Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Study of Interactions between Saponin Biosurfactant and Model Biological Membranes: Phospholipid Monolayers and Liposomes

The aim of this study was to determine the effect of saponins-rich plant extract on two model biological membranes: phospholipid monolayers and liposomes. The Langmuir monolayer technique was used to study the interactions of model phospholipid membranes with saponins. The π–A isotherms were determined for DPPE (1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine) monolayer with the addition of various concentrations of licorice saponins extracts and subjected to qualitative as well as quantitative analysis. Additionally, relaxation studies of the obtained monolayers were carried out and morphological changes were examined using Brewster angle microscopy. Moreover, changes in the structure of phospholipid vesicles treated with solutions of saponins-rich plant extracts were assessed using the FTIR technique. The size and zeta potential of the liposomes were estimated based on DLS methods. The obtained results indicated that the saponins interact with the phospholipid membrane formed by DPPE molecules and that the stability of the mixed DPPE/saponins monolayer strongly depends on the presence of impurities in saponins. Furthermore, it was found that the plant extract rich in saponins biosurfactant interacts mainly with the hydrophilic part of liposomes.
E. coli Secretome Metabolically Modulates MDA-MB-231 Breast Cancer Cells’ Energy Metabolism

Breast cancer (BC) is commonly diagnosed in women. BC cells are associated with altered metabolism, which is essential to support their energetic requirements, cellular proliferation, and continuous survival. The altered metabolism of BC cells is a result of the genetic abnormalities of BC cells. Risk factors can also enhance it, including age, lifestyle, hormone disturbances, etc. Other unknown BC-promoting risk factors are under scientific investigation. One of these investigated factors is the microbiome. However, whether the breast microbiome found in the BC tissue microenvironment can impact BC cells has not been studied. We hypothesized that E. coli, part of a normal breast microbiome with more presence in BC tissue, secretes metabolic molecules that could alter BC cells’ metabolism to maintain their survival. Thus, we directly examined the impact of the E. coli secretome on the metabolism of BC cells in vitro. MDA-MB-231 cells, an in vitro model of aggressive triple-negative BC cells, were treated with the E. coli secretome at different time points, followed by untargeted metabolomics analyses via liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry to identify metabolic alterations in the treated BC cell lines. MDA-MB-231 cells that were not treated were used as controls. Moreover, metabolomic analyses were performed on the E. coli secretome to profile the most significant bacterial metabolites affecting the metabolism of the treated BC cell lines. The metabolomics results revealed about 15 metabolites that potentially have indirect roles in cancer metabolism that were secreted from E. coli in the culture media of MDA-MB-231 cells. The cells treated with the E. coli secretome showed 105 dysregulated cellular metabolites compared to controls. The dysregulated cellular metabolites were involved in the metabolism of fructose and mannose, sphingolipids, amino acids, fatty acids, amino sugar, nucleotide sugar, and pyrimidine, which are vital pathways required for the pathogenesis of BC. Our findings are the first to show that the E. coli secretome modulates the BC cells’ energy metabolism, highlighting insights into the possibility of altered metabolic events in BC tissue in the actual BC tissue microenvironment that are potentially induced by the local bacteria. Our study provides metabolic data that could be as a basis for future studies searching for the underlying mechanisms mediated by bacteria and their secretome to alter the metabolism of BC cells.
A fitted numerical method to investigate the effect of various parameters on an MHD flow over an inclined plate

We design a suitable fitted operator finite difference method (FOFDM) to solve a model of an unsteady transient magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) free convective and mass transfer flow with thermophoresis past an inclined permeable plate in the presence of chemical reaction, thermal radiation, and temperature dependent viscosity. The governing nonlinear partial differential equations in the current model are transformed by a suitable similarity transformation into a system of ordinary differential equations which are then solved numerically using the FOFDM. The superiority of the proposed FOFDM over the standard finite difference method is proved theoretically and numerically. Furthermore, we illustrate the effect of various parameters on the temperature, concentration and velocity profiles using the FOFDM. It is observed that an increase in the viscosity parameter leads to a decrease in the temperature and an increase in the velocity. Results also show that an increase in the thermophoretic parameter leads to a decrease in the concentration. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Numer Methods Partial Differential Eq 32: 106–120, 2016
Therapeutic Endoscopic Ultrasound: Current Indications and Future Perspectives

