Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
TNNT2 mutations in the tropomyosin binding region of TNT1 disrupt its role in contractile inhibition and stimulate cardiac dysfunction

Significance Roughly two decades ago, troponin T (TnT) of the trimeric thin filament regulatory troponin complex, was shown to contribute directly to the inhibition of skeletal and cardiac muscle contraction, independent of troponins I and C. The molecular basis of this enigmatic role for TnT remains unknown. Hypertrophic and restrictive cardiomyopathies (HCM and RCM) are characterized by impaired relaxation and, thus, an inability of the heart muscle to properly “turn off. ” Based on data gleaned from multiple model systems used to investigate HCM and RCM TnT mutations, and recently published thin filament structural models, we propose a mechanism that potentially underlies TnT’s heretofore poorly understood role in muscle relaxation, which, when compromised, may cause disease. Muscle contraction is regulated by the movement of end-to-end-linked troponin−tropomyosin complexes over the thin filament surface, which uncovers or blocks myosin binding sites along F-actin. The N-terminal half of troponin T (TnT), TNT1, independently promotes tropomyosin-based, steric inhibition of acto-myosin associations, in vitro. Recent structural models additionally suggest TNT1 may restrain the uniform, regulatory translocation of tropomyosin. Therefore, TnT potentially contributes to striated muscle relaxation; however, the in vivo functional relevance and molecular basis of this noncanonical role remain unclear. Impaired relaxation is a hallmark of hypertrophic and restrictive cardiomyopathies (HCM and RCM). Investigating the effects of cardiomyopathy-causing mutations could help clarify TNT1’s enigmatic inhibitory property. We tested the hypothesis that coupling of TNT1 with tropomyosin’s end-to-end overlap region helps anchor tropomyosin to an inhibitory position on F-actin, where it deters myosin binding at rest, and that, correspondingly, cross-bridge cycling is defectively suppressed under diastolic/low Ca2+ conditions in the presence of HCM/RCM lesions. The impact of TNT1 mutations on Drosophila cardiac performance, rat myofibrillar and cardiomyocyte properties, and human TNT1’s propensity to inhibit myosin-driven, F-actin−tropomyosin motility were evaluated. Our data collectively demonstrate that removing conserved, charged residues in TNT1’s tropomyosin-binding domain impairs TnT’s contribution to inhibitory tropomyosin positioning and relaxation. Thus, TNT1 may modulate acto-myosin activity by optimizing F-actin−tropomyosin interfacial contacts and by binding to actin, which restrict tropomyosin’s movement to activating configurations. HCM/RCM mutations, therefore, highlight TNT1’s essential role in contractile regulation by diminishing its tropomyosin-anchoring effects, potentially serving as the initial trigger of pathology in our animal models and humans.
Facial emotion recognition in autistic adult females correlates with alexithymia, not autism

Research on predominantly male autistic samples has indicated that impairments in facial emotion recognition typically associated with autism spectrum conditions are instead due to co-occurring alexithymia. However, whether this could be demonstrated using more realistic facial emotion recognition stimuli and applied to autistic females was unclear. In all, 83 females diagnosed with autism spectrum condition completed online self-report measures of autism spectrum condition severity and alexithymia, and afacial emotion recognition deficit that assessed their ability to identify multimodal displays of complex emotions. Higher levels of alexithymia, but not autism spectrum condition severity, were associated with less accurate facial emotion recognition. Difficulty identifying one’s own feelings and externally oriented thinking were the components of alexithymia that were specifically related to facial emotion recognition accuracy. However, alexithymia (and autism spectrum condition severity) was not associated with speed of emotion processing. The findings are primarily discussed with the theoretical view that perceiving and experiencing emotions share the same neural networks, thus being able to recognise one’s own emotions may facilitate the ability to recognise others’. This study is in line with previous similar research on autistic males and suggests impairments in facial emotion recognition in autistic females should be attributed to co-occurring alexithymia. Lay abstract Research with autistic males has indicated that difficulties in recognising facial expressions of emotion, commonly associated with autism spectrum conditions, may instead be due to co-occurring alexithymia (a condition involving lack of emotional awareness, difficulty describing feelings and difficulty distinguishing feelings from physical bodily sensations) and not to do with autism. We wanted to explore if this would be true for autistic females, as well as to use more realistic stimuli for emotional expression. In all, 83 females diagnosed with autism spectrum condition completed self-report measures of autism spectrum condition traits and alexithymia and completed a visual test that assessed their ability to identify multimodal displays of complex emotions. Higher levels of alexithymia, but not autism spectrum condition features, were associated with less accuracy in identifying emotions. Difficulty identifying one’s own feelings and externally oriented thinking were the components of alexithymia that were specifically related to facial emotion recognition accuracy. However, alexithymia (and levels of autism spectrum condition traits) was not associated with speed of emotion processing. We discuss the findings in terms of possible underlying mechanisms and the implications for our understanding of emotion processing and recognition in autism.
Reevaluation of biosecurity of Ophraella communa against sunflower (Helianthus annuus)

