Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Application of the Photoacoustic Approach in the Characterization of Nanostructured Materials

A new generation of sensors can be engineered based on the sensing of several markers to satisfy the conditions of the multimodal detection principle. From this point of view, photoacoustic-based sensing approaches are essential. The photoacoustic effect relies on the generation of light-induced deformation (pressure) perturbations in media, which is essential for sensing applications since the photoacoustic response is formed due to a contrast in the optical, thermal, and acoustical properties. It is also particularly important to mention that photoacoustic light-based approaches are flexible enough for the measurement of thermal/elastic parameters. Moreover, the photoacoustic approach can be used for imaging and visualization in material research and biomedical applications. The advantages of photoacoustic devices are their compact sizes and the possibility of on-site measurements, enabling the online monitoring of material parameters. The latter has significance for the development of various sensing applications, including biomedical ones, such as monitoring of the biodistribution of biomolecules. To extend sensing abilities and to find reliable measurement conditions, one needs to clearly understand all the phenomena taking place during energy transformation during photoacoustic signal formation. Therefore, the current paper is devoted to an overview of the main measurement principles used in the photoacoustic setup configurations, with a special focus on the key physical parameters.
Weeds and phosphorus management effect on groundnut productivity, oil content and nutrient uptake

management treatments and phosphorus levels on weeds; groundnut growth, yield, quality and probability of groundnut cultivation. A split-plot design was used with six weed management treatments i.e . , weedy check, weed free up to 60 days after seeding (DAS), pendimethalin 750 g/ha pre-emergence application (PE), oxyfluorfen 125 g/ha PE, imazethapyr 100 g/ha post-mergence application at 15 DAS (PoE) and quizalofop-ethyl 50 g/ha PoE at 15 DAS as main plots, and five phosphorus levels, viz . 0, 20, 40,60 and 80 kg P/ha as sub-plots with three replications. The lowest density of Cyperus rotundus and Echinochloa colona was recorded with imazethapyr and quizalofop-ethyl, respectively. The lowest density of other narrow-leaved weeds at 30, 60 DAS and harvest was registered with pendimethalin, quizalofop-ethyl and imazethapyr, respectively. Weed free up to 60 DAS was the most effective in managing weeds and increasing groundnut yield. Amongst herbicide treatments, imazethapyr 100 g/ha PoE recorded significantly minimum weed index, weed persistence index, crop resistance index, and the highest values of growth and yield parameters, and N, P and K uptake. Application of 60 kg P/ha has registered significantly the highest plant height, dry matter accumulation, 100 kernels weight and pod yield (1.76 t/ha), biological yield (4.86 t/ha) and also the harvest index (35.83%). Significantly higher protein and oil content were noticed when the crop was fertilized with 40 kg P/ha. The total N, P and K uptake by crop were significantly higher by 87.83, 92.10 and 60.97% over control, respectively with 80 kg P/ha.
Assessing farm records-keeping behavior among small-scale pineapple farmers in the Nsawam Adoagyiri municipality, Ghana

This paper seeks to bring more clarity to the phenomenon of farm records keeping among small-scale pineapple farmers in the Nsawam Adoagyiri Municipality of the Eastern Region of Ghana. Specifically, it seeks to measure the motivation behind farm records keeping, the nature of records kept, the benefits derived from the activity and how demographic and socio-economic characteristics of farmers influence the practice. Using a multi-stage random selection procedure, 120 pineapple farmers selected from 25 pineapple growing communities in the Municipality were interviewed using structured interview schedules. The study showed that records keeping was common among the pineapple farmers interviewed with the farmers keeping at least six (6) farm records. The chi-square test showed that farm records keeping depended on educational level, years of experience in pineapple farming and farm size. Besides, records keeping was informed primarily by the desire to make productivity projections and promote effective agribusiness management. The study makes a strong case for sustained communication, education and awareness creation on the practice to engender good agribusiness outcomes.
A Ruptured Aneurysm in Aplastic or Twig-like Middle Cerebral Artery: A Case Report with Histological Investigation