The transcendence of endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) from diagnostic to therapeutic tool has revolutionized management options in the field of gastroenterology. Through EUS-guided methods, pancreaticobiliary obstruction can now be utilized as an alternative to surgical and percutaneous approaches. This modality also allows for gallbladder drainage in patients who are not ideal operative candidates. By utilizing its unique imaging capabilities, EUS also allows for drainage access points in cases of gastric outlet obstruction as well as windows to ablate pancreatic cystic lesions. As technical progress continues to evolve, interventional gastroenterology continues to push the envelope of minimally invasive therapeutic procedures in a multidisciplinary setting. In this comprehensive review, we set out to describe current indications and innovations through EUS.
Thermoconvective instabilities in a porous medium bounded by two concentric horizontal cylinders

The study of natural convection in a saturated porous medium bounded by two concentric, horizontal, isothermal cylinders reveals different types of evolution according to the experimental conditions and the geometrical configuration of the model. At small Rayleigh numbers the state of the system corresponds to a regime of pseudo-conduction. The isotherms are coaxial with the cylinders. At larger Rayleigh numbers a regime of steady two-dimensional convection sets in between the two cylinders. Finally, for Rayleigh numbers above the critical Rayleigh number Ra*c the phenomena become three-dimensional and fluctuating. The appearance of these different regimes depends, moreover, on the geometry considered and, in particular, on two numbers: R, the ratio of the radii of the cylinders, and A, the ratio of the length of the cylinders to the radius of the inner one. In order to approach these experimental observations and to obtain realistic theoretical models, several methods of solving the equations have been used. The perturbation method yields information about the thermal field and the heat transfer between the cylinders under conditions close to the equilibrium state. A numerical two-dimensional model enables us to extend the range of investigation and to represent properly the phenomena when steady convection appreciably modifies the temperature distribution and the velocities within the porous layer. Neither of these models allows account to be taken of the instabilities observed experimentally above a critical Rayleigh number Ra*c. For this reason, a study of stability has been carried out using a Galerkin method based on equations corresponding to an initial state of steady convection. The results obtained show the importance of three-dimensional effects for the onset of fluctuating convection. The critical transition Rayleigh number Ra*c is thus determined in terms of the ratio of the radii R by solving an eigenvalue problem. A numerical three-dimensional model based on the method of finite elements has thus been developed in order to point out the different types of evolution with time. Steady two-dimensional convection and fluctuating three-dimensional convection have been actually found by calculation. The solution of the system of equations by the method of finite elements is briefly described. The experimental and theoretical results are then compared and a general physical interpretation is given.
Feature Geometry and Dependency: A Review

Abstract A fundamental problem in phonological theory is the fact that processes often operate on consistent subsets of the distinctive features within a segment, like the features that characterize place of articulation. Recent research has responded to this problem by proposing a hierarchical organization of the features into functionally related classes, grouped under nodes of a tree structure. This ‘geometry’ resembles earlier theories that accomplish the same thing with multivalued features. This article reviews and expands the evidence for feature geometry. Within the segment, it is argued, the major dichotomy is between a Laryngeal node and a Place node. The manners of articulation – sonority, consonantality, nasality, and continuance – inhere in the segment itself rather than any of its subsidiary parts. Within the Place node, the division is into major articulators, each with its own subordinate features. Evidence is drawn from processes of assimilation and debuccalization and from the assimilatory and dissimilatory effects of the Obligatory Contour Principle.
Does lithium poisoning induce brain injuries?—A histopathological rat study

