Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Constant Light Exposure Alters Gut Microbiota and Promotes the Progression of Steatohepatitis in High Fat Diet Rats

Background Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) poses a significant health concern worldwide. With the progression of urbanization, light pollution may be a previously unrecognized risk factor for NAFLD/NASH development. However, the role of light pollution on NAFLD is insufficiently understood, and the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Interestingly, recent studies indicate the gut microbiota affects NAFLD/NASH development. Therefore, the present study explored effects of constant light exposure on NAFLD and its related microbiotic mechanisms. Materials and Methods Twenty-eight SD male rats were divided into four groups (n = 7 each): rats fed a normal chow diet, and exposed to standard light-dark cycle (ND-LD); rats fed a normal chow diet, and exposed to constant light (ND-LL); rats fed a high fat diet, and exposed to standard light-dark cycle (HFD-LD); and rats on a high fat diet, and exposed to constant light (HFD-LL). Body weight, hepatic pathophysiology, gut microbiota, and short/medium chain fatty acids in colon contents, serum lipopolysaccharide (LPS), and liver LPS-binding protein (LBP) mRNA expression were documented post intervention and compared among groups. Result In normal chow fed groups, rats exposed to constant light displayed glucose abnormalities and dyslipidemia. In HFD-fed rats, constant light exposure exacerbated glucose abnormalities, insulin resistance, inflammation, and liver steatohepatitis. Constant light exposure altered composition of gut microbiota in both normal chow and HFD fed rats. Compared with HFD-LD group, HFD-LL rats displayed less Butyricicoccus, Clostridium, and Turicibacter, butyrate levels in colon contents, decreased colon expression of occludin-1 and zonula occluden−1 (ZO-1), and increased serum LPS and liver LBP mRNA expression. Conclusion Constant light exposure impacts gut microbiota and its metabolic products, impairs gut barrier function and gut-liver axis, promotes NAFLD/NASH progression in HFD rats. Graphical Abstract Constant light exposure alters microbiota and promotes NASH.
Recognition of Social Rule Violation in “Deficit Syndrome” Schizophrenia: A Study Using Economic Games

Aberrant social behavior is a frequent clinical feature of schizophrenia and seems related to the duration and chronicity of the disorder. However, there is a paucity of research into the relationship between social behavior and social cognition in patients with severe chronic courses of schizophrenia. Accordingly, the present study sought to examine the appreciation of social rules and norms such as fairness and cooperation in schizophrenia patients who fulfilled the criteria for “deficit syndrome”. To this end, we utilized a so-called Ultimatum Game, and a Dictator Game, in which participants had the option to punish others’ unfair behavior. In addition, “theory of mind”, the ability to appreciate others’ mental states, was also examined using the Mental State Attribution Task (MSAT). Symptom severity was determined using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale. While patients with deficit schizophrenia responded to varying levels of fairness in similar ways to controls, the patients accepted fewer fair offers and engaged less in third-party punishment. Impaired theory of mind in patients reduced the latter, but not the former, group difference to non-significance. No significant correlations emerged between symptom severity and task performance. Together, these findings suggest that the understanding of others’ minds partly contributes to the appreciation of social rules and norms in patients with severe chronic courses of schizophrenia.
Multiple regions of primate orofacial sensorimotor cortex encode bite force and gape

