Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The comparative evaluation of the effects of antioxidants pretreatment on remineralization of demineralized dentin - In vitro study

Context: Mechanical performance of dentin is of significant significance for the overall function of the teeth. Remineralization of carious dentin is the ultimate goal in re-establishing the functionality of the affected tissue to regain and maintain the mechanical properties of dentin. Functional remineralization of the affected dentin involves stabilization of both inorganic and organic component, but remineralizing agents stabilize only inorganic content. Hence, to stabilize organic content and to bring in functional remineralization, the use of anti-collagenolytic and anti-elastastic agents was considered for this study. Aims: The aim is to assess and compare the effect of antioxidants pretreatment on remineralization of demineralized dentin-in vitro study. Settings and Design: Experimental randomized analytical- in vitro study. Subjects and Methods: Ninety specimens were subjected to artificial caries lesions and were randomly divided into six groups based on the pretreatment with white tea, and grape seed extract (GSE) followed by casein phosphopeptide amorphous calcium phosphate and casein phosphopeptide amorphous calcium phosphate with fluoride. All the specimens were subjected to pH cycling regimen. The specimens were subjected to Vickers micro-hardness test to obtain the micro-hardness values. Statistical Analysis Used: The values were statistically analyzed using one-way analysis of variance. Results: After pH cycling, GSE showed a significant increase in micro-hardness values (46.57 ± 3.51 VHN), followed by white tea (42.56 ± 5.20) with the level of significance <0.05. Conclusions: Results of this study showed that naturally occurring antioxidants, i.e., 10% White tea and 6.5% GSE can be used as pretreatment regime before remineralization treatment.
Neurology and COVID-19: Acting now. Preparing for Future

COVID-19 has a wide-ranging and multimodal neurological impact. First, several neurological symptoms and complications are commonly observed in patients with COVID-19. Second, medications and vaccinations used to counter the disease can have secondary neurological effects. Third, patients with pre-existing neurological disorders bear an increased health-risk due to COVID-19. And finally, the pandemic has disrupted the delivery of neurological and vaccination services, and associated educational and research programs. In this article we review the various channels through which the pandemic is known or projected to effect individual patients or the practice of neurology. We also provide recommendations to manage its immediate effects and prepare for the longer-term fall-out.
LITTERFALL IN MONTANE RAIN FORESTS OF JAMAICA AND ITS RELATION TO CLIMATE

(1) Litterfall at four sites in impoverished Montane Rain forest at c. 1550 m in the Blue Mountains in Jamaica was studied, as a preliminary to the investigation of mineral cycling, during two separate periods-January 1974 to March 1975 and March 1977 to April 1978. Temperature, rainfall, throughfall, relative humidity, litterfall and water content of the trapped litter were studied for varying lengths of time. (2) Mean monthly maximum temperatures were 18 5-20-5 ? C, absolute maxima 21.5-24-0 ? C, mean monthly minima 11 -0-12.0 ? C and extreme minima 8-5-100 0C. Rainfall in the area was c. 2500 mm yr-1. Relative humidity in the forest was usually above 90% as a result of persistent low cloud and fog. Rainfall was markedly seasonal; 5 months (four consecutive) each had less than 200 mm, but the effects were mollified by the high humidity. (3) Litterfall (t ha-' yr-1) was 6-6 (total) and 4-9 (leaves) in Mor Ridge forest; 5.5 (total) and 5 3 (leaves) in Mull Ridge forest; 5.6 (total) and 4 4 (leaves) in Wet Slope forest; and 6-5 (total) and 5 5 (leaves) in Gap forest. The rate of litterfall in the drier part of the year (January to August) was approximately twice the rate in the wetter part of the year for all four forests. (4) Mean leaf-life was estimated as c. 18 months in Mor Ridge forest and c. 13 months in well-developed Mull Ridge forest. (5) The biomass of leaves and the amount of leaf litterfall in the upper Montane Rain forests were similar to published values for Lower Montane and Lowland forests, but above-ground net primary production was lower in Upper Montane Rain forests than in Lowland Rain forests (c. 7 compared with c. 16 t ha-' yr-1). (6) The relative impoverishment of the Jamaican forests is discussed in relation to examples of well-developed Lower Montane and Lowland Rain forest.
Vernal Vivax Activity in Persons simultaneously inoculated with Plasmodium vivax and Plasmodium falciparum.

