Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
THC in breath aerosols collected with an impaction filter device before and after legal-market product inhalation—a pilot study

An accurate cannabis breathalyzer based on quantitation of the psychoactive cannabinoid Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) could be an important tool for deterring impaired driving. Such a device does not exist. Simply translating what is known about alcohol breathalyzers is insufficient because ethanol is detected as a vapor. THC has extremely low volatility and is hypothesized to be carried in breath by aerosol particles formed from lung surfactant. Exhaled breath aerosols can be recovered from electrostatic filter devices, but consistent quantitative results across multiple studies have not been demonstrated. We used a simple-to-use impaction filter device to collect breath aerosols from participants before and after they smoked a legal market cannabis flower containing ∼25% Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinolic acid. Breath collection occurred at an intake session (baseline-intake) and four weeks later in a federally-compliant mobile laboratory 15 min before (baseline-experimental) and 1 h after cannabis use (post-use). Cannabis use was in the participant’s residence. Participants were asked to follow a breathing maneuver designed to increase aerosol production. Breath extracts were analyzed by liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry with multiple reaction monitoring of two transitions for analytes and their deuterated internal standards. Over more than 1 yr, 42 breath samples from 18 participants were collected and analyzed in six batches. THC was quantified in 31% of baseline-intake, 36% of baseline-experimental, and 80% of 1 h post-use breath extracts. The quantities observed 1 h post-use are compared to those reported in six other pilot studies that sampled breath at known intervals following cannabis use and are discussed with respect to participant characteristics and breath sampling protocols. Larger studies with verified abstinence and more post-use timepoints are necessary to generate statistically significant data to develop meaningful cannabis breathalyzer technology.
Variable Dose Rates in Realistic Radiation Exposures: Effects on Small Molecule Markers of Ionizing Radiation in the Murine Model

Novel biodosimetry assays for use in preparedness and response to potential malicious attacks or nuclear accidents would ideally provide accurate dose reconstruction independent of the idiosyncrasies of a complex exposure to ionizing radiation. Complex exposures will consist of dose rates spanning the low dose rates (LDR) to very high-dose rates (VHDR) that need to be tested for assay validation. Here, we investigate how a range of relevant dose rates affect metabolomic dose reconstruction at potentially lethal radiation exposures (8 Gy in mice) from an initial blast or subsequent fallout exposures compared to zero or sublethal exposures (0 or 3 Gy in mice) in the first 2 days, which corresponds to an integral time individuals will reach medical facilities after a radiological emergency. Biofluids (urine and serum) were collected from both male and female 9–10-week-old C57BL/6 mice at 1 and 2 days postirradiation (total doses of 0, 3 or 8 Gy) after a VHDR of 7 Gy/s. Additionally, samples were collected after a 2-day exposure consisting of a declining dose rate (1 to 0.004 Gy/min) recapitulating the 7:10 rule-of-thumb time dependency of nuclear fallout. Overall similar perturbations were observed in both urine and serum metabolite concentrations irrespective of sex or dose rate, with the exception of xanthurenic acid in urine (female specific) and taurine in serum (VHDR specific). In urine, we developed identical multiplex metabolite panels (N6, N6,N6-trimethyllysine, carnitine, propionylcarnitine, hexosamine-valine-isoleucine, and taurine) that could identify individuals receiving potentially lethal levels of radiation from the zero or sublethal cohorts with excellent sensitivity and specificity, with creatine increasing model performance at day 1. In serum, individuals receiving a 3 or 8 Gy exposure could be identified from their pre-irradiation samples with excellent sensitivity and specificity, however, due to a lower dose response the 3 vs. 8 Gy groups could not be distinguished from each other. Together with previous results, these data indicate that dose-rate-independent small molecule fingerprints have potential in novel biodosimetry assays.
Long-time behavior for a class of degenerate parabolic equations

