Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Optical Characteristics of Multilayer Reduced Graphene Oxides Films Fabricated Using UV Oven Spraying Technique with Various Interval Irradiation Time

Reduced graphene oxide (RGO) is promising candidate to be used as an active material of super capacitor electrodes. Graphene oxide (GO) is mostly used as a precursor, therefore it is needed to remove its oxygen containing functional groups. Generally, the RGO films are obtained from Graphene Oxide (GO) films which are then treated using thermal reduction or photo reduction process. We developed a spraying coating method that called as UV oven spraying by combining spraying coating method and photo reduction process. By this deposition method, we can obtain RGO films directly from the GO precursor since deposition and photo reduction steps are taken place at the same time. Level of oxygen removal of the obtained RGO film depends on irradiation intensity and length of irradiation. In this work, we report the effect of varied length of irradiation time on the RGO optical characteristics. We prepared multilayer of RGO films using UV oven spraying technique on quartz substrates from 0.5 mg/ml commercial GO dispersion (Graphenea) with varied the UV irradiation time. We used 125-Watt mercury lamp that was set at distance of 30 cm from substrates. We examined the effect of varied of length of irradiation time on its optical characteristics using UV-Vis Spectroscopy. Level of reduction by provided irradiation time was examined using SEM/EDS measurement.
Effect of TiOx and TiO2 Layer on the Photovoltaic Property of BiOI Films

This study aims to investigate the impact of mesoporous and compact layers, like TiO2 and TiOx on the photovoltaic performance of bismuth oxyiodide (BiOI) films. BiOI thin films were prepared using the spin-coating method for 10 cycles onto FTO glass, FTO/TiOx, FTO/TiO2, and a combination of FTO/TiOx-TiO2 layer. Then, the resulted films were characterized on their optical, structural, and photovoltaic properties. By adding the TiOx or TiO2 layer into the cell, it resulted in the shifting of UV-Visible absorbance to a longer wavelength. On the structural property analysis, Raman spectra showed an overlapping peak among TiOx, TiO2, and BiOI films. Moreover, the solar cell was successfully developed using iodine electrolyte and Pt-counter electrode. By the photovoltaic analysis, it was known that the combination of those layers of metal oxide nanomaterials could give a slight improvement on the short-current density and open-circuit voltage of BiOI thin films. Therefore, the overall BiOI photovoltaic parameter was enhanced.
Preparation of α-Fe2O3/g-C3N4 with C-O-Fe Bonds as a Electrochemical Sensor for Glucose Detection

The rapid glucose detection is great significance in the food, biological and medical fields. In this paper, we show an unusual strategy for the synthesis of α-Fe2O3/g-C3N4 composite material with C-O-Fe bonds for applications in glucose detection. The structural composition and the existence of C-O-Fe bonds of α-Fe2O3/g-C3N4 were evaluated by XRD, FTIR, SEM, TEM and XPS. Due to the formation of C-O-Fe bonds, the BET surface area and electron transport ability of α-Fe2O3/g-C3N4 are improved. The electrochemical experiments revealed that the α-Fe2O3/g-C3N4 sensor exhibited a fast response time (< 5 s), a low detection limit (2.3 μM) and a wide linear range (0.1 mM - 5 mM). Furthermore, the powerful C-O-Fe binding energy provides a guarantee for the reasonable stability of the α-Fe2O3/g-C3N4 sensor. The presence of high concentrations of KCl, citric acid, ascorbic acid, dopamine and sucrose appeared to have no effects on the detection of glucose, indicating a high selectivity of this sensor.
Removal of chromium(VI) from aqueous solutions

Leached Acacia arabica bark was treated with formaldehyde in acidic medium to prevent its colour leaching tendency. This material exhibited good sorption potential for chromium (VI) with a peak value at pH 2. Sorption followed Langmuir adsorption isotherm model. Sorbent dosage of 10 g/L (d p = 1.2 mm) removed total Cr(VI) from a solution having initial concentration 50 mg/L. The Lagergren's equation has been applied to study the kinetics of sorption. Breakthrough, exhaustive and batch capacities determined are : 25, 38.1 and 23.7 mg/g respectively. The sorbent possesses 85 percent sorption capacity compared to activated carbon.
Anharmonic interstellar PAH molecules