In two recent papers (1, 2) we reported successful simultaneous inoculations with Plasmodium vivax and Plasmodium falciparum. In the first paper the clinical experience of each of the two patients was presented at length. In each case the attacks represented a succession of reactions produced by each species of parasite acting independently, rather than a reaction produced through the joint agency of the two species. Furthermore, the initial attack in each instance was produced by P. falciparum. The second report dealt only with the results of inoculations made by different lots of mosquitoes maturing infections with two species of parasite either simultaneously or consecutively, and did not relate the subsequent clinical experiences of the five patients who were successfully inoculated with both species of parasite. The results are of sufficient interest to justify the present report. For the details of the inoculations we refer to table 2 of the second report cited.
Inorganic fertilization through the use of organic supplements in low-chill pear cv. Pant Pear-18

The study with different organic manures and biofertilizers with or without chemical fertilizers combination was conducted. Different treatment combinations involving the use of organic nutrition to reduce the quantity of recommended inorganic fertilizers had significant effect on yield and quality of Pant Pear-18. The treatment consisting of 10 kg poultry manure + 300 :150 : 250 g NPK/tree through fertilizers (T4) had maximum yield (50.17 and 62.50 kg, respectively) in both the years and also have a significant improvement in fruit quality in terms of TSS, reducing sugar, non-reducing sugar, total sugars, fruit weight, volume, etc. The treatment with only organic manures (Tg) resulted in fruit quality enhancement but had less effect on productivity.
HABITAT DESTRUCTION AND COEXISTENCE OF COMPETITORS IN A SPATIALLY REALISTIC METAPOPULATION MODEL

Nee & May (1992) modelled the coexistence of two competing species in fragmented landscapes affected by varying levels of habitat destruction (permanent removal of habitat patches). One species was assumed to be a superior competitor, capable of immediately excluding its rival from any patch it would colonize. The inferior competitor could none the less persist regionally in a network of many patches, provided that it was a superior colonizer or had a lower intrinsic rate of extinction than the superior species. Nee & May (1992) showed that for such species habitat destruction can lead to an increase in the absolute abundance of the inferior competitor. This at first surprising result is due to an indirect effect: the direct negative effect of habitat destruction on the inferior competitor is more than compensated for by the reduced competition with the superior species, which suffers even more from habitat destruction because of
Response of Laying Hens to Diets Varying in Crude Protein or Available Phosphorus

Abstract Two experiments were conducted using Babcock B300, Dekalb Delta, H&N, and Shave White pullets. Chicks were grown to 18 wk of age under similar conditions and transferred to laying cages. In Experiment 1, pullets of each strain received diets at 16.8% crude protein or at 14.4% crude protein with supplemental methionine and lysine. In Experiment 2 pullets received diets containing either 0.42, 0.35, or 0.28% available phosphorus. Both experiments revealed very few significant strain x diet interactions. The only meaningful strain effects were related to feed intake and body weight. Feeding the lower-protein diet had few effects on performance, although there was an unexpected increase in albumen height. The three levels of diet phosphorus had no effect on any of the usual performance criteria. If strain-specific differences in nutrient requirements for layers exist outside of accommodation for variable feed intake, the effects will be quite small when diets are modified to reduce manure loading by either nitrogen or phosphorus.
In vitro antioxidant activity of anthraquinones from rhizome of Reynoutria japonica

