Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Native elongation transcript sequencing reveals temperature dependent dynamics of nascent RNAPII transcription in Arabidopsis

Temperature profoundly affects the kinetics of biochemical reactions, yet how large molecular complexes such as the transcription machinery accommodate changing temperatures to maintain cellular function is poorly understood. Here, we developed plant native elongating transcripts sequencing (plaNET-seq) to profile genome-wide nascent RNA polymerase II (RNAPII) transcription during the cold-response of Arabidopsis thaliana with single-nucleotide resolution. Combined with temporal resolution, these data revealed transient genome-wide reprogramming of nascent RNAPII transcription during cold, including characteristics of RNAPII elongation and thousands of non-coding transcripts connected to gene expression. Our results suggest a role for promoter-proximal RNAPII stalling in predisposing genes for transcriptional activation during plant-environment interactions. At gene 3’-ends, cold initially facilitated transcriptional termination by limiting the distance of read-through transcription. Within gene bodies, cold reduced the kinetics of co-transcriptional splicing leading to increased intragenic stalling. Our data resolved multiple distinct mechanisms by which temperature transiently altered the dynamics of nascent RNAPII transcription and associated RNA processing, illustrating potential biotechnological solutions and future focus areas to promote food security in the context of a changing climate.
Analysis of a cellular structure observed in the compound eyes of Drosophila white; yata mutants and white mutants

ABSTRACT We previously identified the Drosophila yata mutant, which showed phenotypes including progressive vacuolization of the white-coloured compound eye, progressive shrinkage of the brain and a shortened lifespan. The yata gene was shown to be involved in controlling intracellular trafficking of the Amyloid precursor protein-like protein, which is an orthologue of Amyloid precursor protein, which is a causative molecule of Alzheimer's disease. In this study, we examined the phenotype of the compound eye of the yata mutant using electron microscopy and confocal microscopy. We found that abnormal cellular structures that seemed to originate from bleb-like structures and contained vesicles and organelles, such as multivesicular bodies and autophagosomes, were observed in aged white; yata mutants and aged white mutants. These structures were not observed in newly eclosed flies and the presence of the structures was suppressed in flies grown under constant dark conditions after eclosion. The structures were not observed in newly eclosed red-eyed yata mutants or wild-type flies, but were observed in very aged red-eyed wild-type flies. Thus, our data suggest that the observed structures are formed as a result of changes associated with exposure to light after eclosion in white mutants, white; yata mutants and aged flies. Summary: We analysed a cellular structure formed by changes associated with exposure to light in the compound eyes of Drosophila white mutants, white; yata mutants and aged flies.
Application of Zeolite Tuffs as Mineral Filler in Warm Mix Asphalt

Zeolite materials are used in the warm mix asphalt technology as an asphalt foaming additive, which partially replaces the filler. This article analyzes the influence of the zeolite and other fillers addition on the properties of mastic asphalt. In the research, 35/50 penetration grade asphalt and three types of fillers were used: lime filler (L), zeolite tuff (clinoptilolite) (C), hydrated lime (H) and their mixed combinations (C:L in 1:1 and 1:3 proportions as well as C:L:H in 2:2:1 ratio). The characteristics of the materials included: chemical analysis, phase composition and particle size distribution. The following properties were determined on the asphalt mastic samples: penetration, softening point, penetration index, dynamic viscosity and stiffening measured by softening point increase. It was found that clinoptilolite could partially replace the traditional lime filler, without a negative impact on the asphalt mastic properties. Additionally, the hydrated lime inclusion should have a positive effect on the frost resistance of an asphalt mix.
Thioredoxin targets are regulated in heterocysts of cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC 7120 in a light-independent manner