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) molecules are responsible for a family of features, the aromatic infrared bands, which are observed in many astronomical environments. The photophysics and photochemistry of PAHs in space is strongly influenced by anharmonicity, which has seldom been considered in astrophysical modeling because of the lack of available data or because too computationally demanding. Recent developments of second-order vibrational perturbation theory applied to density functional theory now allow the computation of the anharmonic quartic force field anharmonic spectra of medium-large molecules like PAHs in a time-efficient way. It is now possible to have a better grasp of the effects of anharmonicity on the vibrational spectrum of PAHs also thanks to the comparison with gas-phase, high-resolution experimental data. In this perspective, the quality of these anharmonic spectra for PAH molecules is reviewed and discussed in view of a robust astrochemical model for PAH molecules.
Synthesis of superabsorbent hydrogel nanocomposites for use as hemostatic agent

ABSTRACT Uncontrolled hemorrhage continues to be the major cause of death in trauma. In this study, the authors prepared hydrogel nanocomposites (HNCs) using three different nanoparticles, SiO2, natural clinoptilolite (nC), and Ca2+-modified clinoptilolite (mC). Fast-swelling superabsorbent hydrogel was used as a matrix of NCs. The hydrogel and HNCs were characterized by FTIR, XRD, FE-SEM, and TGA. The hemocompatibility of HNCs was evaluated by hemolysis test and blood cells function. HNC formed a physical barrier by dehydrating the injury site and concentrating clotting factors. Additionally, highly charged nanoparticles, promoted local hemostasis by activating the intrinsic pathway of the blood coagulation cascade. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT
Voltammetric Studies of the Mechanism of the Oxygen Reduction in Alkaline Media at the Spinels Co3O4 and NiCo2O4

The mechanism of O2 reduction at the spinels, Co3O4 and NiCo2O4, in KOH electrolyte is probed using voltammetry at rotating disc and rotating ring-disc electrodes by examination of the rotation rate dependent limiting currents. The analysis shows that the products and mechanisms at the two spinels are quite different. At the cobalt spinel, a substantial amount of the 2e? reduction product, H2O2, is formed while at NiCo2O4 the 4e? reduction strongly predominates. In terms of both the overpotential for reduction and its limiting current density, the mixed spinel is a substantially better electrocatalyst. It is proposed that the differences arise from an enhanced rate of O-O bond cleavage early in the reduction process at NiCo2O4.
Herpetologists’ Conservation Research Focus Drives Their Intentions to Participate in Future Public Engagement

Public Engagement with Science (PES) is a popular topic in the science community due to general concerns about public support for science, attitudes toward science, and changes in scientific funding requirements. PES may be especially relevant in conservation disciplines as the public plays an important role in conservation practice. Herpetofauna specifically stand to benefit, as PES activities can help improve attitudes and conservation behavior of participants toward uncharismatic species. We assessed the current scope of herpetologists’ PES activities and investigated factors associated with their participation in PES. We used a closed-ended question survey distributed via the listservs of four American herpetological organizations. Herpetologists’ intentions to engage at least 10 hours in the next 12 months significantly differed between herpetologists with high and low conservation research focuses, but hours of engagement in the past 12 months was not significantly different among these groups. Despite most responding herpetologists having limited formal training, time, resources, and institutional support, many participated in a variety of PES activities, often utilizing partnerships and their own resources. Sampled herpetologists rarely evaluated their PES activities or considered publishing about their engagement activities. Some respondents expressed unease with the idea of message framing. Respondents were interested in evaluation training and providing accessible opportunities, and grant funds were the most likely interventions to increase herpetologists’ participation in PES. These results provide reference data and insight into the public engagement practices and needs of practicing herpetologists and conservation scientists. Author statement We informed participants of their rights and protections as approved by University of Florida IRB201800258. None of the authors have conflicts of interest related to this research. Funding for the research was provided by a Roger Conant Grant from the Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles (SSAR). SSAR had no role in interpretation of data, the writing of the report, or the decision to submit the article for publication.
Detection of fusion transcripts and their genomic breakpoints from RNA sequencing data

