Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Diagnostic performance of circulating MicroRNAs in acute ischemic stroke

Abstract Introduction: Increasing evidences showed differential expression of circulating microRNAs (miRNAs) in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS), indicating that miRNAs might serve as promising biomakers in the diagnosis of AIS. However, their accuracy has not been systematically evaluated, so it is necessary to conducted a meta-analysis to evaluate the diagnostic value of miRNAs in AIS patients. Methods: PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Medline, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) will be searched for the relevant studies that explored the potential diagnostic values of miRNAs in AIS patients from inception to August 2020. Data will be extracted by two researchers independently; risk of bias of the meta-analysis will be evaluated by the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies-2 (QUADAS-2). Data will be synthesised and heterogeneity will be evaluated. All of the above statistical analysis will be performed using Stata V.15. 0 and Meta-disc V.1. 4. Results: This study will assess the pooled diagnostic performance of circulating miRNAs in AIS. Conclusion: This study will clarify confusions about the specificity and sensitivity of circulating miRNAs in diagnosing AIS, which could further guide the promotion and application of them. Open Science Framework (OSF) registration number: 2020, August 19. https://osf.io/6tjf3.
Patterns of evolutionary diversification through lineages, morphology, and mechanics

The relationship between form and function can strongly influence the evolution of biodiversity. Although morphological change is frequently interpreted as an indication of functional diversification it is not known whether the evolutionary diversification of mechanical properties in complex traits generally corresponds with similar patterns of diversification in underlying morphology. In this paper we test whether historical patterns of mechanical and morphological evolution fit concordant models of diversification in complex traits. We focus on the feeding system of fishes that display many-to-one mapping (or functional convergence). We analyze several biomechanical data sets with phylogenetic comparative methods to test whether the patterns and evolutionary models that explain trait diversity at each level are congruent. We find that despite a tight link between the morphology and emergent mechanical properties of a trait, the evolutionary pattern of diversification between them can be significantly different. In particular, uniform patterns of morphological diversification can mask patterns of mechanical diversification that are consistent with adaptive radiation or iterative adaptive radiation. Our results suggest that analysis of morphology alone may be insufficient to capture evolutionary histories of clades that are diversifying rapidly along ecological clines.
Seasonality in Spatial Turnover of Bacterioplankton Along an Ecological Gradient in the East China Sea: Biogeographic Patterns, Processes and Drivers

Seasonal succession in bacterioplankton is a common process in marine waters. However, seasonality in their spatial turnover is largely unknown. Here, we investigated spatial turnover of surface bacterioplankton along a nearshore-to-offshore gradient in the East China Sea across four seasons. Although seasonality overwhelmed spatial variability of bacterioplankton composition, we found significant spatial turnover of bacterioplankton along the gradient as well as overall seasonal consistency in biogeographic patterns (including distance–decay relationship and covariation of community composition with distance to shore) with subtle changes. Bacterioplankton assembly was consistently dominated by deterministic mechanisms across seasons, with changes in specific processes. We found overall seasonal consistency in abiotic factors (mainly salinity and nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients) shaping bacterioplankton composition, while phytoplankton showed a similar influence as abiotic factors only in spring. Although key taxa responsible for bacterioplankton spatial turnover showed certain season-specificity, seasonal switching between closely related taxa occurred within most dominant families. Moreover, many close relatives showed different responding patterns to the environmental gradients in different seasons, suggesting their differences in both seasonally climatic and spatially environmental preferences. Our results provide insights into seasonal consistency and variability in spatial turnover of bacterioplankton in terms of biogeographic patterns, ecological processes, and external and internal drivers.
Comparison of Dual- and Single-Source Dual-Energy CT for Diagnosis of Acute Pulmonary Artery Embolism