The precise control of bite force and gape is vital for effective breakdown and manipulation of food inside the oral cavity during feeding. Yet the role of the orofacial sensorimotor cortex (OSMcx) in the control of bite force and gape is still largely unknown. The aim of this study was to elucidate how individual neurons and populations of neurons in multiple regions of OSMcx differentially encode bite force and gape when subjects (Macaca mulatta) generated different levels of bite force at varying gapes. We examined neuronal activity recorded simultaneously from three microelectrode arrays implanted chronically in the primary motor (MIo), primary somatosensory (SIo), and cortical masticatory (CMA) areas of OSMcx. We used generalized linear models to evaluate encoding properties of individual neurons and utilized dimensionality reduction techniques to decompose population activity into components related to specific task parameters. Individual neurons encoded bite force more strongly than gape in all three OSMCx areas although bite force was a better predictor of spiking activity in MIo versus SIo. Population activity differentiated between levels of bite force and gape while preserving task-independent temporal modulation across the behavioral trial. While activation patterns of neuronal populations were comparable across OSMCx areas, the total variance explained by task parameters was context-dependent and differed across areas. These findings suggest that the cortical control of gape may rely on computations at the population level whereas the strong encoding of bite force at the individual neuron level allows for the precise and rapid control of bite force. Significance Statement Biting a piece off an apple requires precise sensorimotor control and coordination of bite force and gape by multiple brain regions. The cortical representations of bite force and gape by individual neurons and large populations of neurons across connected motor and somatosensory areas in orofacial cortex is unknown. Here we showed that bite force was more strongly encoded than gape by individual neurons in primary motor, somatosensory, and cortical masticatory areas. Moreover, bite force was more effectively represented in motor versus somatosensory cortices. At the population level, bite force and gape were distinguishable particularly when gape was randomized from trial-to-trial. The results are important for understanding neurophysiological processes underlying masticatory dysfunctions that may occur in aging, stroke, and Alzheimer’s disease.
Hyperlocal Variation in Soil Iron and Rhizosphere Microbiome Determines Disease Development in Amenity Turfgrass

Dollar spot, caused by the fungal pathogen Clarireedia spp. , is an economically important disease of amenity turfgrass in temperate climates worldwide. This disease often occurs in a highly variable manner, even on a local scale with relatively uniform environmental conditions. The objective of this study was to investigate mechanisms behind this local variation, focusing on contributions of the soil and rhizosphere microbiome. Turfgrass, rhizosphere, and bulk soil samples were taken from within a 256 m2 area of healthy turfgrass, transported to a controlled environment chamber, and inoculated with C. jacksonii. Bacterial communities were profiled targeting the 16s rRNA gene, and 16 different soil chemical properties were assessed. Despite their initial uniform appearance, the samples differentiated into highly susceptible and moderately susceptible groups following inoculation in the controlled environment chamber. The highly susceptible samples harbored a unique rhizosphere microbiome with lower relative abundance of antibiotic-producing bacterial taxa and higher predicted abundance of genes associated with xenobiotic biodegradation pathways. In addition, stepwise regression revealed that bulk soil iron content was the only significant soil characteristic that positively regressed with decreased dollar spot susceptibility during the peak disease development stage. These findings suggest that localized variation in soil iron induces the plant to select for a particular rhizosphere microbiome that alters the disease outcome. More broadly, further research in this area may indicate how plot-scale variability in soil properties can drive variable plant disease development through alterations in the rhizosphere microbiome. IMPORTANCE Dollar spot is the most economically important disease of amenity turfgrass, and more fungicides are applied targeting dollar spot than any other turfgrass disease. Dollar spot symptoms are small (3-5 cm), circular patches that develop in a highly variable manner within plot-scale even under seemingly uniform conditions. The mechanism behind this variable development is unknown. This study observed that differences in dollar spot development over a 256 m2 area were associated with differences in bulk soil iron concentration and correlated with a particular rhizosphere microbiome. These findings provide important clues for understanding the mechanisms behind the highly variable development of dollar spot, which may offer important clues for innovative control strategies. Additionally, these results also suggest that small changes in soil properties can alter plant activity and hence the plant-associated microbial community which has important implications for a broad array of important agricultural and horticultural plant pathosystems.
Severity of leaf miner [Liriomyza cicerina (Rondani, 1875) (Diptera: Agromyzidae)] damage in relation to leaf type in chickpea