Abstract Ophraella communa (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), originally from North America, has been used for biological control of common ragweed, Ambrosia artemisiifolia, in China since 2007. However, there is still a debate on whether O. communa can attack sunflowers under field conditions. To re-evaluate the biosecurity of O. communa against sunflower (Helianthus annuus), we investigated the population density of O. communa on three sunflower varieties that were intercropped with or planted in circumambience of A. artemisiifolia under field conditions. Our results showed that only very few O. communa eggs (<0.5 eggs/plant) were found on sunflower plants at the last two surveys when sunflowers were planted in circumambience of common ragweed. O. communa eggs were not found on sunflower plants at each survey when sunflowers were intercropped with common ragweed. The first–second instar larvae, third instar larvae, pupae and adults of O. communa were occasionally found on sunflower plants, but their densities were very low under either case of planting patterns. Based on these results, we conclude that sunflower is not a potential host plant for O. communa and the beetle is an effective host-specific biological control agent of common ragweed.
Authors' Reply: Age-Related Tau Aggregates Resemble Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy Neuropathologic Change.

lopathy in athletes: Progressive tauopathy after repetitive head injury. J Neuropathol Exp Neurol 2009;68:709–35 9. McKee AC, Stern RA, Nowinski CJ, et al. The spectrum of disease in chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Brain 2013;136:43–64 10. Ling H, Holton JL, Shaw K, et al. Histological evidence of chronic traumatic encephalopathy in a large series of neurodegenerative diseases. Acta Neuropathol 2015;130:891–3 11. Puvenna V, Engeler M, Banjara M, et al. Is phosphorylated tau unique to chronic traumatic encephalopathy? Phosphorylated tau in epileptic brain and chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Brain Res 2016;1630:225–40 12. Bieniek KF, Blessing MM, Heckman MG, et al. Association between contact sports participation and chronic traumatic encephalopathy: A retrospective cohort study. Brain Pathol 2020;30:63–74
Measuring SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibody activity using pseudotyped and chimeric viruses

The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 has created a need for robust assays of plasma and monoclonal antibody neutralization potency. Pseudotyped HIV-1– and vesicular stomatitis virus–based reporter viruses and a replication-competent vesicular stomatitis virus/SARS-CoV-2 chimera represent useful tools to assess neutralizing antibodies.
Inpatient Outcomes of a Hands-free, Wireless Communication Device Implementation.

KEY POINTS Failures in communication among healthcare teammembers were identified as one of the root causes of preventable medical errors. The evaluation of implemented healthcare technology projects is vital to maximize its benefits and achieve technology optimization. This study substantiated similar results in the literature where the hands-free, wireless communication device improved staff communication and workflow efficiency, promoting the delivery of quality and safe care. P atient safety and the impact of communication failures were highlighted in an Institute of Medicine report in 2000. Data were disclosed that approximately 44 000 to 98 000 deaths due to preventable medical errors occur each year in hospitals within the United States. Failures in communication among healthcare staff have been identified as one of the root causes of these preventable medical errors. The Joint Commission, a US independent regulatory and accrediting organization for healthcare facilities, published data showing that communication failures were the root cause behind more than 60% of sentinel events. A 2015 report attributed communication failures as the cause for 1744 deaths in 30% of malpractice claims, resulting in $1.7 billion in fees over a 5-year period. The delivery of high-quality patient care involves intricate processes contributed by various members of a multidisciplinary team. Delivering quality care requires efficient, reliable, and effective communication among healthcare team members. Functional communication infrastructure must be installed to promote swift information exchange. Hospital units typically use standard communication systems, such as regular telephones and one-way communication channels (eg, overhead paging and alphanumeric pagers), which do not consistently allow for bidirectional communication and cause delays. The flow of information within the healthcare team and the need to collaborate with other staff increase the need to communicate promptly. In addition, constant movement during shifts can impede the timely transfer of information, as researchers demonstrated by studying the amount that clinical staff in acute care settings walk on a given shift. These delays in information exchange may lead to patient safety risks. Many hospitals have adopted unique mobile communications technology since 2003. Over the last decade, several studies evaluating the effectiveness of a wearable, lightweight,
Primary stability of a press‐fit cup in combination with impaction grafting in an acetabular defect model