Abstract Purpose Comparison of dual-source dual-energy CT (DS-DECT) and split-filter dual-energy CT (SF-DECT) regarding image quality and radiation dose in patients with suspected pulmonary embolism. Materials and Methods We retrospectively analyzed pulmonary dual-energy CT angiography (CTPA) scans performed on two different CT scanners in 135 patients with suspected pulmonary embolism (PE). Scan parameters for DS-DECT were 90/Sn150 kV (n = 68 patients), and Au/Sn120 kV for SF-DECT (n = 67 patients). The iodine delivery rate was 1400 mg/s in the DS-DECT group vs. 1750 mg/s in the SF-DECT group. Color-coded iodine distribution maps were generated for both protocols. Objective (CT attenuation of pulmonary trunk [HU], signal-to-noise ratio [SNR], contrast-to-noise ratio [CNR]) and subjective image quality parameters (two readers [R], five-point Likert scale), as well as radiation dose parameters (effective radiation dose, size-specific dose estimations [SSDE]) were compared. Results All CTPA scans in both groups were of diagnostic image quality. Subjective CTPA image quality was rated as good or excellent in 80.9 %/82.4 % (R1 / R2) of DS-DECT scans, and in 77.6 %/76.1 % of SF-DECT scans. For both readers, the image quality of split-filter iodine distribution maps was significantly lower (p < 0.05) with good or excellent ratings in only 43.3 %/46.3 % (R1 / R2) vs. 83.8 %/88.2 % for maps from DS-DECT. The HU values of the pulmonary trunk did not differ between the two techniques (p = n. s.), while both the SNR and CNR were significantly higher in the split-filter group (p < 0.001; p = 0.003). Both effective radiation dose (2.70 ± 1.32 mSv vs. 2.89 ± 0.94 mSv) and SSDE (4.71 ± 1.63 mGy vs. 5.84 ± 1.11 mGy) were significantly higher in the split-filter group (p < 0.05). Conclusion The split-filter allows for dual-energy imaging of suspected pulmonary embolism but is associated with lower iodine distribution map quality and higher radiation dose. Key points: The split-filter allows for dual-energy data acquisition from single-source single-layer CT scanners. Compared to the assessed dual-source dual-energy system, split-filter dual-energy imaging of a suspected pulmonary embolism is associated with lower iodine distribution map quality and higher radiation dose. Both the split-filter and the dual-source scanner provide diagnostic image quality in CTPA. Citation Format Petritsch B, Pannenbecker P, Weng AM et al. Comparison of Dual- and Single-Source Dual-Energy CT for Diagnosis of Acute Pulmonary Artery Embolism. Fortschr Röntgenstr 2021; 193: 427 – 436
Increase in prevalence of current mental disorders in the context of COVID-19: analysis of repeated nationwide cross-sectional surveys

Abstract Aims The United Nations warned of COVID-19-related mental health crisis; however, it is unknown whether there is an increase in the prevalence of mental disorders as existing studies lack a reliable baseline analysis or they did not use a diagnostic measure. We aimed to analyse trends in the prevalence of mental disorders prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods We analysed data from repeated cross-sectional surveys on a representative sample of non-institutionalised Czech adults (18+ years) from both November 2017 (n = 3306; 54% females) and May 2020 (n = 3021; 52% females). We used Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) as the main screening instrument. We calculated descriptive statistics and compared the prevalence of current mood and anxiety disorders, suicide risk and alcohol-related disorders at baseline and right after the first peak of COVID-19 when related lockdown was still in place in CZ. In addition, using logistic regression, we assessed the association between COVID-19-related worries and the presence of mental disorders. Results The prevalence of those experiencing symptoms of at least one current mental disorder rose from a baseline of 20.02 (95% CI = 18.64; 21.39) in 2017 to 29.63 (95% CI = 27.9; 31.37) in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The prevalence of both major depressive disorder (3.96, 95% CI = 3.28; 4.62 v. 11.77, 95% CI = 10.56; 12.99); and suicide risk (3.88, 95% CI = 3.21; 4.52 v. 11.88, 95% CI = 10.64; 13.07) tripled and current anxiety disorders almost doubled (7.79, 95% CI = 6.87; 8.7 v. 12.84, 95% CI = 11.6; 14.05). The prevalence of alcohol use disorders in 2020 was approximately the same as in 2017 (10.84, 95% CI = 9.78; 11.89 v. 9.88, 95% CI = 8.74; 10.98); however, there was a significant increase in weekly binge drinking behaviours (4.07% v. 6.39%). Strong worries about both, health or economic consequences of COVID-19, were associated with an increased odds of having a mental disorder (1.63, 95% CI = 1.4; 1.89 and 1.42, 95% CI = 1.23; 1.63 respectively). Conclusions This study provides evidence matching concerns that COVID-19-related mental health problems pose a major threat to populations, particularly considering the barriers in service provision posed during lockdown. This finding emphasises an urgent need to scale up mental health promotion and prevention globally.
Response of different organic and inorganic fertilizers on growth and yield of okra (Abelmoschus esculentus (L) Moench)

