Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Proposed proper Engle-Pereira-Rovelli-Livine vertex amplitude

As established in a prior work of the author, the linear simplicity constraints used in the construction of the so-called ‘new’ spin-foam models mix three of the five sectors of Plebanski theory, only one of which is gravity in the usual sense, and this is the reason for certain ‘unwanted’ terms in the asymptotics of the EPRL vertex amplitude as calculated by Barrett et al. In the present paper, an explicit classical discrete condition is derived that isolates the desired gravitational sector, which we call (II+), following other authors. This condition is quantized and used to modify the vertex amplitude, yielding what we call the ‘proper EPRL vertex amplitude. ’ This vertex still depends only on standard SU(2) spin-network data on the boundary, is SU(2) gauge-invariant, and is linear in the boundary state, as required. In addition, the asymptotics now consist in the single desired term of the form e iS Regge , and all degenerate configurations are exponentially suppressed.
The protection afforded by Berberine against chemotherapy‐mediated nephropathy in rats involves regulation of the antioxidant axis

Doxorubicin (DOX) treatment in cancer patients leads to nephrotoxicity. The nephroprotective effect of Berberine (BBR), a herbal ingredient, is well documented as antioxidant and activation of the Nrf2 signalling. This study aimed to investigate if Nrf2 is a major protective mechanism of BBR in DOX animal models. Rats were divided as (n = 6 each): Control, BBR (100 mg/kg, orally), DOX (15 mg/kg, orally), BBR + DOX, and BBR + DOX + brusatol (0.2 mg/kg, i.p./twice per week) (an Nrf2 inhibitor). DOX was given as a single dose (day 10), whereas BBR was administered for 3 weeks on a daily basis. BBR reduced tubular degeneration and improved renal markers in DOX‐treated rats. It also reduced renal nuclear levels of NF‐κB p65, total reactive oxygen species (ROS), lipid peroxides, interleukin‐6 (IL‐6), and tumour necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α), as well as mRNA levels of Bax and cleaved caspase‐3. However, BBR stimulated glutathione (GSH) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels, the transcription of Bcl2, and the mRNA, total cytoplasmic, and nuclear levels of Nrf2 with no effect on the cytoplasmic keap1 levels. All these effects disappeared by brusatol. In conclusion, BBR prevents DOX‐induced renal damage by activating Nrf2.
VLBA observations of a complete sample of 2MASS galaxies

We are using the VLBA at 8 GHz to observe a sample of 834 nearby 2MASS galaxies that are stronger than 100 mJy in the NVSS. The goals of the project are to detect (1) supermassive black holes significantly offset from the IR positions of the host galaxy bulges and (2) binary black holes.
Pneumococcal carriage in adults aged 50 years and older in outpatient health care facility during pandemic COVID-19 in Novi Sad, Serbia

Background Data related to carriage of Streptococcus pneumoniae (Spn) and antimicrobial resistance patterns in middle-aged and older adults are limited. We assessed the carriage of Spn, and its antibiotic resistance patterns, among participants ≥50 years of age living in the city of Novi Sad during the second year of COVID-19 pandemic. Methods Analysis of prospectively collected data among participants with or without symptoms of upper respiratory tract infection who visited their elected physicians in the Primary Health Care Centre of Novi Sad (outpatient facility) was conducted from May 18, 2021 to December 7, 2021. Both nasopharyngeal (NP) and oropharyngeal (OP) samples from each participant were collected. Results A total of 1042 samples from 521 study subjects (1 NP and 1 OP sample from each person) were collected. Sixteen samples from the same number of persons (3.1%, 95% confidence interval: 1.76%-4.94%) were culture positive for the presence of Spn. Overall, the median age of study participants was 71 years (range, 50–93 years; 90th percentile, 77 years), and most (197/521, 37.8%) of them were 70–79 years of age. A majority of the study subjects were: females (324/521; 62.2%), sampled during May and June 2021 (376/521, 72.2%), those who did not have contact with children aged 0–10 years in the family (403/521; 77.4%), without smokers in the household (443/521; 85.0%), and those who did not receive vaccine against Spn (519/521; 99.6%). Out of 16 Spn positive samples, for six participants, Spn carriage serotypes were obtained and there were four vaccine (6A, 11A, 15B, and 18C) serotypes, and two (6C and 35F) non-vaccine serotypes. Remaining 10 (62.50%) samples were non-typeable isolates of pneumococci. Among four vaccine serotypes, two (6A and 18C) were represented in PCV13, and 18C along with the other two (11A and 15B) in PPSV23 vaccine. The highest level of resistance of Spn isolates was observed for erythromycin, (10 or 62.50%), and tetracycline, (7 or 43.75%), one isolate showed resistance to penicillin, ampicillin, and amoxicillin/amoxicillin-clavulanic acid, while none of them were resistant to ceftriaxone, trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole and levofloxacin. There were three multi-drug resistant isolates; one was identified as 6C (non-vaccine serotype), and two other were non-typeable isolates of Spn. Conclusions In this first study conducted in Serbia on Spn carriage in adults ≥50 years of age, we found low prevalence of Spn carriage and identified 6 serotypes of Spn, four of which were represented in vaccines. These results may support future Spn colonization studies among middle-aged and older adults.
Functional Neuroimaging as an Assessment Tool in Critically Ill Patients