Yield loss due to leaf miner [Liriomyza cicerina (Rondani, 1875) (Diptera: Agromyzidae)] damage in chickpea (Cicer arietinum Linnaeus, 1753) (Fabales: Fabaceae) may reach 40% in the Mediterranean basin. A total of 15 chickpea genotypes with different leaf types including five normal (fern), five simple (unipinnate), and five multi (bipinnate) leaves were evaluated for resistance to leaf miner damage using a 1–9 visual scale (1 = no damage, 9 = severe damage etc.) under natural insect infestations in the field during the years, 2006 and 2007. Leaf miner resistance was significantly correlated with leaf type and leaflet size, but was not correlated with leaf pigmentation. Our results revealed that genotypes having simple leaf type were the most sensitive to leaf miner damage, while genotypes with multipinnate and small leaflets were least sensitive. The genotypes having multipinnate leaves with small leaflets may thus be considered for resistance sources to leaf miner in chickpea breeding programs.
A 90­DAY ORAL TOXICITY STUDY OF TARTRAZINE, A SYNTHETIC FOOD DYE, IN WISTAR RATS

The following study is about Tartrazine (E 102) which is known as an azo dye used in food products, drugs and cosmetics. As a part of the safety assessment of Tartrazine, a 13‐week subchronic oral toxicity study was performed on Wistar rats of both sexes. The animals were divided into 5 groups of 6 animals each, 3 of each sex, and fed a diet containing 5, 7.5, or 10 mg/kg b.w, of Tartrazine and 3.75 mg/kg b.w, of Sulfanilic acid. There were no treatment‐related adverse effects with regard to body weight, food and water consumption. Their blood samples were analyzed for hematological measurements, Glucose, Creatinine, Blood urea nitrogen, Cholesterol total, Triglecerid, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase. The Stomach, Jejunum, Liver, Kidneys tissues were also processed for histological examination. The present study shows that Tartrazine and Sulfanilic acid induced a morphological change from the discoid shape to an echinocytic form in rat RBCs. Relative weights of the liver were significantly increased in group treated with 10 mg/kg b.w, of Tartrazine. Our data showed a significant increase in GLU, CREA, CHOL, TG, AST, and total Protein in serum of rats treated with Tartrazine and Sulfanilic acid compared to control rats and these significant changes were more apparent in high doses than low ones. The histopathological changes of Liver and Kidney were in accordance with the biochemical findings.
Magnon currents excited by the spin Seebeck effect in ferromagnetic EuS thin films

A magnetic insulator is an ideal platform to propagate spin information by exploiting magnon currents. However, until now, most studies have focused on Y$_3$Fe$_5$O$_{12}$ (YIG) and a few other ferri- and antiferromagnetic insulators, but not on pure ferromagnets. In this study, we demonstrate for the first time that magnon currents can propagate in ferromagnetic insulating thin films of EuS. By performing both local and non-local transport measurements in 18-nm-thick films of EuS using Pt electrodes, we detect magnon currents arising from thermal generation by the spin Seebeck effect. By comparing the dependence of the local and non-local signals with the temperature (<30 K) and magnetic field (<9 T), we confirm the magnon transport origin of the non-local signal. Finally, we extract the magnon diffusion length in the EuS film (~140 nm), a short value in good correspondence with the large Gilbert damping measured in the same film.
Gender Differences in HIV-Related Sexual Risk Behaviors among Korean College Students

Objectives: The study was designed to assess the trends of the incidence of HIV among young people and their sexual risk-taking behaviors by gender in Korean college students. Methods: The cross-sectional study was used from college students from selected 60 among 208 4-year colleges and universities in 9 provinces and Seoul. A self-reported anonymous questionnaire administered and completed to a national representative sample of 4-year college students from May 15th to June 14th in 2003. We analyzed 2,385 cases. The overall response rate was 82.0%. Results: After controlling age effects, male students were more likely to be sexually experienced than female students(40.0% vs. 8.1%), OR=5.5, p＜. 000. The proportions of 19 years and before reported for initiation of sexual intercourse were 18.6% for males and 3.2% for females. Males reported significantly younger ages than females at initiation of sexual intercourse(p＜.01). Only 14.8% of current sexually active subjects reported consistent use of contraceptive methods. After controlling age effects, male students reported a higher proportion of sexually experienced respondents with one or more casual partners(excluding a formal partner) during the last 12 months than women(38.8% vs. 22.2%), OR=2.2, p＜. 05. Conclusion: This study can conclude that although males students initiate sex earlier and have higher percentage of sexual experience, the percentage of sexually experience female students has risen rapidly compared to the past. This data revealed a number of young people were at risk for HIV infection. Both genders are equally likely to have engaged in inconsistent condom use even though when they have a sex with an unknown partner. These findings suggest that practical sex education focused on using condom use should have been included in the school curricular. Educational and community interventions need to prevent sex-related problems.
Generating Luck from Weak Ties in Social Networks