The present investigation entitled "Response of different organic and inorganic fertilizers on growth and yield of Okra swas conducted at the Horticultural Research Centre of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel University of Agriculture and Technology, Modipuram, Meerut UP during summer season 2009. The experiment was laid out in Randomized Block Design with three replications. The experiment consisted of nine treatments with organic (FYM and Vermi compost) and inorganic (NPK) combinations. The results of present investigation indicated that the vegetative growth characters plant height, diameter of stem, number of leaves per plant, days required for initiation of first floweras well as yield contributing characters viz number of pods per plant, length ofpod, fresh weight per pod, weight of pods per plant and yield of pods (q/h) were found to be maximum in the application of treatments T4 (50 kg N 25 kg P205 and 25 kg K20 + 6 tonnes of vermicompost per ha as compared to control treatment and other treatments.
Long‐term effects of global change on occupancy and flight period of wild bees in Belgium

Global change affects species by modifying their abundance, spatial distribution, and activity period. The challenge is now to identify the respective drivers of those responses and to understand how those responses combine to affect species assemblages and ecosystem functioning. Here we correlate changes in occupancy and mean flight date of 205 wild bee species in Belgium with temporal changes in temperature trend and interannual variation, agricultural intensification, and urbanization. Over the last 70 years, bee occupancy decreased on average by 33%, most likely because of agricultural intensification, and flight period of bees advanced on average by 4 days, most likely because of interannual temperature changes. Those responses resulted in a synergistic effect because species which increased in occupancy tend to be those that have shifted their phenologies earlier in the season. This leads to an overall advancement and shortening of the pollination season by 9 and 15 days respectively, with lower species richness and abundance compared to historical pollinator assemblages, except at the early start of the season. Our results thus suggest a strong decline in pollination function and services.
Mouse 4T1 Breast Cancer Cell–Derived Exosomes Induce Proinflammatory Cytokine Production in Macrophages via miR-183

Key Points Tumor exosome–derived miR-183 regulates macrophage cytokine production. miR-183 contributes to metastatic spread of breast tumors in vivo. Visual Abstract Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) play a critical role in the tumor inflammatory microenvironment and facilitate tumor growth and metastasis. Most types of tumors aberrantly express microRNAs (miRNAs), which can be transferred between cells by exosomes and can regulate gene expression in recipient cells, but it remains unclear whether tumor-derived miRNAs are transferred by exosomes and regulate the TAM phenotype. We report that mouse 4T1 breast cancer cell–derived exosomes enhanced TAM expression of IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α and that inhibition of 4T1-cell exosome secretion through short hairpin RNA–mediated Rab27a/b depletion repressed tumor growth and metastasis and markedly downregulated IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α in a 4T1 breast tumor model. Furthermore, miRNA expression profiling revealed that three miRNAs (miR-100-5p, miR-183-5p, and miR-125b-1-3p) were considerably more abundant in 4T1 cell exosomes than in mouse bone marrow–derived macrophages, indicating potential exosome-mediated transfer of the miRNAs, and, notably, miR-183-5p was found to be transferred from 4T1 cells to macrophages through exosomes. Moreover, PPP2CA was verified as an miR-183-5p target gene, and PPP2CA downregulation enhanced NF-κB signaling and promoted macrophage expression of IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α. Lastly, when miR-183-5p was downregulated in exosomes through miR-183-5p sponge expression in 4T1 cells, these 4T1-derived exosomes triggered diminished p65 phosphorylation and IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α secretion, and the miRNA downregulation also led to repression of tumor growth and metastasis in the 4T1 breast tumor model in vivo. Thus, miR-183-5p expressed in tumor cells was transferred to macrophages by exosomes and promoted the secretion of proinflammatory cytokines by inhibiting PPP2CA expression, which contributed to tumor progression in a breast cancer model.
Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on uveitis patients receiving immunomodulatory and biological therapies (COPE STUDY)