Spliced fusion-transcripts are typically identified by RNA-seq without elucidating the causal genomic breakpoints. However, non poly(A)-enriched RNA-seq contains large proportions of intronic reads spanning also genomic breakpoints. Using 1.274 RNA-seq samples, we investigated what additional information is embedded in non poly(A)-enriched RNA-seq data. Here, we present our novel, graph-based, Dr. Disco algorithm that makes use of both intronic and exonic RNA-seq reads to identify not only fusion transcripts but also genomic breakpoints in gene but also in intergenic regions. Dr. Disco identified TMPRSS2-ERG fusions with genomic breakpoints and other transcribed rearrangements from multiple RNA-sequencing cohorts. In breast cancer and glioma samples Dr. Disco identified rearrangement hotspots near CCND1 and MDM2 and could directly associate this with increased expression. A comparison with matched DNA-sequencing revealed that most genomic breakpoints are not, or minimally, transcribed while also revealing highly expressed translocations missed by DNA-seq. By using the full potential of non poly(A)-enriched RNA-seq data, Dr. Disco can reliably identify expressed genomic breakpoints and their transcriptional effects.
The role of Cyp19a1 in female pathway of a freshwater turtle (Mauremys reevesii) with temperature-dependent sex determination

The molecular mechanism of temperature-dependent sex determination (TSD) in reptiles has been drawn great interest from biologists for several decades. However, which genetic factors are essential for TSD remain elusive, especially for the female sex determination process. Cyp19a1, encodes an enzyme of aromatase catalyzing the conversion of testosterone to estrogen, has been confirmed to modulate steroid hormones involved in the sexual differentiation of many species, but whether it has a critical role in determining the gonadal sexual fate in TSD is still to be elucidated. Here, we identified that Cyp19a1 expression exhibited a temperature-dependent, sexually dimorphic expression pattern, preceding gonadal sex differentiation in a TSD turtle Mauremys reevesii. Cyp19a1 expression in gonads increased dramatically when embryos developed at high female-producing temperatures (FPT), but were extremely low throughout embryogenesis at low male-producing temperatures (MPT). Cyp19a1 expression increased rapidly in response to the temperature shift from MPT to FPT in developing gonads. The sexual phenotype of turtles was successfully reversed by aromatase inhibitor treatment at FPT, and by estrogen treatment at MPT, accompanied with the rapid upregulation of Cyp19a1. These results demonstrate that Cyp19a1 is essential for the female sex determination process in M. reevesii, indicating its vital role in the female pathway of TSD.
Comparative analyses and phylogenetic relationships of 15 Trapa (Trapaceae) species based on Complete Chloroplast Genomes

Trapa L. is floating-leaved aquatic plants with important economic and ecological values. However, species identification and phylogenetic relationship are still unresolved for Trapa. In this study, complete chloroplast genomes of 13 Trapa species/taxa were sequenced and annotated. Combined with released sequences of the other two species, comparative analysis of cp genomes was first performed on the 15 Trapa species/taxa. The 15 cp genomes exhibited quadripartite structures with medium size of 155, 453-155, 559 bp. IR/SC junctions were conservative with no obvious change found. Long repetitive repeats and SSRs were mostly detected in the intergenic and LSC regions, providing useful plastid markers for species and relationship identification. Three phylogenetic analyses (MP, ML and BI) consistently showed two clusters within Trapa, including large- and small-seed species/taxa, respectively. This study provided the baseline information for phylogeography of Trapa, which would facilitate the management and utilization of genetic resources of the genus.
Growth and division mode plasticity by cell density in marine-derived black yeasts

The diversity and ecological contribution of the fungus kingdom in the marine environment remain under-studied. A recent survey in the Atlantic (Woods Hole, MA, USA) brought to light the diversity and unique biological features of marine fungi. The study revealed that black yeast species undergo an unconventional cell division cycle, which has not been documented in conventional model yeast species such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae (budding yeast) and Schizosaccharomyces pombe (fission yeast). The prevalence of this unusual property is unknown. Inspired by the findings in Woods Hole, I collected and identified >50 marine fungi species across 40 genera from the ocean surface, sediment, and macroalgal surface in the Pacific (Sugashima, Toba, Japan). The Sugashima collection largely did not overlap with the Woods Hole collection and included several unidentifiable species, further illustrating the diversity of marine fungi. Three black yeast species were isolated, two of which were commonly found in Woods Hole (Aureobasidium pullulans, Hortaea werneckii). Surprisingly, I observed that their cell division mode was dependent on cell density, and the previously reported unconventional division mode was reproduced only at a certain cell density. For all three black yeast species, cells underwent filamentous growth with septations at low cell density and immediately formed buds at high cell density. At intermediate cell density, two black yeasts showed rod cells undergoing septation at the cell equator, in a manner similar to S. pombe. In contrast, all eight budding yeast species showed a consistent division pattern regardless of cell density. In five budding yeast species, the mother cell formed a single bud at a time at an apparently random site, similar to S. cerevisiae. The other three budding yeast species possessed a fixed budding site. This study illustrates the plastic nature of the growth/division mode of marine-derived black yeast.
Calcium dependence of neurotransmitter release at a high fidelity synapse