— One often assumes that for online Social Networks of related people, relations with strong ties better characterize the person one is looking for. However, a paradox already stated by Granovetter is the opposite assumption that weak ties to other people may be the more significant in certain contexts. This paper investigates this latter contrarian hypothesis as a novel tool to extract knowledge and systematically generate luck in the given contexts. Similarly to interestingness, luck is modeled relative to the context, by combining two functions – Relevance and Surprise. The Surprise expresses the importance of weak ties. A Luck-Generator software tool has been developed as an experimental testbed to interact with any social network. Its inputs, chosen by the Luck-Generator customer, are a context, a social network, and the customer’s network page. The hypothesis is validated by results showing that relevance alone is not enough to actually generate all the potential luck: the weak ties’ surprise contribute essentially to optimize success in the context task. Preliminary results are illustrated by ‘Getting a Job’ case study. 1
Stochastic simulation of the cost of home-produced feeds for ruminant livestock systems

SUMMARY An agro-economic simulation model was developed to facilitate comparison of the impact of management, market and biological factors on the cost of providing ruminant livestock with feed grown on the farm (home produced feed). Unpredictable year-to-year variation in crop yields and input prices were identified as quantifiable measures of risk affecting feed cost. Stochastic analysis was used to study the impact of yield and input price risk on the variability of feed cost for eight feeds grown in Ireland over a 10-year period. Intensively grazed perennial ryegrass was found to be the lowest cost feed in the current analysis (mean cost €74/1000 Unité Fourragère Viande (UFV)). Yield risk was identified as the greatest single factor affecting feed cost variability. At mean prices and yields, purchased rolled barley was found to be 3% less costly than home-produced spring-sown barley. However, home-produced spring barley was marginally less risky than purchased barley (coefficient of variation (CV) 0·063 v. 0·064). Feed crops incurring the greatest proportion of fixed costs and area-dependent variable costs, including bunker grass silage, were the most sensitive to yield fluctuations. The most energy input-intensive feed crops, such as grass silage, both baled and bunker ensiled, were deemed most susceptible to input price fluctuations. Maize silage was the most risky feed crop (CV 0·195), with potential to be both the cheapest and the most expensive conserved feed.
Chromothripsis Identified by Copy Number Profiling in a Case of Plasma Cell Leukaemia

A genomic instability called chromothripsis occurs as a single catastrophic event, generating massive complex genomic rearrangement with a possible characteristic pattern of copy number oscillations. Here, we report a case of secondary plasma cell leukaemia (PCL) showing chromothripsis identified by single nucleotide polymorphism array (SNP-A)-based karyotyping. A 53-year-old male patient was diagnosed as having secondary PCL four years after he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, and he died four days later due to intracerebral haemorrhage. Chromosomal analysis and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) revealed the deletions of 13q and 17p and an insertion of 1q. Further, genomic aberrations that were not detected by chromosomal analysis and FISH were identified by SNP-A. In particular, SNP-A revealed numerous alternating copy number state switches involving one, two, or three copy number states on chromosome 7q, suggesting the presence of chromothripsis. The present case suggests that chromothripsis may occur in secondary PCL and can be inferred from genomic copy number profiles identified by SNP-A.
What influences Australian secondary schools in their efforts to prevent and intervene in cyberbullying?