Aplastic or twig-like middle cerebral artery (Ap/T-MCA) is a rare vascular anomaly that can cause a hemorrhagic or ischemic event. We report a 38-year-old man who presented with intracerebral hemorrhage from a ruptured aneurysm associated with an Ap/T-MCA. After aneurysm trapping and resection, histopathological examination revealed an internal elastic lamina (IEL) disruption and a thin aneurysmal wall. The patient recovered well after surgery and rehabilitation. No hemorrhagic or ischemic events have occurred during 2 years of follow-up. Ap/T-MCA-associated aneurysms exhibit a disrupted IEL and thin wall, which demonstrates the fragility of the “twig-like” vessels.
mFOLFOXIRI with or without bevacizumab for conversion therapy of RAS/BRAF/PIK3CA mutant unresectable colorectal liver metastases: the FORBES non-randomized phase II trial

Background The aim of this non-randomized single-center phase II trial was to prospectively assess the clinical efficacy of triplet chemotherapy with modified 5-fluorouracil, folinic acid, oxaliplatin, and irinotecan (mFOLFOXIRI) plus bevacizumab as conversion therapy for initially unresectable rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog (RAS)/v-raf murine sarcoma viral oncogene homolog B1 (BRAF)/phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase catalytic alpha (PIK3CA) mutant colorectal liver-limited metastases (CRLMs). Methods Patients with RAS/BRAF/PIK3CA mutant initially unresectable CRLMs were recruited at a ratio of 2:1 to receive mFOLFOXIRI plus bevacizumab (experimental group) or mFOLFOXIRI alone (control group). The rate of patients attaining no evidence of disease (NED) was the primary endpoint. The secondary endpoints included objective response rate (ORR), depth of tumor response (DpR), secondary resection rate, progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and safety. Results The rate of NED achieved was 40.7% and 30.8%, respectively, in the experimental (n=54) and control groups (n=26); the adjusted odds ratio was 4.519 [95% confidence interval (CI): 1.247–16.375, P=0.022]. The ORR was 77.4% in the experimental group and 60.0% in the control group (P=0.112). The median DpR was significantly greater in the experimental group (45.6% vs. 34.9%, P=0.041). The median PFS was 12.6 months in the experimental group and 9.1 months in the control group [adjusted hazard ratio (HR): 0.584, 95% CI: 0.304–1.121, P=0.106]. Median OS was prolonged in the experimental group compared with the control group (42.6 vs. 35.3 months, adjusted HR: 0.443, 95% CI: 0.195–1.006, P=0.052). Thirty patients (55.6%) in the experimental group and 16 (61.5%) in the control group experienced grade 3/4 adverse events. Conclusions We observed that the combination of mFOLFOXIRI and bevacizumab increased the rate of clinical NED and showed a trend toward improved survival compared with mFOLFOXIRI alone. This could represent a conversion therapy option for fit patients with initially unresectable RAS/BRAF/PIK3CA mutant CRLMs.
Associations between Plasma Folate and Vitamin B12, Blood Lead, and Bone Mineral Density among Adults and Elderly Who Received a Health Examination

This study hypothesized that plasma folate and vitamin B12 levels modified the association between blood lead and cadmium and total urinary arsenic levels and bone loss. A total of 447 study subjects who received a physical examination at the Wanfang Hospital Medical Center were recruited. Bone loss was defined as a calcaneus bone mineral density T-score less than −1. Blood cadmium and lead concentrations were measured by ICP-MS. Urinary arsenic species were determined using HPLC-HG-AAS. A SimulTRAC-SNB radioassay was used to measure plasma folate, vitamin B12, and homocysteine levels. Total urinary arsenic and blood lead concentration were positively correlated with the odds ratio (OR) for bone loss in a dose–response manner. The OR and 95% confidence interval (CI) for bone loss in participants with blood lead concentrations > 56.14 versus ≤33.82 μg/dL were 1.82 and 1.10–3.01. No correlation between plasma folate and vitamin B12 levels alone and bone loss was observed. However, this study is the first observational study to find that blood lead concentrations tend to increase the OR of bone loss in a low plasma folate and plasma vitamin B12 group with multivariate ORs (95% CI) of 2.44 (0.85–6.96).
A Mixture Hidden Markov Model to Mine Students' University Curricula