The Ca2+-dependence of the recruitment, priming, and fusion of synaptic vesicles are fundamental parameters controlling neurotransmitter release and synaptic plasticity. Despite intense efforts, these important steps in the synaptic vesicles’ cycle remain poorly understood because disentangling recruitment, priming, and fusion of vesicles is technically challenging. Here, we investigated the Ca2+-sensitivity of these steps at cerebellar mossy fiber synapses, which are characterized by fast vesicle recruitment mediating high-frequency signaling. We found that the basal free Ca2+ concentration (<200 nM) critically controls action potential-evoked release, indicating a high-affinity Ca2+ sensor for vesicle priming. Ca2+ uncaging experiments revealed a surprisingly shallow and non-saturating relationship between release rate and intracellular Ca2+ concentration up to 50 μM. Sustained vesicle recruitment was Ca2+-independent. Finally, quantitative mechanistic release schemes with five Ca2+ binding steps incorporating rapid vesicle recruitment via parallel or sequential vesicle pools could explain our data. We thus show that co-existing high and low-affinity Ca2+ sensors mediate recruitment, priming, and fusion of synaptic vesicles at a high-fidelity synapse.
Study on Functional Properties of Collagen from Hideoffal

In this paper, a systemic study was done on the dissolubility and emulsibility stability of one hydrolytic collagen extracted from hide offal by an enzymatic method. The results indicated that this collagen had an excellent dissolubility which increased with the absolute difference between solution pH and its pI and with the temperature lower than 20 ℃. The dissolubility value was determined as 100% at temperatures from 20 to 60 ℃, and up to 91.4% even if at its pI point. Besides, it was found that the emulsifibility and emulsification stability were influenced by the concentrations of both the collagen and electrolyte and the solution pH value. They were increased with the rise of contents of the collagen and the electrolyte within a lower concentration range. The emulsifibility and emulsification stability of this collagen showed higher at both higher and lower pH values. However, when the electrolyte content in solution, was up to a certain value, they decreased with the increase of electrolyte concentration. But these two indexes were the smallest at its pI point. When the increase of the electrolyte was up to 5%, the electrolyte had no effect on these two indexes.
Human fetal neural stem cell-derived astrocytes maintain glutamate transport after hypoxic injury in vitro

Astrocytes are the most abundant glial cells that play many critical roles in the central nervous system physiology including the uptake of excess glutamate from the synapse by Excitatory Amino Acid Transporters (EAATs). Among the EAATs, EAAT2 are predominantly functional, astrocyte-specific glutamate transporters in the forebrain. Hypoxic brain injury is a pathological phenomenon seen in various clinical conditions including stroke and neonatal hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy. Glutamate excitotoxicity is an important cause of neuronal cell death in disorders involving hypoxic brain injury. As findings from rodent models cannot always be reliably extrapolated to humans, we aimed to develop a homogenous population of primary human astrocytes to study the effect of hypoxic injury on astrocyte function, especially glutamate uptake. We successfully isolated, established and characterized cultures of human fetal neural stem cells (FNSCs) from aborted fetal brains. FNSCs were differentiated into astrocytes, and characterized by increased expression of the astrocyte markers, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), EAAT1 and EAAT2. A concomitant decrease in neural stem cell marker, Nestin, was observed. Differentiated astrocytes were exposed to various oxygen concentrations mimicking normoxia (20% and 6%), moderate and severe hypoxia (2% and 0.2% respectively). Interestingly, no change was observed in the expression of glutamate transporter, EAAT2 and glutamate uptake by astrocytes, even after exposure to hypoxia. Our novel model of human FNSC derived astrocytes exposed to hypoxic injury, establishes that astrocytes are able to maintain glutamate uptake even after exposure to severe hypoxia for 48 hours, and thus provides evidence for the neuroprotective role of astrocytes in hypoxic injury.
Neurogrid simulates cortical cell-types, active dendrites, and top-down attention