ABSTRACT Background Cyberbullying is a significant problem for young people and secondary schools are the main institutions expected to address it. School anti-bullying measures have only modestly reduced the problem to date. Purpose This study aimed to examine the perspectives of members within the school community regarding their actions to reduce cyberbullying. Method School stakeholders were recruited from two large independent high schools in Australia. Overall, four school leaders, two key personnel with roles in cyberbullying prevention, and two parents participated in semi-structured interviews, while two groups of Year 9 teachers, and four groups of Year 9 students (aged 13–15 years) participated in focus groups. Interview and focus group protocols were developed to gather views about prevention and intervention measures for cyberbullying in the stakeholders’ schools. Copies of anti-cyberbullying policies and documents were also collected for review. Analysis A thematic content analysis was conducted on 14 stakeholder transcripts from interviews and focus groups, and school policy documents were reviewed for anti-bullying components. The distal systems of a social-ecological framework were used to frame a wider view of school efforts to prevent and intervene in cyberbullying. Findings The content analysis and review showed that school actions were reflective of evidence-based best practice. However, despite actions towards making students safe from cyberbullying, stakeholders were left questioning why these incidents were still observed. The analysis revealed that the continued presence of cyberbullying was not simply attributable to ineffective school practices, but rather from societal influences. Three macrosystem themes were identified from the data: the culture of technology; the legal framework; and the media portrayal of cyberbullying. These macrosystem influences could be seen impacting four school exosystems (i.e. communities of school practice): the parent community, the organisational community, the support and advice community, and commercial communities of schools. Conclusion The macrosystems and exosystems of schools are influencing school actions, with implications for the reduction of student cyberbullying.
Normalization and the discursive construction of “new” norms and “new” normality: discourse in the paradoxes of populism and neoliberalism

ABSTRACT Highlighting a number of perspectives from critical social theory and research as well as critical language and discourse studies, this paper explores conceptions of normalisation particularly relevant to the analysis of its dynamics and trajectories in public discourse. Starting by disentangling the complex relationship between norms, normality, normalization and discourse, the article argues that two major trends in research on normalization – of violence and deviance – have been particularly influential in designing theories and analyses of normalisation processes. They have also been pivotal in pointing to path-dependencies of normalization processes, to the centrality of classification, distinction and stigmatization or to the role of pre-/legitimation and legitimation via social imaginaries as those which characterise the introduction and communication of new norms and normativites in the public domain. Crucially, many of those features of normalization are often both sustained and nested in context-dependent formats of normalization discourse. The latter, drawing on a wide array of discursive and linguistic features explored in the article, effectively enables the orchestration of new discursive shifts in public discourse as well as the introduction and pre-/legitimation of new or recontextualised norms and perceptions of what is, and what is not, acceptable and unacceptable in politics, media, institutions and beyond.
Understanding the role of perceived satisfaction with autonomy, competence, and relatedness in the CSR context

Abstract In previous studies, researchers have determined that the corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities of a company develop a positive attitude. However, empirical research that explains how CSR activities influence the behavioral intention of customers remains lacking. Thus, this study aims to address gaps in the previous literature by examining customers’ responses to hotel CSR activities. On the basis of self-determination theory, the different roles of CSR activities (i.e., feelings of autonomy, competence, and relatedness) in increasing positive behavioral intention are identified in the hotel industry. Path analysis using SmartPLS software confirms that participants with a high satisfaction level with relatedness tend to develop revisit and word-of-mouth (WOM) intentions toward hotels. Moreover, satisfaction with autonomy is related to increased WOM intention. By contrast, perceived satisfaction with competence is unrelated to revisit or WOM intention. Therefore, although hotel CSR activities can exert a direct effect on brand-related attitude, their effect apparently varies depending on the types of needs satisfaction. The findings of this study verify that the effectiveness of hotel CSR activities can be linked to company performance by meeting different types of needs satisfaction.