Abstract In the nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC 7120, glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH) plays an important role in producing the power for reducing nitrogenase under light conditions. Our previous study showed that thioredoxin suppresses G6PDH by reducing its activator protein OpcA, implying that G6PDH is inactivated under light conditions because thioredoxins are reduced by the photosynthetic electron transport system in cyanobacteria. To address how Anabaena sp. PCC 7120 maintains G6PDH activity even under light conditions when nitrogen fixation occurs, we investigated the redox regulation system in vegetative cells and specific nitrogen-fixing cells named heterocysts, individually. We found that thioredoxin target proteins were more oxidized in heterocysts than in vegetative cells under light conditions. Alterations in the redox regulation mechanism of heterocysts may affect the redox states of thioredoxin target proteins, including OpcA, so that G6PDH is activated in heterocysts even under light conditions.
Micromanipulation System for Isolating a Single Cryptosporidium Oocyst

In this paper, an integrated system for contact micromanipulation of Cryptosporidium oocysts is presented. The system integrates five actuators and a partially automated control system and contacts the oocyst using a drawn glass end effector with tip dimensions of 1 μm. The system is intended to allow single cell analysis (SCA) of Cryptosporidium—a very harmful parasite found in water supplies—by isolating the parasite oocyst of 5 μm diameter in a new environment. By allowing this form of analysis, the source of Cryptosporidium can be found and potential harm to humans can be reduced. The system must overcome the challenges of locating the oocysts and end effector in 3D space and contact adhesion forces between them, which are prominent over inertial forces on this scale. An automated alignment method is presented, using the Prewitt operator to give feedback on the level of focus and this system is tested, demonstrating alignment accuracy of <2 μm. Moreover, to overcome the challenge of adhesion forces, use of dry and liquid environments are investigated and a strategy is developed to capture the oocyst in the dry environment and release in the liquid environment. An experiment is conducted on the reliability of the system for isolating a Cryptosporidium oocyst from its culture, demonstrating a success rate of 98%.
New Insights into Chemical and Mineral Composition of Donkey Milk throughout Nine Months of Lactation

Simple Summary Donkey milk, because of its nutritional quality, is a more interesting product for the human diet. Moreover, due to its similarity to human milk, it is an optimal substitute for breast milk for babies. The aim of this study is to provide new insights on donkey milk production, which characterizes gross and mineral composition of Ragusano donkey breed milk. Compared to cow milk, donkey milk is characterized by a lower content of dry matter, high lactose amount, low protein, and a very low-fat content. In addition, the casein content is lower than cow’s milk. The most abundant macro element was K, followed by Ca, Na, and P. Most of the constituents are diminishing their content during lactation. In conclusion, the Ragusano breed showed a good aptitude for milk production. The composition of the milk confirmed its nutritional quality. Moreover, this research can have important positive impacts. The Ragusano breed has a long lactation and a high level of production that can ensure good income for farmers. Moreover, given its nutritional values, a larger consumption of donkey milk would be desirable and could promote the breeding of the donkey, which is an endangered species all over the world, as a profitable alternative for farmers. Abstract Donkey milk is increasingly being proposed as a natural alternative milk for various categories of consumers, especially infants and the elderly population. However, its potential production, gross, and mineral composition have not been deeply investigated yet. Sixty-two individual milk samples were collected monthly from nine Ragusano donkeys reared in a specialized dairy farm. Milk yield as well as chemical and mineral composition, including macro and micro elements, were investigated over an entire lactation, from the second to the ninth month of milking. Milk yield averaged 1.64 kg/day, which highlights good aptitude of the Ragusano breed for the production of milk. Gross composition was characterized by low content of dry matter (8.19%), a high amount of lactose (6.07%), low protein (1.34%), and very low-fat content (0.16%). Whey proteins represented 58% of the total protein, and proteose-peptones accounted for 0.35 ± 0.07 g per 100 g. Total ash content was 0.36 g per 100 g and represented 4.40% of the dry matter. The most abundant element was K, which was followed by Ca, Na, and P. As expected, the micro elements Fe, Zn, and Cu were found in low amounts or in traces. Dry matter, fat, whey proteins. The total ash, Ca, P, Mg, and mineral ratios were significantly affected by the lactation stage.
Effects of Multidimensional Family Therapy (MDFT) on Nonopioid Drug Abuse