In the context of higher education, the wide availability of data gathered by universities for administrative purposes or for recording the evolution of students’ learning processes makes novel data mining techniques particularly useful to tackle critical issues. In Italy, current academic regulations allow students to customize the chronological sequence of courses they have to attend to obtain the final degree. This leads to a variety of sequences of exams, with an average time taken to obtain the degree that may significantly differ from the time established by law. In this contribution, we propose a mixture hidden Markov model to classify students into groups that are homogenous in terms of university paths, with the aim of detecting bottlenecks in the academic career and improving students’ performance.
The fertility effects of school entry decisions

ABSTRACT School entry regulations lead to differences in the age when children start school. While previous literature estimated the effects of age at school entry for compliers with school entry regulations, we look at non-compliers, namely those who enter school one year before the official entry date. Based on an instrumental variable approach, the results show that early enrolment increases the number of children by 0.1 (which is significant at the 10%-level), whereas we find no significant impact on rates of childlessness.
Decoding mechanism of action and susceptibility to drug candidates from integrated transcriptome and chromatin state

Omics-based technologies are driving major advances in precision medicine but efforts are still required to consolidate their use in drug discovery. In this work, we exemplify the use of multi-omics to support the development of 3-chloropiperidines (3-CePs), a new class of candidate anticancer agents. Combined analyses of transcriptome and chromatin accessibility elucidated the mechanisms underlying sensitivity to test agents. Further, we implemented a new versatile strategy for the integration of RNA-seq and ATAC-seq data, able to accelerate and extend the standalone analyses of distinct omic layers. This platform guided the construction of a perturbation-informed basal signature able to predict cancer cell lines’ sensitivity and to further direct compound development against specific tumor types. Overall, this approach offered a scalable pipeline to support the early phases of drug discovery, understanding of mechanism and potentially inform the positioning of therapeutics in the clinic.
miR-155: A Potential Biomarker for Predicting Mortality in COVID-19 Patients

COVID-19, a pandemic of severe acute respiratory syndrome caused by Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), continues to pose diagnostic and therapeutic challenges due to its unpredictable clinical course. Prognostic biomarkers may improve care by enabling quick identification of patients who can be safely discharged home versus those who may need careful respiratory monitoring and support. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have risen to prominence as biomarkers for many disease states and as tools to assist in medical decisions. In the present study, we aimed to examine circulating miRNAs in hospitalized COVID-19 patients and to explore their potential as biomarkers for disease severity. We studied, by quantitative PCR, the expressions of miR-21, miR-146a, miR-146b, miR-155, and miR-499 in peripheral blood. We found that mild COVID-19 patients had 2.5-fold less circulating miR-155 than healthy people, and patients with a severe COVID-19 disease had 5-fold less circulating miR-155 than healthy people. In addition, we found that miR-155 is a good predictor of COVID-19 mortality. We suggest that examining miR-155 levels in patients’ blood, upon admission to hospital, will ameliorate the care given to COVID-19 patients.
Analysis for ultimate uplift capacity of tension piles under deep excavation

Determination of the ultimate uplift capacity for tension piles play a dominant role in engineering design.Unfortunately,due to the limitation of in-situ test conditions,it is almost impossible to obtain the ultimate uplift capacity of tension piles under deep excavation from field tests,and the theoretical study becomes the only feasible way to solve this problem.Adopting the Coulomb friction model for the pile-soil interface with direct constraints,two full-scale field tests on single uplift pile with uniform cross-section and enlarged head were simulated by employing the elastoplastic finite element method,and the simulated results were in good accordance with the field test data.Based on the above-mentioned analysis approach and calculation parameters,the difference between the uniform cross-section piles and the belled piles was examined and a comprehensive study focusing on the effects of excavation width and embedment depth was performed.Finally,suggestions for determining the ultimate uplift capacity of tension piles under deep excavation were given.
Identification of a Novel Biosurfactant with Antimicrobial Activity Produced by Rhodococcus opacus R7

