Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ice Production in Ross Ice Shelf Polynyas during 2017-2018 from Sentinel-1 SAR Images

High sea ice production (SIP) generates high-salinity water, thus, influencing the global thermohaline circulation. Estimation from passive microwave data and heat flux models have indicated that the Ross Ice Shelf polynya (RISP) may be the highest SIP region in the Southern Oceans. However, the coarse spatial resolution of passive microwave data limited the accuracy of these estimates. The Sentinel-1 Synthetic Aperture Radar dataset with high spatial and temporal resolution provides an unprecedented opportunity to more accurately distinguish both polynya area/extent and occurrence. In this study, the SIPs of RISP and McMurdo Sound polynya (MSP) from 1 March–30 November 2017 and 2018 are calculated based on Sentinel-1 SAR data (for area/extent) and AMSR2 data (for ice thickness). The results show that the wind-driven polynyas in these two years occurred from the middle of March to the middle of November, and the occurrence frequency in 2017 was 90, less than 114 in 2018. However, the annual mean cumulative SIP area and volume in 2017 were similar to (or slightly larger than) those in 2018. The average annual cumulative polynya area and ice volume of these two years were 1,040,213 km2 and 184 km3 for the RSIP, and 90,505 km2 and 16 km3 for the MSP, respectively. This annual cumulative SIP (volume) is only 1/3–2/3 of those obtained using the previous methods, implying that ice production in the Ross Sea might have been significantly overestimated in the past and deserves further investigations.
Google Earth Engine Open-Source Code for Land Surface Temperature Estimation from the Landsat Series

Land Surface Temperature (LST) is increasingly important for various studies assessing land surface conditions, e.g., studies of urban climate, evapotranspiration, and vegetation stress. The Landsat series of satellites have the potential to provide LST estimates at a high spatial resolution, which is particularly appropriate for local or small-scale studies. Numerous studies have proposed LST retrieval algorithms for the Landsat series, and some datasets are available online. However, those datasets generally require the users to be able to handle large volumes of data. Google Earth Engine (GEE) is an online platform created to allow remote sensing users to easily perform big data analyses without increasing the demand for local computing resources. However, high spatial resolution LST datasets are currently not available in GEE. Here we provide a code repository that allows computing LSTs from Landsat 4, 5, 7, and 8 within GEE. The code may be used freely by users for computing Landsat LST as part of any analysis within GEE.
Macrophage Inflammatory Protein 2 Inhibits β-Amyloid Peptide (1-42)-Mediated Hippocampal Neuronal Apoptosis through Activation of Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase and Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase Signaling Pathways

β-Amyloid peptide accumulation in senile plaques in the brains of patients with Alzheimer's disease has been considered as a major cause of neuronal death. The present study demonstrated that the CXCR2 ligands macrophage inflammatory protein 2 (MIP-2), CXCL1, and CXCL8, protected hippocampal neurons against β-amyloid (1-42) induced death. MIP-2-activated extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK)1/2 and Akt and both the mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase 1 (MEK1) and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) inhibitors 2′-amino-3′-methoxyflavone (PD98059) and wortmannin reduced the neuroprotective effect of MIP-2. MIP-2 induced weak phosphorylation of ribosomal S6 kinase (RSK) 1 but remarkable phosphorylation and nuclear translocation of RSK2. MIP-2-induced phosphorylation of RSK2 was inhibited by PD98059 but not by wortmannin. MIP-2 treatment of the neuronal cells resulted in phosphorylation of Bad at both the Ser-112 and Ser-136. The phosphorylation at Ser-112 was blocked by PD98059, whereas the phosphorylation at Ser-136 was blocked by wortmannin. The transcription factor cyclic AMP response element binding protein (CREB) was phosphorylated by MIP-2 stimulation of the neuronal cells. MIP-2-induced CREB phosphorylation was reduced by both PD98059 and wortmannin. These data demonstrate that both MEK1-ERK1/2 and PI3K-Akt signaling pathways are involved in CXCR2-mediated neuroprotection and that multiple downstream signaling events, including RSKs, Bad, and CREB, are activated in this process.
Development of Novel Analogs of the Monocarboxylate Transporter Ligand FACH and Biological Validation of One Potential Radiotracer for Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Imaging