The long-time behavior of a class of degenerate parabolic equations in a bounded domain will be considered in the sense that the nonnegative diffusion coefficient $a(x)$ is allowed to vanish on a nonempty closed subset with zero measure. For this purpose, some appropriate weighted Sobolev spaces are introduced and the corresponding embedding theorem is established. Then, we show the global existence and uniqueness of weak solutions. Finally, we distinguish two cases (subcritical and supcritical) to prove the existence of compact attractors for the semigroup associated with this class of equations.
Liver cancer risk quantification through an artificial neural network based on personal health data

Abstract Background Liver cancer is one of the most common types of cancer and the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths globally. The most common type of primary liver cancer is called hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) which accounts for 75–85% of cases. HCC is a malignant disease with aggressive progression and limited therapeutic options. While the exact cause of liver cancer is not known, habits/lifestyles may increase the risk of developing the disease. Material and methods This study is designed to quantify the liver cancer risk through a multi-parameterized artificial neural network (ANN) based on basic health data including habits/lifestyles. In addition to input and output layers, our ANN model has three hidden layers having 12, 13, and 14 neurons, respectively. We have used the health data from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) and Prostate, Lung, Colorectal, and Ovarian Cancer (PLCO) datasets to train and test our ANN model. Results We have found the best performance of the ANN model with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.80 and 0.81 for training and testing cohorts, respectively. Conclusion Our results demonstrate a method that can predict liver cancer risk with basic health data and habits/lifestyles. This novel method could be beneficial to high-risk populations by enabling early detection.
Abiotic and Biotic Drivers of Soil Fungal Communities in Response to Dairy Manure Amendment

Manure amendments in agricultural systems can impact soil microbial communities via supplying growth substrates for indigenous microbes or by introducing manure-borne taxa. This study explores the consistency of these impacts on soil fungal communities and the relative importance of abiotic and biotic drivers across distinct soils. ABSTRACT Modern agriculture often relies on large inputs of synthetic fertilizers to maximize crop yield potential, yet their intensive use has led to nutrient losses and impaired soil health. Alternatively, manure amendments provide plant available nutrients, build organic carbon, and enhance soil health. However, we lack a clear understanding of how consistently manure impacts fungal communities, the mechanisms via which manure impacts soil fungi, and the fate of manure-borne fungi in soils. We assembled soil microcosms using five soils to investigate how manure amendments impact fungal communities over a 60-day incubation. Further, we used autoclaving treatments of soils and manure to determine if observed changes in soil fungal communities were due to abiotic or biotic properties, and if indigenous soil communities constrained colonization of manure-borne fungi. We found that manure amended soil fungal communities diverged from nonamended communities over time, often in concert with a reduction in diversity. Fungal communities responded to live and autoclaved manure in a similar manner, suggesting that abiotic forces are primarily responsible for the observed dynamics. Finally, manure-borne fungi declined quickly in both live and autoclaved soil, indicating that the soil environment is unsuitable for their survival. IMPORTANCE Manure amendments in agricultural systems can impact soil microbial communities via supplying growth substrates for indigenous microbes or by introducing manure-borne taxa. This study explores the consistency of these impacts on soil fungal communities and the relative importance of abiotic and biotic drivers across distinct soils. Different fungal taxa responded to manure among distinct soils, and shifts in soil fungal communities were driven largely by abiotic factors, rather than introduced microbes. This work demonstrates that manure may have inconsistent impacts on indigenous soil fungi, and that abiotic properties of soils render them largely resistant to invasion by manure-borne fungi.
Effects of Parental Involvement on Glycemic Control in Adolescents With Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus: A Scoping Review

Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) is typically diagnosed in pediatric patients. Transitioning from supported management in childhood to self-management in adolescence is an important step. Parental psychosocial influence is a possible factor in adolescents’ disease control. This review summarized the effects of parental involvement on glycemic control in adolescents with T1DM by focusing on hemoglobin A1c (HgbAIc). A scoping review per the Guidance for Systematic Scoping Reviews was conducted with the following inclusion criteria: (a) studies in English, (b) focused on adolescents with T1DM, (c) outcomes included HgbAIc, and (d) focused on parental influence of children with T1DM. Of 476 articles, 14 were included. The study outcomes were classified based on direct or indirect influence. “Parental support for adherence” and “parental conflict” significantly affected HgbAIc control. This study provides current evidence on parental influence on glycemic control in adolescents.
African Swine Fever Virus Gene B117L Encodes a Small Protein Endowed with Low-pH-Dependent Membrane Permeabilizing Activity

ASFV is responsible for an extensively distributed pandemic causing important economic losses in the pork industry in Eurasia. The development of countermeasures is partially limited by the insufficient knowledge regarding the function of the majority of the more than 150 genes present on the virus genome. ABSTRACT African swine fever virus (ASFV) is causing a devastating pandemic in domestic and wild swine in Central Europe to East Asia, resulting in economic losses for the swine industry. The virus contains a large double-stranded DNA genome that contains more than 150 genes, most with no experimentally characterized function. In this study, we evaluate the potential function of the product of ASFV gene B117L, a 115-amino-acid integral membrane protein transcribed at late times during the virus replication cycle and showing no homology to any previously published protein. Hydrophobicity distribution along B117L confirmed the presence of a single transmembrane helix, which, in combination with flanking amphipathic sequences, composes a potential membrane-associated C-terminal domain of ca. 50 amino acids. Ectopic transient cell expression of the B117L gene as a green fluorescent protein (GFP) fusion protein revealed the colocalization with markers of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Intracellular localization of various B117L constructs also displayed a pattern for the formation of organized smooth ER (OSER) structures compatible with the presence of a single transmembrane helix with a cytoplasmic carboxy terminus. Using partially overlapping peptides, we further demonstrated that the B117L transmembrane helix has the capacity to establish spores and ion channels in membranes at low pH. Furthermore, our evolutionary analysis showed the high conservation of the transmembrane domain during the evolution of the B117L gene, indicating that the integrity of this domain is preserved by the action of the purifying selection. Collectively our data support a viroporin-like assistant role for the B117L gene-encoded product in ASFV entry. IMPORTANCE ASFV is responsible for an extensively distributed pandemic causing important economic losses in the pork industry in Eurasia. The development of countermeasures is partially limited by the insufficient knowledge regarding the function of the majority of the more than 150 genes present on the virus genome. Here, we provide data regarding the functional experimental evaluation of a previously uncharacterized ASFV gene, B117L. Our data suggest that the B117L gene encodes a small membrane protein that assists in the permeabilization of the ER-derived envelope during ASFV infection.
Gut Microbiota Taxon-Dependent Transformation of Microglial M1/M2 Phenotypes Underlying Mechanisms of Spatial Learning and Memory Impairment after Chronic Methamphetamine Exposure