Rhodococcus members excrete secondary metabolites, especially compounds which act as biosurfactants. In this work, we demonstrated the ability of Rhodococcus opacus R7 to produce a novel bioactive compound belonging to the class of biosurfactants with antimicrobial properties during the growth on naphthalene. Chemical and biochemical analyses of the isolated compound demonstrated that the biosurfactant could be classified as a hydrophobic peptide. The ESI-full mass spectrometry revealed that the isolated biosurfactant showed a molecular weight of 1292 Da and NMR spectra evidenced the composition of the following amino acid residues: Ala, Thr, Asp, Gly, Ser. Surfactant activity of the R. opacus R7 compound was quantified by the critical micelle dilution (CMD) method and the critical micelle concentration (CMC) was estimated around 20 mg L−1 with a corresponding surface tension of 48 mN m−1. Moreover, biological assays demonstrated that R. opacus R7 biosurfactant peptide exhibited antimicrobial activity against Escherichia coli ATCC 29522 and Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 6538 with the minimum inhibition growth concentration (MIC) values of 2.6 mg mL−1 and 1.7 mg mL−1, respectively. In this study for the first time, a hydrophobic peptide with both biosurfactant and antimicrobial activity was isolated from a bacterium belonging to Rhodococcus genus.
Numerical Analysis of a Journal Bearing with Chemical Roughness

In this paper, performances of an oil-lubricated journal bearing are investigated with special attention paid to slip occurrence. The chemical roughness at which slip occurs is introduced. The slip length model which is a theoretical scheme for taking the slip occurrence into hydrodynamic lubrication theory is applied to the analyses by a finite volume treatment of the Reynolds equation that deals with the geometry of a journal bearing. The calculated results are compared with other literature under certain eccentric state, and verified in terms of Sommerfeld number and the friction force. The study shows that the presence of judicious chemical roughness in deterministic way can result in a significant improvement in decreasing power loss of the bearing performance.
The role of intracerebral dopamine D1 and D2 receptors in sleep‐wake cycles and general anesthesia

Abstract Dopamine (DA), a monoamine neurotransmitter, is synthesized and released mainly by neurons in the ventral tegmental area and the substantia nigra (SN) pars compacta of the midbrain. DA and its receptors are essential for the regulation of arousal, movement, cognition, reward, and other neurobiological behaviors. Arousal, locomotion, cognition, reward, and other neurobiological functions are all regulated by dopamine and its receptors. Dopamine receptors can be divided into D1‐like receptors (including D1 and D5) or D2‐like receptors (containing D2, D3, and D4), with D1 and D2 receptors (D1Rs, and D2Rs) being the most important. Currently, studies indicated that D1Rs and D2Rs are tightly involved with the process of sleep‐wake and general anesthesia, but the specific mechanism remains unclear. In this review, we compiled the most recent findings, mainly focusing on the structure, distribution, and signal pathway of D1Rs and D2Rs in the central nervous system, as well as the involvement of D1Rs and D2Rs in sleep‐wake and general anesthesia. Thus, the investigations of the D1Rs and D2Rs will benefit not only better knowledge for how sleep‐wake control works but also the mechanism of general anesthesia.
A new framework: non-Western perspectives on international volunteering

ABSTRACT International volunteering has typically been conceived as a Western sociocultural phenomenon. Within this paper, we aim to apply a non-Western lens to the development of a conceptual framework, through which to consider an alternative perspective on international volunteering. We highlight how, increasingly, non-Western countries are a place that not only hosts international volunteers but also sends volunteers abroad. Using the notions of solidarity, respect and equality, we illustrate the complexities and nuances of what non-Western international volunteering involves. This paper serves as a point of departure for a deeper assessment of the conceptualization of international volunteering from non-Western perspectives that recognize these will be different from Western perspectives, even in an era of globalization partially driven by international volunteering.
Intravesical BCG in patients with non-muscle invasive bladder cancer induces trained immunity and decreases respiratory infections