A central challenge for systems neuroscience and artificial intelligence is to understand how cognitive behaviors arise from large, highly interconnected networks of neurons. Digital simulation is linking cognitive behavior to neural activity to bridge this gap in our understanding at great expense in time and electricity. A hybrid analog-digital approach, whereby slow analog circuits, operating in parallel, emulate graded integration of synaptic currents by dendrites while a fast digital bus, operating serially, emulates all-or-none transmission of action potentials by axons, may improve simulation efficacy. Due to the latter’s serial operation, this approach has not scaled beyond millions of synaptic connections (per bus). This limit was broken by following design principles the neocortex uses to minimize its wiring. The resulting hybrid analog-digital platform, Neurogrid, scales to billions of synaptic connections, between up to a million neurons, and simulates cortical models in real-time using a few watts of electricity. Here, we demonstrate that Neurogrid simulates cortical models spanning five levels of experimental investigation: biophysical, dendritic, neuronal, columnar, and area. Bridging these five levels with Neurogrid revealed a novel way active dendrites could mediate top-down attention.
Heterogeneous Catalytic Ozonation of Sulfamethoxazole in Aqueous Solution over Composite Iron–Manganese Silicate Oxide

ABSTRACT Composite iron–manganese silicate oxide (FMSO) was synthesized and used as a heterogeneous catalyst for the ozonation of sulfamethoxazole. Results showed that FMSO/O3 process significantly increased the TOC removal efficiency from 27% (sole ozonation) to 79.8%. Generated intermediates exhibited much higher adsorption affinity on FMSO than sulfamethoxazole. Presence of FMSO could accelerate the mass transfer of ozone, adsorb a certain amount of ozone on its surface, and subsequently decompose ozone into hydroxyl radical. Neutral charge surface of FMSO was more favorable to interact with the ozone molecules. FMSO maintained a good catalytic activity after several repeated use and revealed low metal ion leaching during ozonation.
Interleukin-6 mediates PSAT1 expression and serine metabolism in TSC2-deficient cells

Significance The tumor suppressor syndrome tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) affects 1:10,000 live births. We discovered that the inflammatory cytokine Interleukin-6 (IL-6) promotes the proliferation and migration of TSC2-deficient cells in part through the regulation of PSAT1 and de novo serine biosynthesis. Importantly, IL-6 neutralizing antibody treatments reduced renal cyst and cystadenoma formation in Tsc2+/− mice. This study highlights a therapeutically targetable vulnerability of TSC, which may have broad clinical application to mTORC1-activated tumors. Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) and lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM) are caused by aberrant mechanistic Target of Rapamycin Complex 1 (mTORC1) activation due to loss of either TSC1 or TSC2. Cytokine profiling of TSC2-deficient LAM patient–derived cells revealed striking up-regulation of Interleukin-6 (IL-6). LAM patient plasma contained increased circulating IL-6 compared with healthy controls, and TSC2-deficient cells showed up-regulation of IL-6 transcription and secretion compared to wild-type cells. IL-6 blockade repressed the proliferation and migration of TSC2-deficient cells and reduced oxygen consumption and extracellular acidification. U-13C glucose tracing revealed that IL-6 knockout reduced 3-phosphoserine and serine production in TSC2-deficient cells, implicating IL-6 in de novo serine metabolism. IL-6 knockout reduced expression of phosphoserine aminotransferase 1 (PSAT1), an essential enzyme in serine biosynthesis. Importantly, recombinant IL-6 treatment rescued PSAT1 expression in the TSC2-deficient, IL-6 knockout clones selectively and had no effect on wild-type cells. Treatment with anti–IL-6 (αIL-6) antibody similarly reduced cell proliferation and migration and reduced renal tumors in Tsc2+/− mice while reducing PSAT1 expression. These data reveal a mechanism through which IL-6 regulates serine biosynthesis, with potential relevance to the therapy of tumors with mTORC1 hyperactivity.