Monocarboxylate transporters 1-4 (MCT1-4) are involved in several metabolism-related diseases, especially cancer, providing the chance to be considered as relevant targets for diagnosis and therapy. [18F]FACH was recently developed and showed very promising preclinical results as a potential positron emission tomography (PET) radiotracer for imaging of MCTs. Given that [18F]FACH did not show high blood-brain barrier permeability, the current work is aimed to investigate whether more lipophilic analogs of FACH could improve brain uptake for imaging of gliomas, while retaining binding to MCTs. The 2-fluoropyridinyl-substituted analogs 1 and 2 were synthesized and their MCT1 inhibition was estimated by [14C]lactate uptake assay on rat brain endothelial-4 (RBE4) cells. While compounds 1 and 2 showed lower MCT1 inhibitory potencies than FACH (IC50 = 11 nM) by factors of 11 and 25, respectively, 1 (IC50 = 118 nM) could still be a suitable PET candidate. Therefore, 1 was selected for radiosynthesis of [18F]1 and subsequent biological evaluation for imaging of the MCT expression in mouse brain. Regarding lipophilicity, the experimental log D7.4 result for [18F]1 agrees pretty well with its predicted value. In vivo and in vitro studies revealed high uptake of the new radiotracer in kidney and other peripheral MCT-expressing organs together with significant reduction by using specific MCT1 inhibitor α-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamic acid. Despite a higher lipophilicity of [18F]1 compared to [18F]FACH, the in vivo brain uptake of [18F]1 was in a similar range, which is reflected by calculated BBB permeabilities as well through similar transport rates by MCTs on RBE4 cells. Further investigation is needed to clarify the MCT-mediated transport mechanism of these radiotracers in brain.
Fecal Microbiota Transplantation (FMT) Alleviates Experimental Colitis in Mice by Gut Microbiota Regulation

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is an increasing global burden and a predisposing factor to colorectal cancer. Although a number of treatment options are available, the side effects could be considerable. Studies on fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) as an IBD intervention protocol require further validation as the underlying mechanisms for its attenuating effects remain unclear. This study aims to demonstrate the ameliorative role of FMT in an ulcerative colitis (UC) model induced by dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) and elucidate its relative mechanisms in a mouse model. It was shown that FMT intervention decreased disease activity index (DAI) levels and increased the body weight, colon weight and colon length of experimental animals. It also alleviated histopathological changes, reduced key cytokine expression and oxidative status in the colon. A down-regulated expression level of genes associated with NF-κB signaling pathway was also observed. The results of 16S rRNA gene sequencing showed that FMT intervention restored the gut microbiota to the pattern of the control group by increasing the relative abundance of Firmicutes and decreasing the abundances of Bacteroidetes and Proteobacteria. The relative abundances of the genera Lactobacillus, Butyricicoccus, Lachnoclostridium, Olsenella and Odoribacter were upregulated but Helicobacter, Bacteroides and Clostridium were reduced after FMT administration. Furthermore, FMT administration elevated the concentrations of SCFAs in the colon. In conclusion, FMT intervention could be suitable for UC control, but further validations via clinical trials are recommended.
Food Folate Assay with Protease, α-Amylase, and Folate Conjugase Treatments

We evaluated the effect of protease, α-amylase, and folate conjugase treatments on apparent folate content in four food composites designed to be low in folate (31.2 μg/day calculated according to previously published food folate tables) for the determination of folate requirements in humans. Protease and α-amylase treatments were performed for 16 and 4 h, respectively, at pH 4.1 and chicken pancreas folate conjugase (FC) for 3 h at 37 °C. Folate was determined by microbiological assay using the Lactobacillus casei method. Mean folate content in these menus was 56 μg/day after treatment with FC alone. However, means were 90 μg/day with protease and FC, 126 μg/day with α-amylase and FC, and 152 μg/day with α-amylase, protease, and FC treatments. Tri-enzyme treatment appears to be essential to determine food folate content accurately. Food folate tables should be revised using these enzyme treatments to accurately establish the dietary folate requirements in humans. Keywords: Food folate; folate conjugase; .
ROGUING POTATO CROPS FOR VIRUS DISEASES