Anthraquinones were extracted crudely from rhizome of Reynoutria japonica Houtt.by ultrasonic extraction method with 80% ethanol,and crude extract solution was purified with D101 macro-porous resin.Using VC as positive control,the effects of the anthraquinones on GSH-px activity in liver tissue homogenate of mouse and MDA content and oxidative hemolysis of red blood cells induced by H2O2 were studied by in vitro animal experiment,and its scavenging ability to DPPH· free radical,reduction ability to Fe3+ and chelating ability to Fe2+ were analyzed by chemical simulated system.The results show that anthraquinones are rich in rhizome of R.japonica,the content of crude extracts is 55.86 mg·g-1,and the content is 44.77 mg·g-1 after purified.Anthraquinones with concentrations of 10,20,30 and 40 μg·mL-1 can obviously enhance GSH-px activity,decrease MDA content induced by H2O2 and have strongly inhibition on oxidative hemolysis of red blood cells induced by H2O2.Anthraquinones with concentrations of 2,4,6 and 8 μg·mL-1 have better scavenging ability to DPPH· free radical,those with 6,8,12 and 16 μg·mL-1 have stronger reduction ability to Fe3+ and those with 5,10,15 and 20 μg·mL-1 have stronger chelating ability to Fe2+. With enhancing of concentration,the antioxidant activity indexes of anthraquinones and the positive control VC all are enhanced gradually and appear obvious dose-effect relationship,and those of anthraquinones all are better than those of VC in the same concentration level.It is concluded that anthraquinones from rhizome of R.japonica have stronger antioxidant activity,not only can directly remove excess free radicals,but also inhibit free radical production by enhancing antioxidant systems in vivo.Combining with other research results,some suggestions are put forward for exploitation and utilization of R.japonica resources.
Effects of five tree-selection strategies when thinning spruce (Picea abies) stands: a case study in a field trail in southern Sweden

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to show the effects of five tree-selection strategies when thinning on quality and growth properties of Norway spruce stands, and their potential for improving quality in the stands. The five strategies were thinning to retain high-quality (HQ) and low-quality (LQ) trees, thinning from above (A) and below (B) and thinning to obtain an even distribution of residual trees (S). The study was conducted in two planted stands close to rotation age, located in southern Sweden, which had been thinned twice since the establishment of the thinning experiment. In the two quality-based treatments trees were selected for harvest on the basis of the following growth and quality traits: tree class, vitality, dbh, height, straightness, branch diameter and quality defects. The quality traits were found to be largely independent of tree size, thus the selection strategies based solely on dbh (A and B) did not improve quality within the stands. Thinning targeting HQ traits promoted the retention and growth of HQ trees, and improved overall quality of the stands compared to the other treatments. HQ thinning increased the share of straight trees by 15%, on average. Significant proportions of stem crooks and quality defects detected before the first thinning were invisible 21 years after it. All thinned stands had higher proportions of naturally pruned trees than unthinned stands. The selection method had no influence on periodic annual increment after thinning.
Contrasts in Reproductive Ecology Between Temperate and Tropical Populations of Jadera haematoloma, a Mate-Guarding Hemipteran (Rhopalidae)

Field studies of the effect of climate and host-plant phenology on reproductive patterns of the seed-feeding Jadera haematoloma Herrich-Schaeffer were undertaken in Oklahoma and Florida. In Oklahoma, most reproduction is confined to August and September, when seeds of the sapindaceous host trees, Sapindus saponaria L. var. drummondii (Hooker & Arnett) (Benson) and Koelreuteria paniculata (Laxman), are mature, and is followed by a reproductive diapause in winter. The proportion of females becoming reproductive in their natal year declined from August to September. Diapause occurred while food was still available and is probably photoperiodically induced. In Florida, most reproduction occurred in April–May and November–January, when seeds of the sapindaceous vine, Cardiospermum corindum L. , were available. Diapause here occurred when seeds were unavailable. Bugs in Florida are larger, take longer to mature, and produce larger eggs, at a slower rate, that take longer to hatch, than those in Oklahoma. Greater mortality of females as overwintering adults and as nymphs in summer contributed to a strong male-bias in the adult sex ratio of Oklahoma aggregations, whereas sex ratios in Florida were not male-biased. It was therefore predicted that Oklahoma males might guard their mates from other males, whereas those in Florida would not. However, males in both populations were found to prevent females from mating with other males by remaining in copula from the time of intromission until oviposition. Contact guarding continues during oviposition and the pair may recouple afterwards. Postinsemination guarding, although not predicted by Florida sex ratios, may occur there because of greater last-male sperm precedence in that population than in Oklahoma.
Unwinding Complexities of Diabetic Alzheimer by Potent Novel Molecules