Little is known about residual cognitive function in the earliest stages of serious brain injury. Functional neuroimaging has yielded valuable diagnostic and prognostic information in chronic disorders of consciousness, such as the vegetative state (also termed unresponsive wakefulness syndrome). The objective of the current study was to determine if functional neuroimaging could be efficacious in the assessment of cognitive function in acute disorders of consciousness, such as coma, where decisions about the withdrawal of life‐sustaining therapies are often made.
MAGNETARS VERSUS HIGH MAGNETIC FIELD PULSARS: A THEORETICAL INTERPRETATION OF THE APPARENT DICHOTOMY

Highly magnetized neutron stars (NSs) are characterized by a bewildering range of astrophysical manifestations. Here, building on our simulations of the evolution of magnetic stresses in the NS crust and its ensuing fractures, we explore in detail, for the middle-aged and old NSs, the dependence of starquake frequency and energetics on the relative strength of the poloidal (Bp) and toroidal (Btor) components. We find that, for Bp ≳ 1014 G, since a strong crustal toroidal field Btor ∼ Bp is quickly formed on a Hall timescale, the initial toroidal field needs to be Btor ≫ Bp to have a clear influence on the outbursting behavior. For initial fields Bp ≲ 1014 G, it is very unlikely that a middle-aged (t ∼ 105 years) NS shows any bursting activity. This study allows us to solve the apparent puzzle of how NSs with similar dipolar magnetic fields can behave in a remarkably different way: an outbursting “magnetar” with a high X-ray luminosity, or a quiet, low-luminosity, “high-B” radio pulsar. As an example, we consider the specific cases of the magnetar 1E 2259+586 and the radio pulsar PSR J1814−1744, which at present have a similar dipolar field ∼6 × 1013 G. We determine for each object an initial magnetic field configuration that reproduces the observed timing parameters at their current age. The same two configurations also account for the differences in quiescent X-ray luminosity and for the “magnetar/outbursting” behavior of 1E 2259+586 but not of PSR J1814−1744. We further use the theoretically predicted surface temperature distribution to compute the light curve for these objects. In the case of 1E 2259+586, for which data are available, our predicted temperature distribution gives rise to a pulse profile whose double-peaked nature and modulation level are consistent with the observations.
The statistics of the subhalo abundance of dark matter haloes

We study the population statistics of the surviving subhaloes of ΛCDM dark matter haloes using a set of very high resolution N-body simulations. These include both simulations of representative regions of the Universe and ultra-high resolution resimulations of individual dark matter haloes. We find that more massive haloes tend to have a larger mass fraction in subhaloes. For example, cluster size haloes typically have 7.5 per cent of the mass within R 200 in substructures of fractional mass larger than 10 -5 , which is 25 per cent higher than galactic haloes. There is, however, a large variance in the subhalo mass fraction from halo to halo, whereas the subhalo abundance shows much higher regularity. For dark matter haloes of fixed mass, the subhalo abundance decreases by 30 per cent between redshift 2 and 0. The subhalo abundance function correlates with the host halo concentration parameter and formation redshift. However, the intrinsic scatter is not significantly reduced for narrow ranges of concentration parameter or formation redshift, showing that they are not the dominant parameters that determine the subhalo abundance in a halo.
Constraining the Nature of Dark Matter with the Star-formation History of the Faintest Local Group Dwarf Galaxy Satellites