Removing virus-infected plants from plots of Majestic potatoes at Rothamsted on 2 July 1947 did not reduce the spread of leaf roll but reduced rugose mosaic (potato virus Y) to about one-fifth of that in plots rogued on 21 July or left unrogued. Roguing Arran Pilot potatoes on 16 June or 2 July reduced leaf roll to five-sixths of that in unrogued plots; roguing on 16 June reduced rugose mosaic to about half that in plots rogued on 2 July, and about a quarter of that in unrogued plots. Lifting Arran Pilot potatoes in mid-August reduced virus diseases to about two-thirds. Roguing flattened the gradient (decrease in percentage plants diseased with increasing distance from the source of infection) with rugose mosaic, but had little effect with leaf roll. Evidently any plants prevented by roguing from contracting virus Y were near the initially infected plants. In 1948, Majestic and King Edward potatoes at three places were rogued during 22–24 June and tubers were dug during 28–30 July and again at the end of the season. Leaf roll spread more in Majestic than in King Edward, and rugose mosaic spread more in King Edward. Roguing reduced the spread of both by about one-fifth at Rothamsted, but had no effect at Sutton Bonington. At Bretton, in the Derbyshire hills, roguing had no effect on leaf roll, but prevented the spread of rugose mosaic. The small benefit occasionally achieved by roguing in the ware-growing districts of England does not make the practice economically worth while.
Dietary studies of aquatic insects from two Victorian rivers

A preliminary assessment of the feeding habits of 127 taxa of pre-imaginal Coleoptera, Diptera, Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera from the La Trobe and Tanjil Rivers was made from analyses of digestive tract contents and observations of captive specimens. Ultrafine ( 50 lm) detritus (mostly leaf and wood fragments), benthic algae (especially diatoms) and remains of invertebrate prey were also important. Bacteria, fungi and planktonic algae were present in minor quantities. Many species were shown to be capable of shredding dead leaves and wood. Dietary diversity was particularly high in the families Elmidae, Chironomidae, Leptophlebiidae, Gripopterygidae and Leptoceridae.
Effects Of Feeding Graded Levels Of Crude Oil- Containing Diets On Liver And Kidney Functions In The Growing Pig

Effects of feeding graded levels of crude oil-containing diets were studied on liver enzymes: alanine amino transferase (ALT), aspartic amino transferase (AST) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) as well as on kidney biomarkers: blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and creatinine in growing pigs. 24 pigs of average body weight (BW) of 9 ± 1.4 (Mean ± SD) kg were used in the study. Animals were randomly assigned to their individual experimental pens. There were 4 graded crude oil dietary treatments: 0g (control group), 10g, 15g and 20g of crude oil/kg of diet. There were 4 replications per dietary treatment. Animals were fed at 5% of their BW for 4 weeks. Blood samples were collected from all animal in all the four dietary treatment groups at the end and snap frozen. ALT serum levels of diets 1 and 2 were similar (P > 0.05) but significantly (P < 0.05) lower than those of diets 3 and 4 with diet 4 having the highest (P < 0.05) significant serum value of ALT. The trends of ALT were mimicked by AST and ALP, respectively. BUN serum levels of diets 1 and 2 were similar (P > 0.05) but significantly (P < 0.05) lower than those of diets 3 and 4 again with diet 4 showing the highest (P < 0.05) significant value. Creatinine mirrored BUN fashion. It was concluded that ingestion of 10g of crude oil/kg diet had no effect on the liver and kidney; however at 15g and above of crude oil/kg of diet the crude oil negatively affected the health of the liver and kidney based on increased sera levels of their biomarkers as yardsticks.
The value of lost productivity from workplace bullying in Ireland.