Our study indicated that the gut microbiota contributes to spatial learning and memory dysfunction after chronic METH exposure, in which microglial phenotype status plays an intermediary role. The elucidated “specific microbiota taxa-microglial M1/M2 phenotypes-spatial learning and memory impairment” pathway would provide a novel mechanism and elucidate potential gut microbiota taxon targets for the no-drug treatment of cognitive deterioration after chronic METH exposure. ABSTRACT Methamphetamine (METH) exposure may lead to cognitive impairment. Currently, evidence suggests that METH exposure alters the configuration of the gut microbiota. However, the role and mechanism of the gut microbiota in cognitive impairment after METH exposure are still largely unknown. Here, we investigated the impact of the gut microbiota on the phenotype status of microglia (microglial phenotypes M1 and microglial M2) and their secreting factors, the subsequent hippocampal neural processes, and the resulting influence on spatial learning and memory of chronically METH-exposed mice. We determined that gut microbiota perturbation triggered the transformation of microglial M2 to M1 and a subsequent change of pro-brain-derived neurotrophic factor (proBDNF)–p75NTR–mature BDNF (mBDNF)–TrkB signaling, which caused reduction of hippocampal neurogenesis and synaptic plasticity-related proteins (SYN, PSD95, and MAP2) and, consequently, deteriorated spatial learning and memory. More specifically, we found that Clostridia, Bacteroides, Lactobacillus, and Muribaculaceae might dramatically affect the homeostasis of microglial M1/M2 phenotypes and eventually contribute to spatial learning and memory decline after chronic METH exposure. Finally, we found that fecal microbial transplantation could protect against spatial learning and memory decline by restoring the microglial M1/M2 phenotype status and the subsequent proBDNF-p75NTR/mBDNF-TrkB signaling in the hippocampi of chronically METH-exposed mice. IMPORTANCE Our study indicated that the gut microbiota contributes to spatial learning and memory dysfunction after chronic METH exposure, in which microglial phenotype status plays an intermediary role. The elucidated “specific microbiota taxa-microglial M1/M2 phenotypes-spatial learning and memory impairment” pathway would provide a novel mechanism and elucidate potential gut microbiota taxon targets for the no-drug treatment of cognitive deterioration after chronic METH exposure.
Reconstruction of geomagnetic activity and near-Earth interplanetary conditions over the past 167 yr – Part 3: Improved representation of solar cycle 11

Abstract. Svalgaard (2014) has recently pointed out that the calibration of the Helsinki magnetic observatory's H component variometer was probably in error in published data for the years 1866–1874.5 and that this makes the interdiurnal variation index based on daily means, IDV(1d), (Lockwood et al., 2013a), and the interplanetary magnetic field strength derived from it (Lockwood et al., 2013b), too low around the peak of solar cycle 11. We use data from the modern Nurmijarvi station, relatively close to the site of the original Helsinki Observatory, to confirm a 30% underestimation in this interval and hence our results are fully consistent with the correction derived by Svalgaard. We show that the best method for recalibration uses the Helsinki Ak (H) and aa indices and is accurate to ±10%. This makes it preferable to recalibration using either the sunspot number or the diurnal range of geomagnetic activity which we find to be accurate to ±20%. In the case of Helsinki data during cycle 11, the two recalibration methods produce very similar corrections which are here confirmed using newly digitised data from the nearby St Petersburg observatory and also using declination data from Helsinki. However, we show that the IDV index is, compared to later years, too similar to sunspot number before 1872, revealing independence of the two data series has been lost; either because the geomagnetic data used to compile IDV has been corrected using sunspot numbers, or vice versa, or both. We present corrected data sequences for both the IDV(1d) index and the reconstructed IMF (interplanetary magnetic field). We also analyse the relationship between the derived near-Earth IMF and the sunspot number and point out the relevance of the prior history of solar activity, in addition to the contemporaneous value, to estimating any "floor" value of the near-Earth interplanetary field.
“There Are Good and Bad Elements to It for Sure”: Students’ and Faculty/Staff’s Perceptions of the Title IX Mandated Reporting Policy

Faculty, staff, and students employed by or who serve as representative of universities in the United States are required by the Title IX federal law to report all instances of sexual harassment, discrimination, and sexual assault on college campuses. Despite the well-intended purpose of the Title IX regulations, less is known about campus communities’ experiences and perceptions of this “mandated reporting,” and its influence on disclosure. This exploratory mixed-methods study examines student (n = 88) and faculty and staff (n = 77) thoughts, concerns, and experiences regarding this policy at a mid-sized Northeastern University. Participants were recruited utilizing a campus lab system, with supplemental recruitment through student-life offices on campus. Data were collected via an anonymous survey hosted on the Qualtrics platform. Descriptive statistics were conducted for quantitative responses, whereas thematic analysis was utilized to analyze open text responses. Descriptive statistics demonstrate that the majority of participants (students and faculty/staff) were aware of their “mandated reporter” status. Additionally, students and faculty/staff varied regarding their support of the policy and the majority of faculty/staff had not had students disclose sexual violence to them and thus, had not reported any incidences of sexual violence to the university. Results of the thematic analysis further highlight the complexity of students and faculty/staff views’ regarding the “mandated reporter” policy illustrating positive and negative perceived impacts of this policy, as well as several suggestions for improvement. Implications for research and practice are framed within the literature on Title IX, sexual harassment, and violence in the context of universities.
Synaptic and circuit mechanisms prevent detrimentally precise correlation in the developing mammalian visual system