The objectives of this study were to (a) assess primary stability of a press‐fit cup in a simplified acetabular defect model, filled with compacted cancellous bone chips, and (b) to compare the results with primary stability of a press‐fit cup combined with two different types of bone graft substitute in the same defect model. A previously developed acetabular test model made of polyurethane foam was used, in which a mainly medial contained defect was implemented. Three test groups (N = 6 each) were prepared: Cancellous bone chips (bone chips), tricalciumphosphate tetrapods + collagen matrix (tetrapods + coll), bioactive glass S53P4 + polyethylene glycol‐glycerol matrix (b.a.glass + PEG). Each material was compacted into the acetabulum and a press‐fit cup was implanted. The specimens were loaded dynamically in the direction of the maximum resultant force during level walking. Relative motion between cup and test model was assessed with an optical measurement system. At the last load step (3000 N), inducible displacement was highest for bone chips with median [25th percentile; 75th percentile] value of 113 [110; 114] µm and lowest for b.a.glass + PEG with 91 [89; 93] µm. Migration at this load step was highest for b.a.glass + PEG with 868 [845; 936] µm and lowest for tetrapods + coll with 491 [487; 497] µm. The results show a comparable behavior under load of tetrapods + coll and bone chips and suggest that tetrapods + coll could be an attractive alternative to bone chips. However, so far, this was found for one specific defect type and primary stability should be further investigated in additional/more severe defects.
THE NATAL AND BREEDING DISPERSAL OF BIRDS

"The question of the return of birds to their homes is one of perennial interest. How faithfully do adult birds-males and females return to their territories? How far from their birth place do young birds settle? Over how much ground does one family scatter? " (91). Over 40 years ago, ornithologists studying the movement of birds in relation to their birth and breeding sites were preoccupied with estimating the extent of mixing of individuals within a species's range. There were major disagreements about how far young birds dispersed. Some authors felt that young birds did not tend to return to their birthplaces (101) but selected a nesting site anywhere within the species's natural range (27, 81). Others concluded that birds attempting to breed for the first time did, on the whole, return to their birthplaces though the extent of this fidelty was less than that of adults to their previous breeding sites (36, 69, 70, 91). It was generally agreed that adult birds did return to a previous breeding place. Gradually the position of the supporters of the random dispersal theory was undermined as more data accumulated and methodological problems of measuring dispersal came to be better appreciated. A number of longterm studies were reported between the late 1930s and the early 1950s (4,
Spatial distributions of European Tenebrionidae point to multiple postglacial colonization trajectories

Many studies have found that species richness in the Western Palaearctic follows a latitudinal trend, yet the importance of geographical and ecological factors in shaping species ranges remains obscure. In this article, we present geographical patterns of darkling beetles (Tenebrionidae), a species-rich group of arthropods. We relate the spatial distributions of species, instead of simply species richness, to spatial and climatic gradients, and test the effects of area (by species–area relationships), latitude (by various climatic gradients) and environmental diversity (by elevation) using simultaneous autoregressive models to identify major correlates of species richness. We then use nestedness and co-occurrence analyses to identify glacial refugial centres and postglacial dispersal trajectories responsible for current species ranges. Our results indicate the presence of two refugial centres (in the Iberian and Balkan peninsulas) that appear to have been particularly important in shaping extant tenebrionid ranges. Northern countries were selectively colonized by more tolerant and, possibly, more mobile species, which survived in southern refugia during the Pleistocene glacial maxima, whereas the low dispersal capabilities of many species that evolved in these southern isolated areas prevented their spread northwards. High levels of endemism recorded in Spain and Sardinia suggest that the faunas of these regions originated during the Tertiary period and have remained substantially isolated. © 2011 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2012, 105, 318–329. ADDITIONAL KEYWORDS: endemics – latitudinal gradient – Pleistocene refugia – spatial autoregression – species–area relationship.
Phytoplankton size distribution and community structure: influence of nutrient input and sedimentary loss