BACKGROUND Workplace bullying is a pervasive problem with significant personal, social and economic costs. Estimates of the resulting lost productivity provide an important societal perspective on the impact of the problem. Understanding where these economic costs fall is relevant for policy. AIMS We estimated the value of lost productivity to the economy from workplace bullying in the public and private sectors in Ireland. METHODS We used nationally representative survey data and multivariable negative binomial regression to estimate the independent effect of workplace bullying on days absent from work. We applied the human capital approach to derive an estimate of the annual value of lost productivity due to bullying by sector and overall, in 2017. RESULTS Bullying was independently associated with an extra 1.00 (95% CI: 0.38-1.62) days absent from work over a 4-week period. This differed for public and private sector employees: 0.69 (95% CI: -0.12 to 1.50) versus 1.45 (95% CI: 0.50-2.40) days respectively. Applying official data, we estimated the associated annual value of lost productivity to be €51.8 million in the public sector, €187.6 million in the private sector and €239.3 million overall. CONCLUSIONS The economic value of lost productivity from workplace bullying in Ireland is significant. Although bullying is more prevalent in the public sector, it has a larger effect on absence in the private sector. Given this, along with the greater overall share of employees, productivity losses from bullying are considerably larger in the private sector in Ireland.
Maggot meal as a substitute for fish meal in laying chicken diet

A 56-day experiment was conducted to determine thereplacement value of maggot meal for fish meal in diet of laying chicken. Fish meal was included at 30 g kg-1 of the control diet. Maggot meal incrementally replaced fish meal at 250, 500, 750, and 1000 g kg-1 on crude protein basis. The five diets were fed to a total of 120 36-week- old Nera breed-laying chickens. Inclusion of various amounts of maggot meal in laying chicken diets had no significant impact on daily feed intake, hen-day egg production, egg weight, feed efficiency, and liveability. Aspects of egg external and internal quality characteristics measured were identical (P>0.05); however, albumen weight (as percent of egg weight) was significantly (P Ghana Jnl agric. Sci. Vol.31(2) 1998: 137-142
COMPLEMENT AS A MEDIATOR OF INFLAMMATION

Purified preparations of the esterase derived from the first component of complement (C'1 esterase) increased vascular permeability in guinea pig skin, an effect inhibited by triprolidine, an antihistaminic agent, but not by soy bean trypsin inhibitor. The permeability-increasing and esterolytic properties of C'1 esterase were inhibited in parallel by the serum inhibitor of C'1 esterase, diisopropylphosphofluoridate and extremes of temperature and pH. Moreover, the permeability-increasing and esterolytic properties evolved in parallel when C'1 esterase was generated from its subcomponents. How C'1 esterase induces changes in vascular permeability remains unexplained, although the possibility that its action is mediated through a histamine-like agent is attractive.
The effect of a digital learning environment on children’s conceptions about the protection of endemic plants

This study presents the results of a pilot learning intervention for improving children’s ideas about plant protection. The research was executed in two phases. The first phase aimed at exploring children’s ideas about plant protection. These ideas were taken into account for the design and development of a digital learning environment. The second phase concerned the development, implementation and evaluation of the learning environment. In the first phase, 262 participants (10–12 years old) were asked to write a short text about ‘Environmental protection’. During the second phase, twenty-six participants (10–12 years old) were asked to write a text on ‘How we can protect the endemic plants’, before and after the implementation of the learning activities. Responses were content analysed and their meaning was classified according to the coding scheme of Blanchet-Cohen, Ragan, and Amsden (Children, Youth and Environments 2003; 13: 1–7). The results of the first phase showed that participants mentioned individual lifestyle actions of environmental protection and, therefore, the learning environment should emphasise the importance of other types of environmental protection (eg political actions, legislation, social actions). The proposed learning activities enriched participants’ awareness about the importance of social and legal actions for plant protection.
Obesity as a Predictor of Prolonged Mechanical Ventilation

Objective To examine the effect of including obesity with parameters of the I-TRACH scale in predicting the need for prolonged mechanical ventilation. Study Design A retrospective cohort study. Setting Tertiary care academic medical center. Subjects and Methods Consecutive patients were identified retrospectively over a 45-month period based on need for mechanical ventilation in the medical intensive care unit. Chart review was performed to collect demographic information as well as clinical data, including duration of mechanical ventilation, body mass index (BMI), and I-TRACH parameters (heart rate >110, serum urea nitrogen >25, serum pH <7.25, serum creatinine >2, serum bicarbonate <20). Statistical analysis was performed to identify any predictors of prolonged mechanical ventilation, defined as ≥14 days and as ≥10 days. Results In total, 455 patients were identified, with an average duration of mechanical ventilation of 10.4 days (range, 0-248 days). On univariate and multivariate regression analysis, only BMI >30 reached statistical significance with respect to prolonged mechanical ventilation (P < .05). The I-TRACH parameters—either alone or in combination—were not significantly predictive. Conclusion This study challenges previous findings regarding the I-TRACH scale and the relation of its parameters to prolonged mechanical ventilation. Furthermore, BMI >30 alone was predictive of prolonged intubation. Inclusion of BMI in predictive models could assist current decision making in determining the likelihood of prolonged mechanical ventilation in medical intensive care unit patients going forward, and obesity should be considered a predictor of prolonged mechanical ventilation.
Frogs Have Rules: Selective Attention Algorithms Regulate Chorusing in Physalaemus pustulosus (Leptodactylidae)