Purpose To evaluate the change in the ongoing immunomodulatory (IMT) and biological therapies among patients with non-infectious uveitis (NIU), and determine the number of uveitis relapses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods In this national multicentric prospective case series, data of subjects with NIU receiving corticosteroids, systemic IMT and/or biological agents were analysed. The data collection was performed from 1 March 2020 to 25 June 2020. Main outcome measures included change in the ongoing treatments with corticosteroids, IMT and biological agents, use of alternate therapies and rates of uveitis relapse. Results In this study, 176 patients (284 eyes) with NIU (mean age: 33±17.1 years; males: 68) were included. A total of 121 eyes (90 patients) were deemed to have active NIU. Of these, seven subjects (7.8%) did not receive intravenous methylprednisolone despite need felt by the treating uveitis experts. In addition, 35 subjects (57.4%) received a rapid tapering dosage of oral corticosteroids despite active disease. A total of 161 (91.5%) subjects were receiving systemic IMT and 25 (14.2%) were on biological therapies. Overall, IMT was altered in 29/161 (18.0%) subjects. Twenty-two eyes were treated with intravitreal therapies in the study period. Fifty-three eyes (32.5%, 29 subjects) developed relapse of NIU, of which 25 subjects (86.2%) were deemed to have reactivation related to altered systemic IMT. No patient developed COVID-19 during follow-up. Conclusions During the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, uveitis specialists may tend to reduce the ongoing systemic IMT, or prefer less aggressive treatment strategies for NIU. These subjects may be at high risk of relapse of uveitis.
Parenting Stress During the COVID-19 Outbreak: Socioeconomic and Environmental Risk Factors and Implications for Children Emotion Regulation.

The COVID-19 outbreak imposed to Italian families many changes in their daily life increasing the risk of developing psychological problems. The present study explored risk factors associated with parenting stress and implications for children's emotion regulation in families with different socioeconomic risks. Parents of 2-14 years old children completed a survey reporting difficulties experienced due to the lockdown, level of household chaos, parenting stress, parent involvement in the child's daily life, and children emotion regulation competences. The general mean levels of parenting stress and children emotion regulation abilities were not at clinical level compared with Italian norms. Household chaos predicted higher levels of parenting stress, which, in turn, was associated with less effective emotion regulation in children through the mediating role of parental involvement. More stressed parents were less involved in their children's activities, decreasing children's effective emotion regulation. Only for SES no-risk families, the lockdown constraints increased parenting stress. For SES at-risk families, the impact of parenting stress and involvement on children regulation strategies was stronger, with a protective role played by parental involvement on children's negativity not evident for SES no-risk families. Dealing with the lockdown is a stressful experience for parents who have to balance personal life, work, and children upbringing, without other help. This situation potentially impairs their ability to be supportive caregivers and is consequently detrimental for children well-being. Policies should take into consideration the implications of the lockdown for families' mental health and tailor supportive interventions according to family's risk factors.
Seroprevalence of antibodies against foot-and-mouth disease vaccine in yaks in China.

Received: Revised: Accepted: August 08, 2014 March 18, 2015 April 01, 2015 This study was undertaken in 2013 and 2014 to investigate the seroprevalence of antibodies against foot-and-mouth disease vaccine (FMDV) in yaks, being core member of Bovidae living in the high-altitude mountains of China and adjacent countries. Results showed that serotype O FMDV elicited relatively higher antibody levels than Asia-1 in yaks. Either O or Asia-1 vaccine induced greater immunity in yaks in 2014 than that in 2013. Percentage of yaks acquiring effective antibody protection (over 50% protection) was 85.9% against type O and 74.2% against Asia1 in 2013, and the level rose to 88.4 and 79.1% respectively in 2014. Additionally, FMDV immune efficacy in yaks from Qinghai and Sichuan provinces was greater than that in Tibet. This result indicated that yaks inhabiting the inland of China had better immune effect against FMDV vaccination than that in remote regions. In conclusion, FMDV elicits strong and significant antibody responses in yaks. However, immune discrepancies among yaks from different geographic areas existed after applying diverse FMDV serotypes on them. Further emphasis on the yak vaccination, especially with serotype FMDV Asia-1, is required in the remote areas of China like Tibet. ©2015 PVJ. All rights reserved
Triheptanoin Mitigates Brain ATP Depletion and Mitochondrial Dysfunction in a Mouse Model of Alzheimer's Disease.