The developing visual thalamus and cortex extract positional information encoded in the correlated activity of retinal ganglion cells by synaptic plasticity, allowing for the refinement of connectivity. Here, we use a biophysical model of the visual thalamus during the initial visual circuit refinement period to explore the role of synaptic and circuit properties in the regulation of such neural correlations. We find that the NMDA receptor dominance, combined with weak recurrent excitation and inhibition characteristic of this age, prevents the emergence of spike-correlations between thalamocortical neurons on the millisecond timescale. Such precise correlations, which would emerge due to the broad, unrefined connections from the retina to the thalamus, reduce the spatial information contained by thalamic spikes, and therefore we term them ‘parasitic’ correlations. Our results suggest that developing synapses and circuits evolved mechanisms to compensate for such detrimental parasitic correlations arising from the unrefined and immature circuit.
Reduced Staphylococcus Abundance Characterizes the Lesional Microbiome of Actinic Keratosis Patients after Field-Directed Therapies

The relevance of the skin microbiome for development of actinic keratosis (AK), its progression into squamous skin cancer, and for field-directed treatment response is unknown. An overabundance of staphylococci characterizes the skin microbiome of AK lesions. ABSTRACT Skin microbiome dysbiosis with a Staphylococcus overabundance is a feature of actinic keratosis (AK) and squamous skin carcinoma (SCC) patients. The impact of lesion-directed treatments for AK lesions such as diclofenac (DIC) and cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) on the lesional microbiome is not established. We studied 321 skin microbiome samples of 59 AK patients treated with DIC 3% gel versus CAP. Microbial DNA from skin swabs taken before start of treatment (week 0), at the end of the treatment period (week 24), and 3 months after end of treatment (week 36) was analyzed after sequencing the V3/V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene. The relative abundance of S. aureus was scrutinized by a tuf gene specific TaqMan PCR assay. The total bacterial load and both, relative and absolute abundance of Staphylococcus genus was reduced upon both therapies at week 24 and 36 compared to week 0. Notably, the lesional microbiome of patients responding to CAP therapy at week 24 was characterized by an increased relative abundance of Corynebacterium genus compared to nonresponders. A higher relative abundance of Staphylococcus aureus at week 36 was a feature of patients classified as nonresponders for both treatments 12 weeks after therapy completion. The reduction of the Staphylococcus abundance after treatment of AK lesions and alterations linked to treatment response encourage further studies for investigation of the role of the skin microbiome for both, the carcinogenesis of epithelial skin cancer and its function as predictive therapeutic biomarker in AK. IMPORTANCE The relevance of the skin microbiome for development of actinic keratosis (AK), its progression into squamous skin cancer, and for field-directed treatment response is unknown. An overabundance of staphylococci characterizes the skin microbiome of AK lesions. In this study, analyses of the lesional microbiome from 321 samples of 59 AK patients treated with diclophenac gel versus cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) revealed a reduced total bacterial load and reduced relative and absolute Staphylococcus genus abundance upon both treatments. A higher relative Corynebacterium abundance was a feature of patients classified as responders at the end of CAP-treatment period (week 24) compared with nonresponders and the Staphylococcus aureus abundance of patients classified as responders 3 months after treatment completion was significantly lower than in nonresponders. The alterations of the skin microbiome upon AK treatment encourage further investigations for establishing its role for carcinogenesis and its function as predictive biomarker in AK.