In various acoustic insects and frogs, females preferentially orient towards the leading of two or more males' advertisement signals that occur closely in time. Such preferences in receivers have apparently selected for timing mechanisms whereby male signallers actively refrain from calling immediately following the onset of a neighbour's call and thereby increase their production of leading calls. However, indiscriminate application of this inhibitory mechanism to all neighbours might severely reduce a male's calling rate, particularly in high density. Consequently, mechanisms of selective attention to only a subset of signalling neighbours are expected. Female Tungara frogs (Physalaemus pustulosus) exhibit strong preferences for leading male calls, and males refrain from calling immediately following a neighbour. Four-loudspeaker playback experiments demonstrated that males do selectively apply this inhibitory mechanism to only a subset of close signalling neighbours. Selective attention is regulated by a combination of sliding threshold and fixed number rules: (i) Attend to the loudest (nearest) conspecific neighbour and those additional ones whose calls are within 6–8 dB of the loudest one; (ii) attend to only two neighbours in total when the calls are weak or the second one is much farther than the first; (iii) attend to three neighbours when the calls are loud or all neighbours are approximately equidistant. The means by which such plasticity may be achieved and its potential adaptiveness are discussed.
Melatonin Improves Uterine-Conceptus Interaction Via Regulation of SIRT1 During Early Pregnancy.

Melatonin has been shown to improve in vitro fertilization and offspring survival after bacterial infection, but its role in regulating maternal-fetal communication during early pregnancy has not been investigated. Results of this study demonstrated expression of abundant melatonin receptors in conceptus and endometrium during early pregnancy. In gilts, expression of melatonin receptor 1A (MTNR1A or MT1) and melatonin receptor 1B (MTNR1B or MT2) increased in trophectoderm (Tr) and uterine luminal epithelium (LE) with advancing days during early pregnancy in a different manner. Melatonin increased proliferation and migration of porcine trophectoderm (pTr) cell, the percent pTr cells in the G2 phase of the cell cycle, and the expression of implantation-related genes by pTr cells and endometrial luminal epithelium (pLE). Melatonin also attenuated the production of LPS-induced pro-inflammatory cytokines and tunicamycin-induced endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress sensing proteins. The expression of sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) as a potential target of melatonin increased between Days 9 and 14 of gestation. Co-treatment with SIRT1 inhibitor EX527 and melatonin restored cell-cell interactions through PI3K and MAPK signaling. Knockdown of SIRT1 decreased the expression of implantation-related genes, as well as migration of pTr and pLE cells. The expression microRNAs regulated by SIRT1 were suppressed in response to melatonin. Furthermore, melatonin significantly increased lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-reduced fertilization and embryogenesis in zebrafish model. These results suggest that melatonin may improve the uterine-conceptus interactions via the regulation of SIRT1 during early pregnancy.
Telomeres and COVID‐19

The medical, public health, and scientific communities are grappling with monumental imperatives to contain COVID‐19, develop effective vaccines, identify efficacious treatments for the infection and its complications, and find biomarkers that detect patients at risk of severe disease. The focus of this communication is on a potential biomarker, short telomere length (TL), that might serve to identify patients more likely to die from the SARS‐CoV‐2 infection, regardless of age. The common thread linking these patients is lymphopenia, which largely reflects a decline in the numbers of CD4/CD8 T cells but not B cells. These findings are consistent with data that lymphocyte TL dynamics impose a limit on T‐cell proliferation. They suggest that T‐cell lymphopoiesis might stall in individuals with short TL who are infected with SARS‐CoV‐2.