BACKGROUND Brain energy failure is an early pathological event associated with synaptic dysfunction in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Thus, mitigation or enhancement of brain energy metabolism may offer a therapeutic avenue. However, there is uncertainty as to what metabolic process(es) may be more appropriate to support or augment since metabolism is a multiform process such that each of the various metabolic precursors available is utilized via a specific metabolic pathway. In the brain, these pathways sustain not only a robust rate of energy production but also of carbon replenishment. OBJECTIVE Triheptanoin, an edible odd-chain fatty acid triglyceride, is uncommon in that it replenishes metabolites in the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA) cycle via anaplerosis in addition to fueling the cycle via oxidation, thus potentially leading to both carbon replenishment and enhanced mitochondrial ATP production. METHODS To test the hypothesis that triheptanoin is protective in AD, we supplied mice with severe brain amyloidosis (5×FAD mice) with dietary triheptanoin for four and a half months, followed by biological and biochemical experiments to examine mice metabolic as well as synaptic function. RESULTS Triheptanoin treatment had minimal impact on systemic metabolism and brain amyloidosis as well as tauopathy while attenuating brain ATP deficiency and mitochondrial dysfunction including respiration and redox balance in 5×FAD mice. Synaptic density, a disease hallmark, was also preserved in hippocampus and neocortex despite profound amyloid deposition. None of these effects took place in treated control mice. CONCLUSION These findings support the energy failure hypothesis of AD and justify investigating the mechanisms in greater depth with ultimate therapeutic intent.
Target Enrichment Enables the Discovery of lncRNAs with Somatic Mutations or Altered Expression in Paraffin-Embedded Colorectal Cancer Samples

Simple Summary Alterations in long noncoding RNAs and their mutations have been increasingly recognized in tumorogenesis and cancer progression awakening especial interest as potential novel cancer biomarkers and therapeutic targets. The use of adjuvant chemotherapy in stage II colorectal cancer patients is challenging, and new biomarkers are required to identify patients with high probability of relapse. We focused on translational potential of non-coding RNAs in colorectal cancer. In this study, we aim to validate a new tool which couples target enrichment and RNAseq for transcriptomics studies of lncRNAs in formalin-fixed paraffin embedded (FFPE) tissue samples. Our results show that this new approach efficiently detects lncRNAs and differences in their expression between healthy and tumor FFPE tissues, as well as somatic mutations in expressed lncRNAs, identifying novel lncRNAs as potential candidates for colorectal cancer. This new approach could represent a promising avenue that would reduce costs and enable more efficient translational research. Abstract Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play important roles in cancer and are potential new biomarkers or targets for therapy. However, given the low and tissue-specific expression of lncRNAs, linking these molecules to particular cancer types and processes through transcriptional profiling is challenging. Formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissues are abundant resources for research but are prone to nucleic acid degradation, thereby complicating the study of lncRNAs. Here, we designed and validated a probe-based enrichment strategy to efficiently profile lncRNA expression in FFPE samples, and we applied it for the detection of lncRNAs associated with colorectal cancer (CRC). Our approach efficiently enriched targeted lncRNAs from FFPE samples, while preserving their relative abundance, and enabled the detection of tumor-specific mutations. We identified 379 lncRNAs differentially expressed between CRC tumors and matched healthy tissues and found tumor-specific lncRNA variants. Our results show that numerous lncRNAs are differentially expressed and/or accumulate variants in CRC tumors, thereby suggesting a role in CRC progression. More generally, our approach unlocks the study of lncRNAs in FFPE samples, thus enabling the retrospective use of abundant, well documented material available in hospital biobanks.