Due to a narrow therapeutic index, prolonged lithium treatment and overdose may result in neurotoxicity. Neurotoxicity is deemed reversible with lithium clearance. However, echoing the report of syndrome of irreversible lithium‐effectuated neurotoxicity (SILENT) in rare severe poisonings, lithium‐induced histopathological brain injuries including extensive neuronal vacuolization, spongiosis and ageing‐like neurodegenerative changes were described in the rat following acute toxic and pharmacological exposure. We aimed to investigate the histopathological consequences of lithium exposure in rat models mimicking prolonged treatment and all three patterns of acute, acute‐on‐chronic and chronic poisonings observed in humans. We performed histopathology and immunostaining‐based analyses using optic microscopy of brains obtained from male Sprague–Dawley rats randomly assigned to lithium or saline (controls) and treated according to the therapeutic or to the three poisoning models. No lesion was observed in any brain structure in any of the models. Neuron and astrocyte counts did not differ significantly between lithium‐treated rats and controls. Our findings support that lithium‐induced neurotoxicity is reversible and brain injury not a common feature of toxicity.
Robustness of Shrunken Predictors in Stratified Populations

The effect of assuming an inadequate superpopulation model in stratified sampling is studied when a shrinkage technique is used. The robustness is close related with the balance of the strata samples. This theoretical problem is present in studies of ecology. The results obtained enable to estimate the abundance of plankton when salinity is the auxiliary variable and expert's advise, in coast experimental stations networks, is used for fixing the superpopulation model.
Managing cystic fibrosis in children aged 6-11yrs: a critical review of elexacaftor/tezacaftor/ivacaftor combination therapy

ABSTRACT Introduction Cystic fibrosis is a life-limiting, autosomal recessive genetic disorder resulting in multi-organ disease due to CF transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) protein dysfunction. CF treatment previously focused on mitigation of disease signs and symptoms. The recent introduction of highly effective CFTR modulators, for which ~90% of people with CF are CFTR variant-eligible, has resulted in substantial health improvements. Areas covered In this review, we will describe the clinical trials leading to approval of the highly effective CFTR modulator, elexacaftor-tezacaftor-ivacaftor (ETI), with a focus on the safety and efficacy of this treatment in children aged 6–11 years. Expert opinion The use of ETI in variant-eligible children aged 6–11 is associated with marked clinical improvements with a favorable safety profile. We anticipate that introduction of ETI in early childhood may result in the prevention of pulmonary, gastrointestinal, and endocrine complications from CF, consequently leading to previously unimaginable gains in the quality and quantity of life. However, there is an urgent need to develop effective treatments for the remaining 10% of people with CF who are not eligible or unable to tolerate ETI treatment, and to increase access of ETI to more pwCF across the world.
Parental Happiness Socialization and Youth Adjustment in Italy and Azerbaijan in the COVID-19 Pandemic Era

This study aims to cross-culturally identify the parental socialization strategies in response to a child’s happiness and their associations with youth academic and socio-emotional adjustment, controlling for the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants were a convenient sample of Italian (N = 606, 81.9% mothers) and Azerbaijanis (N = 227, 61.4% mothers) parents of youths (Mage = 12.89, SD = 4.06; 51% girls). Parents filled out an online survey to assess their socialization strategies in response to their children’s happiness, their children’s negative emotion regulation and dysregulation, academic performance, and prosocial behavior. Exploratory factorial analysis showed the presence of two factors that enclosed supportive and unsupportive parental socialization strategies. A multiple-group path analysis model showed that similarly across countries, supportive parental strategies were positively related to youths’ prosocial behavior and that unsupportive parental strategies were positively related to youths’ negative emotion dysregulation, and negatively related to youths’ academic performance and negative emotion regulation. Those results emerged controlling for parents’ and adolescents’ gender and age, parents’ educational level, social desirability, and Covid-related problems. This study advances cross-cultural knowledge about the impact of the strategies that parents use to socialize their children’s happiness in the unique context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Complex permittivity of some ultralow loss dielectric crystals at cryogenic temperatures

