the potential, carrier density and current–voltage characteristic, the boundary traps can be extracted by considering the potential barrier at the grain boundary. Using a two-dimensional device simulation, the adequacy of this extraction technique was confirmed.
Medium to long term follow-up of survival and quality of life in patients with primary tumors of the cervical spine: Experience From a large single center

Objectives To evaluate the survival and medium to long term health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of patients with primary cervical spinal tumors in a cross-sectional study and to identify any significant associations with demographic or clinical characteristics. Methods Patients diagnosed with primary cervical spinal tumors were retrospectively enrolled and their clinical, radiologic, and follow-up data (specifically the EQ-5D questionnaire) were collected. Univariate and multivariate Cox time-dependent regression analyses were performed to examine the significance of certain variables on overall survival. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted to identify variables significant for overall HRQoL and each dimension of the EQ-5D. Results A total of 341 patients were enrolled in the study with a mean follow-up of 70 months. The diagnosis was benign in 246 cases, malignant in 84, and unconfirmed in 11. The 5-year overall survival rate was 86% and the 10-year overall survival rate was 65%. Multivariate analysis suggested that surgical treatment (P = 0.002, hazard ratio [HR] = 0.431, 95% CI. [0.254, 0.729]), benign and malignant tumors [P < 0.001, HR = 2.788, 95% CI. (1.721, 4.516)], tumor and surrounding normal tissue boundary [P = 0.010, HR = 1.950, 95% CI. (1.171, 3.249)], and spinal instability [P = 0.031, HR = 1.731, 95% CI. (1.051, 2.851)] still had significant effects on survival. Conclusions In this cross-sectional study, we evaluated the survival period and medium and long-term health-related quality of life of patients with primary tumors of the cervical spine, and analyzed the significant related factors of tumor clinical characteristics. Surgery, myelopathy, malignancy, spinal pain relieved by lying down or supine position, and tumor infiltration on MRI were significant predictors for overall survival. Enneking stage and age were significant predictors for HRQoL.