Diabetes mellitus is one of the aggressive disorders in global society. No pharmacotherapy is available for permanent diabetes cure, although management is possible with drugs and physical activities. One of the recent complications noticed in type 2 diabetes mellitus includes diabetes-induced Alzheimer. It has been proposed that the possible diabetes-induced Alzheimer could be of type 3 diabetes. A variety of cross-sectional studies have proved that type 2 diabetes mellitus is one of the factors responsible for the pathophysiology of Alzheimer. New drug molecules developed by pharmaceutical companies with adequate neuroprotective effect have demonstrated their efficacy in treatment of Alzheimer in various preclinical diabetic studies. Patients of type 2 diabetes mellitus may show the benefit with existing drugs but may not cause complete cure. Extensive studies are being carried out to find new drug molecules that show their potential as antidiabetic drug and could treat type 2 diabetes–induced Alzheimer as well. This review provides an overview about the recent advancement in pharmacotherapy of diabetes-induced Alzheimer. The pathomechanistic links between diabetes and Alzheimer as well as neurochemical changes in diabetes-induced Alzheimer are also briefed.
Concentrating Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) in Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Leachate Using Foam Separation.

Large volumes of PFAS-contaminated wastewaters, such as municipal solid waste landfill leachates, pose a challenge for PFAS treatment technologies in practice today. In this study, the surfactant properties of PFAS were exploited to concentrate the compounds in foam produced via the bubble aeration of landfill leachate. The effectiveness of the foaming technique for concentrating PFAS varied by compound, with a mean removal percentage (the percent difference between PFAS in leachate before and after foam removal) of 68% and a median removal percentage of 92 % among the ten replicate foaming experiments. This technique appears to be similarly effective at sequestering sulfonates and carboxylate PFAS compounds, and is less effective at concentrating the smallest and largest PFAS molecules. The results of this study suggest that for the pretreatment or preconcentration of landfill leachates, foaming to sequester PFAS may provide a practical approach that could be strategically coupled to high energy PFAS-destructive treatment technologies. The process described herein is simple and could feasibly be applied at a relatively low cost at most landfills, where leachate aeration is already commonplace.
Toxicity of Five Ricefield Pesticides to the Mosquitofish, Gambusia affinis , and Green Sunfish, Lepomis cyanellus , Under Laboratory and Field Conditions in Arkansas

Three insecticides (chlorpyrifos, parathion, and carbofuran) and 2 herbicides (propanil and molinate) were tested in laboratory and field to determine their toxicity against mosquitofish, Gambusia affinis (Baird & Girard), and green sunfish, Lepomis cyanellus Rafinesque. In laboratory tests, green sunfish were more susceptible than mosquitofish to all pesticides tested except molinate. Parathion and chlorpyrifos were the most toxic compounds to green sunfish with comparable LC50'S. The most toxic compound to mosquitofish was parathion. Carbofuran was the least toxic insecticide to both species. Propanil was substantially more toxic than molinate which was the least toxic pesticide tested. In almost all instances the greatest mortality was observed between 24 and 48 h with very slight changes generally occurring between 48 and 72 h. All pesticides with the exception of parathion at 72 hand chlorpyrifos at 24, 48, and 72 h killed less than 10.0% of all fish tested when applied at recommended field dosages. Parathion produced 16.7% mortality to mosquitofish in cage tests 72 h posttreatment. Mortality from chlorpyrifos was 74.4% at all observation intervals against green sunfish in free-release studies. Propanil applied as much as 6-fold the recommended field dosage against green sunfish resulted in no mortality.
Can Researchers’ Personal Characteristics Shape Their Statistical Inferences?