Whispering gallery modes were used for very accurate permittivity and dielectric loss measurements of ultralow loss isotropic and uniaxially anisotropic single crystals. Several materials including sapphire, YAG, quartz, and SrLaAlO4 were measured. The total absolute uncertainty in the real part of permittivity tensor components was estimated to be ±0.1%, limited principally by the uncertainty in sample dimensions. Imaginary parts of permittivities were measured with uncertainties of about 10%, limited by the accuracy of Q-factor measurements of whispering gallery modes. It has been observed that, for most crystals, dielectric losses can be approximated by a power function of absolute temperature only in limited temperature ranges. At temperatures between 4-50 K, losses are often affected by impurities, which are always present in real crystals.
Winter Dietary Analysis Reveals the Foraging Differences of Wild Boar (Sus scrofa) in Different Regions of a Karst Mountainous Area

Simple Summary Studying the dietary habits of animals helps us to understand the food composition requirements and nutrition strategy of these animals, as well as allows us to explore their resource utilization and relationship with their prey. Due to the difficulty in obtaining samples of the stomach contents of wild boars, there are few reports on the feeding habits of wild boars in karst areas. In this study, the stomach contents of 14 south China wild boars were analyzed by DNA metabarcoding. The results showed that there were 153 genera, 93 families, and 48 orders of plant food sources. Cissus, Dioscorea, Quercus, Actinidia, and Houttuynia were the core plants. The remaining foods were animal food sources, including invertebrates and vertebrates. It is noteworthy that wild boars in different regions also showed different foraging preferences in winter. This study revealed the foraging preference of wild boars under the special forest vegetation conditions in the mountainous area of southwest China, as well as the relationship between the food habits of wild boars and their habitats from the perspective of resource utilization, thus providing a key scientific basis for the prevention and control of wild boars, along with resource protection. Abstract Wild boars (Sus scrofa) are extremely common in southern China, but little study has been conducted regarding reporting the dietary habits of wild boars using high-throughput sequencing technology, especially in karst areas, due to the difficulty in obtaining stomach contents of wild boars. In our study, the stomach contents of 14 wild boars in southern China were analyzed by DNA metabarcoding. The results showed that there were 153 genera, 93 families, and 48 orders of plant food sources for wild boars. The main plant food component were Cissus, Dioscorea, Quercus, Actinidia, and Houttuynia. The most numerous taxa of animal food sources were Elaphodus, Amynthas, Chonaphe, Rattus, and Tanytarsus. It is noteworthy that Elaphodus cephalophus were detected in most of the stomach samples, accounting for a large portion of animal food sources. The results showed that there were significant differences in the diets of wild boars in different regions; however, no significant differences were noted between male and female wild boars. Our study revealed the dietary preference of wild boars under the special forest conditions in the mountainous area of southwest China, as well as the relationship between the dietary habits of wild boars and their habitats from the perspective of resource utilization, thus providing a key scientific basis for the prevention and control of wild boars, along with resource protection.
Can Methotrexate Be Employed as Monotherapy for Bullous Pemphigoid? Analysis of Efficiency and Tolerance of Methotrexate Treatment in Patients with Bullous Pemphigoid