Λ warm dark matter (ΛWDM), realized by collisionless particles of 1–3 keV, has been proposed as an alternative scenario to Λ-Cold-Dark Matter (ΛCDM) for the dwarf galaxy scale discrepancies. We present an approach to test the viability of such WDM models using star-formation histories (SFHs) of the dwarf spheroidal galaxies (dSphs) in the Local Group. We compare their high-time-resolution SFHs with the collapse redshift of their dark halos in CDM and WDM. Collapse redshift is inferred after determining the subhalo infall mass. This is based on the dwarf current mass inferred from stellar kinematics, combined with cosmological simulation results on subhalo evolution. WDM subhalos close to the filtering mass scale, forming significantly later than CDM, are the most difficult to reconcile with early truncation of star formation (z ≥ 3). The ultra-faint dwarfs (UFDs) provide the most stringent constraints. Using six UFDs and eight classical dSphs, we show that a 1 keV particle is strongly disfavored, consistently with other reported methods. Excluding other models is only hinted for a few UFDs. Other UFDs for which the lack of robust constraints on halo mass prevents us from carrying out our analysis rigorously, show a very early onset of star formation that will strengthen the constraints delivered by our method in the future. We discuss the various caveats, notably the low number of dwarfs with accurately determined SFHs and the uncertainties when determining the subhalo infall mass, most notably the baryonic physics. Our preliminary analysis may serve as a pathfinder for future investigations that will combine accurate SFHs for local dwarfs with direct analysis of WDM simulations with baryons.
Gene-Expression Profiling of Mucinous Ovarian Tumors and Comparison with Upper and Lower Gastrointestinal Tumors Identifies Markers Associated with Adverse Outcomes

Abstract Purpose: Advanced-stage mucinous ovarian carcinoma (MOC) has poor chemotherapy response and prognosis and lacks biomarkers to aid stage I adjuvant treatment. Differentiating primary MOC from gastrointestinal (GI) metastases to the ovary is also challenging due to phenotypic similarities. Clinicopathologic and gene-expression data were analyzed to identify prognostic and diagnostic features. Experimental Design: Discovery analyses selected 19 genes with prognostic/diagnostic potential. Validation was performed through the Ovarian Tumor Tissue Analysis consortium and GI cancer biobanks comprising 604 patients with MOC (n = 333), mucinous borderline ovarian tumors (MBOT, n = 151), and upper GI (n = 65) and lower GI tumors (n = 55). Results: Infiltrative pattern of invasion was associated with decreased overall survival (OS) within 2 years from diagnosis, compared with expansile pattern in stage I MOC [hazard ratio (HR), 2.77; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.04–7.41, P = 0.042]. Increased expression of THBS2 and TAGLN was associated with shorter OS in MOC patients (HR, 1.25; 95% CI, 1.04–1.51, P = 0.016) and (HR, 1.21; 95% CI, 1.01–1.45, P = 0.043), respectively. ERBB2 (HER2) amplification or high mRNA expression was evident in 64 of 243 (26%) of MOCs, but only 8 of 243 (3%) were also infiltrative (4/39, 10%) or stage III/IV (4/31, 13%). Conclusions: An infiltrative growth pattern infers poor prognosis within 2 years from diagnosis and may help select stage I patients for adjuvant therapy. High expression of THBS2 and TAGLN in MOC confers an adverse prognosis and is upregulated in the infiltrative subtype, which warrants further investigation. Anti-HER2 therapy should be investigated in a subset of patients. MOC samples clustered with upper GI, yet markers to differentiate these entities remain elusive, suggesting similar underlying biology and shared treatment strategies.
Low-frequency Observations of Millisecond Pulsars