Researchers’ subjective judgments may affect the statistical results they obtain. This possibility is particularly stark in Bayesian hypothesis testing: To use this increasingly popular approach, researchers specify the effect size they are expecting (the “prior mean”), which is then incorporated into the final statistical results. Because the prior mean represents an expression of confidence that one is studying a large effect, we reasoned that scientists who are more confident in their research skills may be inclined to select larger prior means. Across two preregistered studies with more than 900 active researchers in psychology, we showed that more self-confident researchers selected larger prior means. We also found suggestive but somewhat inconsistent evidence that men may choose larger prior means than women, due in part to gender differences in researcher self-confidence. Our findings provide the first evidence that researchers’ personal characteristics might shape the statistical results they obtain with Bayesian hypothesis testing.
Lactobacilli and bifidobacteria derived from infant intestines may activate macrophages and lead to different IL-10 secretion

ABSTRACT In this study, three strains of lactobacilli and bifidobacteria originally isolated from healthy infants, were tested for their abilities to activate RAW264.7 cells. Gene expression and cytokine production of interleukin-10 (IL-10) of RAW264.7 cells were evaluated. The activation of extracellular regulated protein kinases 1/2 (ERK1/2), p38, and nuclear factor-κB (NK-κB) were also assessed. These results suggest lactobacilli and bifidobacteria in infants may promote production of IL-10 in macrophages, conferring a protective effect in hosts suffering from inflammation. Dimerization of TLR2 and MyD88 and subsequent phosphorylation of the key downstream signaling molecules, such as MAPKs and NK-κB, may be one of the key underlying mechanisms of activation of macrophages by these microbes. Bifidobacteria and lactobacilli induced macrophages to secrete IL-10 in a different manner, which may relate to their abilities to activate key signaling pathways mediated by TLR2 and MyD88. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT Lactobacilli and bifidobacteria derived from infant intestines may activate macrophages and lead to different IL-10 secretion
Gemcitabine plus capecitabine in elderly patients with anthracycline- and taxane-pretreated metastatic breast cancer.

PURPOSE To investigate the efficacy and safety of gemcitabine plus capecitabine in elderly patients with anthracycline- and taxane-pretreated metastatic breast cancer (MBC). METHODS Eligible patients received gemcitabine 1,000 mg/m2 on days 1 and 8, and capecitabine 1,000 mg/m2 twice daily on days 1-14. The treatment was repeated every 3 weeks for a maximum of 6 cycles. The primary endpoint was objective response rate (ORR). The secondary endpoint included progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and toxicity. RESULTS Forty-eight patients with a median age of 72 years (range, 65-83) were included. The ORR according to Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST) was 29.2% (95% confidence interval [CI], 16.3% to 42.1%). After a median follow-up of 17.4 months, median PFS and OS were 6.4 months (95% CI, 5.2-7.6) and 18.0 months (95% CI, 14.8-21.2), respectively. Grade 3 to 4 adverse events included neutropenia (20.8%), asthenia (8.3%), hand-foot syndrome (6.3%), abnormal liver function (6.3%), diarrhea (6.3%), constipation (2.1%) and thrombocytopenia (2.1%). Neutropenic fever occurred in one patient. CONCLUSIONS Gemcitabine plus capecitabine are active and safe in elderly patients with anthracycline- and taxane-pretreated MBC.
A Novel Regulatory Epitope Defined by a Murine Monoclonal Antibody to the Platelet GPIIb-IIIa Complex (αIIbβ3 Integrin)

Summary We characterized a murine monoclonal antibody, PT25-2 (IgG1), raised against washed human platelets. The antibody and its Fab fragments were both capable of inducing platelet aggregation in a fibrinogen-dependent manner and induced 125I-fibrinogen binding to unstimulated platelets (120,000 molecules/platelet at a 100 nM IgG concentration). The antibody immunoprecipitated the αIIbβ3 complex from lysates of iodinated platelets but did not react with the respective subunits when complex formation was disrupted by treatment with 5 mM EDTA at 37°C for 30 min. However, simply removing the extracellular divalent cation with EDTA had no effect on antibody binding indicating that the antibody’s epitope depends upon a conformational structure maintained by αβ subunit association. Antibody binding to unstimulated, washed platelets yielded binding parameters (Kd = 40 nM, Bmax = 100,000 molecules/platelet), which were found to be virtually unchanged when binding was performed using thrombin or RGDS-peptide-stimulated platelets. Thus, the PT25-2 antibody defines a novel regulatory epitope expressed by the αIIbβ3 integrin on unstimulated, quiescent platelets.