This study examines the effects of nutrient availability and sedimentary loss on the dynamics of freshwater phytoplankton, from the physiological state at the cellular level to the competition issue at the community level. We studied the separated and combined responses to nutrient inputs and mixing, of a phytoplankton community, in terms of size fractionated photosynthetic activity and biomass, exported biomass and species composition. The community was composed of two dominant species, which differed in their sinking velocity. Experiments were conducted during 8 days in 12 water columns of 50 L, in light and temperature controlled conditions. The nutrient input was found to be the predominant factor affecting sedimentary fluxes and community composition, but mixing had also a significant effect on the community structure and sedimentary fluxes when combined with nutrient inputs. In this latter case, the large sinking species, Tribonema sp. (Xanthophyceae), developed, due to both a decrease of sedimentary loss by upward advection and the enhanced growth from nutrient inputs, as indicated by the higher photosynthetic activity measured using chlorophyll a in vivo fluorescence. The combined effect of both factors reduced the difference between growth and loss rates and increased the viability of the sinking populations.
Clary Sage Essential Oil and Its Effect on Human Mood and Pulse Rate: An in vivo Pilot Study

Abstract Clary sage (Salvia sclarea) is a xerophytic biennial plant typical for the Mediterranean region. It is cultivated for its essential oil, which is widely used in the flavor and fragrance industry as well as in aromatherapy for its relaxing and immunomodulatory effect. In this pilot investigation, clary sage essential oil was analyzed by GC-MS as well as GC-FID and examined regarding its effects on pulse, blood pressure and mood in healthy human female and male subjects. Analysis of the used CSEO identified linalylacetat (61.3%) and linalool (22.1%) as main compounds. Sclareol was found at 0.3%. In the first experiment with 30 participants (with 15 female), CSEO, diluted in peanut oil, was administered to the left forearm, leading to an increase in pulse rate in women (peanut oil served as control). In men, pulse rate deceased over time (p = 0.013). In the second experiment (32 participants; 16 females) the oil was inhaled for 30 min (pure water as control). The observed decrease of pulse rate was significantly stronger in women than in men (p = 0.026). To evaluate the influence of the mode of application, a comparison of both experiments was performed showing a significant difference between sexes for the parameter of pulse rate (p = 0.034). Overall, the effects elicited by CSEO may depend on application method (inhaled/dermal) and sex (male/female).
Migration

Migrants can contribute to innovative entrepreneurship in their host countries in many ways: by bringing new skills and competencies, helping domestic innovative SMEs overcome labour shortages, founding innovative high-growth companies, and supporting the diffusion and creation of knowledge. Evidence confirms the contributions of migrants. Over the past decade, specific policies designed to attract and select foreign entrepreneurs and highly educated immigrants have been adopted in most OECD countries. Migration can critically affect firms’ access to skilled labour and to business and entrepreneurship skills and experience. It can also facilitate access to foreign markets. Public policy can influence migration within the context of innovative businesses by adopting measures to not only attract but retain foreign entrepreneurs, skilled workers and students (e.g. simplified family reunification conditions).
Inhibition of Neutrophil Apoptosis by Type 1 IFN Depends on Cross-Talk Between Phosphoinositol 3-Kinase, Protein Kinase C-δ, and NF-κB Signaling Pathways1

Neutrophils are abundant, short-lived leukocytes with a key role in the defense against rapidly dividing bacteria. They enter apoptosis spontaneously within 24–48 h of leaving the bone marrow. However, their life span can be extended during inflammatory responses by several proinflammatory cytokines. Inappropriate survival of neutrophils contributes to chronic inflammation and tissue damage associated with diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. We have previously reported that type I IFNs can inhibit both cytokine deprivation and Fas-induced apoptosis in activated T cells. IFN-β locally produced by hyperplastic fibroblasts within the pannus tissue of patients with rheumatoid arthritis contributes to the inappropriately extended life span of infiltrating T cells. Type I IFNs are equally effective at delaying spontaneous apoptosis in human neutrophils. In the work presented here we investigated the signaling pathways involved in mediating this effect. The antiapoptotic actions of IFN-β were targeted at an early stage of neutrophil apoptosis, occurring upstream of mitochondrial permeability transition, and were phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) dependent, as they were blocked by the PI3K inhibitor LY294002. Analysis of signaling pathways downstream of PI3K revealed that the antiapoptotic effect of type 1 IFN was inhibited by rottlerin, SN50, and cycloheximide, indicating requirements for activation of protein kinase C-δ, NF-κB, and de novo protein synthesis, respectively. Moreover, EMSA was used to show that the activation of NF-κB occurred downstream of PI3K and protein kinase C-δ activation. We conclude that type I IFNs inhibit neutrophil apoptosis in a PI3K-dependent manner, which requires activation of protein kinase C-δ and induction of NF-κB-regulated genes.