We present results of the first low frequency measurements of integrated profiles and flux densities of a large set of millisecond pulsars at 102 MHz. Combining our observations with data at higher frequencies, borrowed from literature we performed the comparative analysis of the frequency dependence of profile width and spectra of millisecond and normal pulsars, searching for similarities and differences between their properties. Millisecond pulsars are differ to “normal” ones in much weaker frequency dependence of the width of integrated profile and the absence of the low- frequency turn-over in pulsar spectra.
A Multi-wavelength MOCASSIN model of the Magellanic-type galaxy NGC 4449

Abstract We use the photoionisation and dust radiative transfer code MOCASSIN to create a model of the dwarf irregular galaxy NGC 4449. The best-matching model reproduces the global optical emission line fluxes and the observed spectral energy distribution (SED) spanning wavelengths from the UV to sub-mm, and requires the bolometric luminosity of 6.25 × 109L⊙ for the underlying stellar component, Mdust/Mgas of 1/680 and Mdust of 2.2 × 106M⊙.
Mechanisms of epigenetic regulation of transcription by lncRNAs in plants

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are an ubiquitous feature of eukaryotic genomes and in recent decades have been shown to be highly abundant and varied. Many prominent examples have been described as having essential roles in regulating the expression of genes in different developmental and environmental contexts. As a result, much work has been done on elucidating the mechanisms by which they modulate the expression of protein coding genes. In this review, we focus on those which have been characterized in plants. We specifically examine common epigenetic mechanisms that regulate gene expression at the level of transcription. In this regard, we focus on the lncRNAs in plants that have primarily been associated with controlling the chromatin environment of genes at the level of modifications, RNA POLYMERASE II (RNAPII) processivity and efficiency of transcription, and mediating the formation of transcriptionally activating and repressive chromatin loops. We discuss open questions in plant lncRNA epigenetic regulation and opportunities for future study of functionally significant lncRNAs with yet‐unknown epigenetic mechanisms.
Pain Assessment Using Virtual Reality Facemask During Bone Marrow Aspiration: Prospective Study Including Propensity-Matched Analysis

Background Bone marrow aspiration (BMA) is a medical procedure necessary to the diagnosis and monitoring of patients with hematological or nonhematological disorders. This procedure is considered painful, and patients are generally anxious before and during BMA. Objective This study assesses the effect of immersive virtual reality on pain during BMA. Methods This observational prospective and monocentric study enrolled 105 consecutive patients who underwent sternal BMA with lidocaine anesthesia. The study was carried on during 2 periods. First, virtual reality facemask (VRF) was proposed to all patients in the absence of exclusion criteria. During the second period, BMA was performed without the VRF. For all patients, pain intensity after the procedure was assessed using a 10-point numerical pain rating scale (NPRS). All analyses were performed on propensity score–matched cohort (with or without VRF) to evaluate efficacy on NRPS levels. Results The final matched cohort included 12 patients in the VRF group and 24 in the control group. No difference in anxiety level before BMA evaluated by the patient and by the operator was observed between groups (P=.71 and .42 respectively). No difference of NPRS was observed using VRF when compared to control group (median NPRS 3.8, IQR 2.0-6.3 vs 3.0, IQR 1.9-3.0, respectively; P=.09). Conclusions Our study did not prove the efficacy of VRF to reduce pain during BMA.
Galactic cosmic ray propagation models using Picard

I will give an overview on the numerical approach for the solution of the Galactic cosmic-ray propagation problem used within the recently introduced code Picard. The code solves the transport equation for each cosmic-ray species resulting in a prediction of the cosmic ray flux everywhere in the Galaxy. Picard is a prominent example for the current transition from two-dimensional azimuthally symmetric models of Galactic cosmic-ray transport to those that allow higher degrees of realism. In Picard this is achieved by use of contemporary numerical solvers that allow efficient computation of very high resolution models. I will address the new physics that can be incorporated in such three-dimensional models, e.g. example problems like the transition from axisymmetric cosmic-ray source distributions to spiral-arm cosmic-ray source distributions, including consequences for the various observables related to cosmic rays.
CADASIL Affects Multiple Aspects of Cerebral Small Vessel Function on 7T‐MRI