Background BCG is recommended as intravesical immunotherapy to reduce the risk of tumor recurrence in patients with non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC). Currently, it is unknown whether intravesical BCG application induces trained immunity. Methods The aim of this research was to determine whether BCG immunotherapy induces trained immunity in NMIBC patients. We conducted a prospective observational cohort study in 17 NMIBC patients scheduled for BCG therapy and measured trained immunity parameters at 9 time points before and during a 1-year BCG maintenance regimen. Ex vivo cytokine production by peripheral blood mononuclear cells, epigenetic modifications, and changes in the monocyte transcriptome were measured. The frequency of respiratory infections was investigated in two larger cohorts of BCG-treated and non-BCG treated NMIBC patients as a surrogate measurement of trained immunity. Gene-based association analysis of genetic variants in candidate trained immunity genes and their association with recurrence-free survival and progression-free survival after BCG therapy was performed to investigate the hypothesized link between trained immunity and clinical response. Results We found that intravesical BCG does induce trained immunity based on an increased production of TNF and IL-1β after heterologous ex vivo stimulation of circulating monocytes 6–12 weeks after intravesical BCG treatment; and a 37% decreased risk (OR 0.63 (95% CI 0.40 to 1.01)) for respiratory infections in BCG-treated versus non-BCG-treated NMIBC patients. An epigenomics approach combining chromatin immuno precipitation-sequencing and RNA-sequencing with in vitro trained immunity experiments identified enhanced inflammasome activity in BCG-treated individuals. Finally, germline variation in genes that affect trained immunity was associated with recurrence and progression after BCG therapy in NMIBC. Conclusion We conclude that BCG immunotherapy induces trained immunity in NMIBC patients and this may account for the protective effects against respiratory infections. The data of our gene-based association analysis suggest that a link between trained immunity and oncological outcome may exist. Future studies should further investigate how trained immunity affects the antitumor immune responses in BCG-treated NMIBC patients
The Gut-Skin Microbiota Axis and Its Role in Diabetic Wound Healing—A Review Based on Current Literature

Diabetic foot ulcers (DFU) are a growing concern worldwide as they pose complications in routine clinical practices such as diagnosis and management. Bacterial interactions on the skin surface are vital to the pathophysiology of DFU and may control delayed wound healing. The microbiota from our skin directly regulates cutaneous health and disease by interacting with the numerous cells involved in the wound healing mechanism. Commensal microbiota, in particular, interact with wound-repairing skin cells to enhance barrier regeneration. The observed microbes in DFU include Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, Corynebacterium, Pseudomonas, and several anaerobes. Skin commensal microbes, namely S. epidermidis, can regulate the gamma delta T cells and induce Perforin-2 expression. The increased expression of Perforin-2 by skin cells destroyed S. aureus within the cells, facilitating wound healing. Possible crosstalk between the human commensal microbiome and different cell types involved in cutaneous wound healing promotes the immune response and helps to maintain the barrier function in humans. Wound healing is a highly well-coordinated, complex mechanism; it can be devastating if interrupted. Skin microbiomes are being studied in relation to the gut-skin axis along with their effects on dermatologic conditions. The gut-skin axis illustrates the connection wherein the gut can impact skin health due to its immunological and metabolic properties. The precise mechanism underlying gut-skin microbial interactions is still unidentified, but the immune and endocrine systems are likely to be involved. Next-generation sequencing and the development of bioinformatics pipelines may considerably improve the understanding of the microbiome-skin axis involved in diabetic wound healing in a much more sophisticated way. We endeavor to shed light on the importance of these pathways in the pathomechanisms of the most prevalent inflammatory conditions including the diabetes wound healing, as well as how probiotics may intervene in the gut-skin axis.