The European Academy of Dermatology and Venerology (EADV) consensus states that the treatment of choice for bullous pemphigoid is systemic glucocorticosteroid therapy. Bearing in mind that long-term steroid therapy is associated with numerous side effects, an effective and safer treatment regimen for these patients is still being sought. A retrospective analysis was performed of the medical reports of patients with diagnosed bullous pemphigoid. The study included 40 patients with moderate or severe disease, and who had continued ambulatory treatment for at least six months. The patients were divided into two groups: one treated with methotrexate in monotherapy, or with combined methotrexate and systemic steroid therapy. A slightly better survival rate was noted in the methotrexate group. No significant differences were observed between the groups in time to achieve clinical remission. The combination therapy group demonstrated more frequent disease recurrence and exacerbations during treatment, and a higher mortality rate. None of the patients in either group presented with severe side effects related to methotrexate treatment. The treatment of bullous pemphigoid with methotrexate in monotherapy is an effective and safe therapeutic method for elderly patients.
A DETAILED STUDY OF THE STRUCTURE OF THE NESTED PLANETARY NEBULA, Hb 12, THE MATRYOSHKA NEBULA

We present near-IR, integral field spectroscopic observations of the planetary nebula (PN) Hb 12 using Near-infrared Integral Field Spectrograph (NIFS) on Gemini-North. Combining NIFS with the adaptive optics system Altair, we provide a detailed study of the core and inner structure of this PN. We focus the analysis in the prominent emission lines [Fe ii] (1.6436 μm), He i (2.0585 μm), H2 (2.1214 μm), and Brγ (2.16553 μm). We find that the [Fe ii] emission traces a tilted system of bipolar lobes, with the northern lobe being redshifted and the southern lobe blueshifted. The [Fe ii] emission is very faint at the core and only present close to the systemic velocity. There is no H2 emission in the core, whereas the core is prominent in the He i and Brγ recombination lines. The H2 emission is concentrated in equatorial arcs of emission surrounding the core and expanding at ∼30 km s−1. These arcs are compared with Hubble Space Telescope images and shown to represent nested loops belonging to the inner sections of a much larger bipolar structure that replicates the inner one. The He i and Brγ emission from the core clearly show a cylindrical central cavity that seems to represent the inner walls of an equatorial density enhancement or torus. The torus is 0. ″2 wide (≡200 AU radius at a distance of 2000 pc) and expanding at ⩽30 km s−1. The eastern wall of the inner torus is consistently more intense than the western wall, which could indicate the presence of an off-center star, such as is observed in the similar hourglass PN, MyCn 18. A bipolar outflow is also detected in Brγ emerging within 0. ″1 from the core at ∼ ± 40 km s−1.
Intracerebral Electrophysiological Recordings to Understand the Neural Basis of Human Face Recognition

Understanding how the human brain recognizes faces is a primary scientific goal in cognitive neuroscience. Given the limitations of the monkey model of human face recognition, a key approach in this endeavor is the recording of electrophysiological activity with electrodes implanted inside the brain of human epileptic patients. However, this approach faces a number of challenges that must be overcome for meaningful scientific knowledge to emerge. Here we synthesize a 10 year research program combining the recording of intracerebral activity (StereoElectroEncephaloGraphy, SEEG) in the ventral occipito-temporal cortex (VOTC) of large samples of participants and fast periodic visual stimulation (FPVS), to objectively define, quantify, and characterize the neural basis of human face recognition. These large-scale studies reconcile the wide distribution of neural face recognition activity with its (right) hemispheric and regional specialization and extend face-selectivity to anterior regions of the VOTC, including the ventral anterior temporal lobe (VATL) typically affected by magnetic susceptibility artifacts in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Clear spatial dissociations in category-selectivity between faces and other meaningful stimuli such as landmarks (houses, medial VOTC regions) or written words (left lateralized VOTC) are found, confirming and extending neuroimaging observations while supporting the validity of the clinical population tested to inform about normal brain function. The recognition of face identity – arguably the ultimate form of recognition for the human brain – beyond mere differences in physical features is essentially supported by selective populations of neurons in the right inferior occipital gyrus and the lateral portion of the middle and anterior fusiform gyrus. In addition, low-frequency and high-frequency broadband iEEG signals of face recognition appear to be largely concordant in the human association cortex. We conclude by outlining the challenges of this research program to understand the neural basis of human face recognition in the next 10 years.