Cerebral small vessel diseases (cSVDs) are a major cause of stroke and dementia. We used cutting‐edge 7T‐MRI techniques in patients with Cerebral Autosomal Dominant Arteriopathy with Subcortical Infarcts and Leukoencephalopathy (CADASIL), to establish which aspects of cerebral small vessel function are affected by this monogenic form of cSVD.
Behavioral and brain anatomical analysis of Foxg1 heterozygous mice

FOXG1 Syndrome (FS) is a devastating neurodevelopmental disorder that is caused by a heterozygous loss-of-function (LOF) mutation of the FOXG1 gene, which encodes a transcriptional regulator important for telencephalic brain development. People with FS have marked developmental delays, impaired ambulation, movement disorders, seizures, and behavior abnormalities including autistic features. Current therapeutic approaches are entirely symptomatic, however the ability to rescue phenotypes in mouse models of other genetic neurodevelopmental disorders such as Rett syndrome, Angelman syndrome, and Phelan-McDermid syndrome by postnatal expression of gene products has led to hope that similar approaches could help modify the disease course in other neurodevelopmental disorders such as FS. While FoxG1 protein function plays a critical role in embryonic brain development, the ongoing adult expression of FoxG1 and behavioral phenotypes that present when FoxG1 function is removed postnatally provides support for opportunity for improvement with postnatal treatment. Here we generated a new mouse allele of Foxg1 that disrupts protein expression and characterized the behavioral and structural brain phenotypes in heterozygous mutant animals. These mutant animals display changes in locomotor behavior, gait, anxiety, social interaction, aggression, and learning and memory compared to littermate controls. Additionally, they have structural brain abnormalities reminiscent of people with FS. This information provides a framework for future studies to evaluate the potential for post-natal expression of FoxG1 to modify the disease course in this severe neurodevelopmental disorder.
Heavy quark symmetry in the soft collinear effective theory

We study strong interaction effects in nonleptonic decays of B mesons with energetic particles in the final state. An introduction to Soft Collinear Effective Theory(SCET), the appropriate effective field theory of QCD for such decays, is given. We focus on decays of the type B -+ D(*)M where M is a light energetic meson of energy E. The SCET formulates the problem as an expansion in powers of AQCD/Q where Q ' {mb, me, E}. A factorization theorem is proven at leading order that separates the physics of the scales AQCD < EAQCD Q. In addition, the factorization theorem decouples energetic degrees o freedom associated with the light meson allowing us to derive heavy quark symmetry relations between the B -+ DM and B -+ D*M type amplitudes. A new mechanism for the generation of non-perturbative strong phases is shown within the framework of factorization. Heavy quark symmetry relations are shown to apply for these strong phases as well. Furthermore, the strong phases for certain light mesons in the final state are shown to be universal. The analysis is extended to B D(*)Ms and B -+ D**M type decays with isosinglet light mesons and excited charmed mesons in the final state respectively. A host of other phenomenological relations are derived and found to be in good agreement with available data. Thesis Supervisor: Iain W. Stewart Title: Assistant Professor
The spatial properties of adaptation-induced distance compression

Exposure to a dynamic texture reduces the perceived separation between objects, altering the mapping between physical relations in the environment and their neural representations. Here we investigated the spatial tuning and spatial frame of reference of this aftereffect to understand the stage(s) of processing where adaptation-induced changes occur. In Experiment 1, we measured apparent separation at different positions relative to the adapted area, revealing a strong but tightly tuned compression effect. We next tested the spatial frame of reference of the effect, either by introducing a gaze shift between adaptation and test phase (Experiment 2) or by decoupling the spatial selectivity of adaptation in retinotopic and world-centered coordinates (Experiment 3). Results across the two experiments indicated that both retinotopic and world-centered adaptation effects can occur independently. Spatial attention to the location of the adaptor alone could not account for the world-centered transfer we observed, and retinotopic adaptation did not transfer to world-centered coordinates after a saccade (Experiment 4). Finally, we found that aftereffects in different reference frames have a similar, narrow spatial tuning profile (Experiment 5). Together, our results suggest that the neural representation of local separation resides early in the visual cortex, but it can also be modulated by activity in higher visual areas.