Purpose: This review evaluates the evidence of the effects of multidimensional family therapy (MDFT) on drug use reduction in young people for the treatment of nonopioid drug use. Method: We followed Campbell Collaboration guidelines to conduct a systematic review of randomized and nonrandomized trials. Meta-analytic methods were used to quantitatively synthesize study results. Results: The search yielded five studies that met inclusion criteria. MDFT was found to be more effective than other treatments on drug abuse problem severity and drug use frequency in the short run but not in the long run and demonstrated positive effects on treatment retention compared to control conditions. Discussion: While additional research is needed, the review offers support for MDFT as a treatment to young nonopioid drug abusers. The number of studies included in this review was limited, however, and this should be considered when interpreting the results.
Assessing gastro-intestinal related quality of life in cystic fibrosis: Validation of PedsQL GI in children and their parents

Background Most patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) suffer from pancreatic insufficiency, leading to fat malabsorption, malnutrition and abdominal discomfort. Until recently, no specific tool was available for assessing gastro-intestinal related quality of life (GI QOL) in patients with CF. As the Horizon2020 project MyCyFAPP aims to improve GI QOL by using a newly designed mobile application, a sensitive and reliable outcome measure was needed. We aimed to study the applicability of the existing child-specific Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory, Gastrointestinal Symptoms Scales and Module (PedsQL GI) in children with CF. Methods A multicenter, prospective observational study was performed in 6 European centers to validate the PedsQL GI in children with CF during 3 months. Results In total, 248 children and their parents were included. Within-patient variability of PedsQL GI was low (24.11), and there was reasonable agreement between children and parents (ICC 0.681). Nine of 14 subscales were informative (no ceiling effect). The PedsQL GI and the median scores for 4 subscales were significantly lower in patients compared to healthy controls. Positive associations were found between PedsQL GI and age (OR = 1.044, p = 0.004) and between PedsQL GI and BMI z-score (OR = 1.127, p = 0.036). PedsQL GI correlated with most CFQ-R subscales (r 0.268 to 0.623) and with a Visual Analogue Scale (r = 0.20). Conclusions PedsQL GI is a valid and applicable instrument to assess GI QOL in children with CF. Future research efforts should examine the responsiveness of the CF PedsQL GI to change in the context of clinical interventions and trials.
Association between workplace bullying and burnout, professional quality of life, and turnover intention among clinical nurses

Workplace bullying experienced by clinical nurses is associated with burnout, a factor that threatens the quality of nursing care and patient safety. This study examined the association of workplace bullying with burnout, professional quality of life, and turnover intention among clinical nurses. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted using a structured questionnaire. Data were collected from 324 nurses and were analyzed using t-test, one-way analysis of variance, and multiple regression. Controlling for the general characteristics of the participants, workplace bullying had a significant association with emotional exhaustion (B = 0.29, p < 0.01) and depersonalization (B = 0.15, p < 0.01) among the subdomains of burnout, compassion fatigue among the components of professional quality of life (B = 0.15, p < 0.01), and turnover intention (B = 0.05, p < 0.01). Thus, preventing workplace bullying is important to reduce clinical nurses’ burnout and turnover. The role of nursing leadership is crucial to develop interventions that reduce workplace bullying and successfully create a professional, nurturing, and supportive work culture.
Metoprolol decreases retention of fear memory and facilitates long-term depression in lateral amygdala

Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text. Posttraumatic stress disorder is a mental disorder with a known cause, yet effective behavioral and pharmacotherapies remain elusive for many afflicted patients. Propranolol is suggested to be effective as a fear-reducing agent when paired with behavioral therapy soon after trauma when psychological stress is high, possibly dampening or preventing the later development of posttraumatic stress disorder. In our previous study, we found propranolol efficaciously reduced fear retention induced by reactivation via β-adrenergic receptors in lateral amygdala. However, it is unclear which subtypes of β-adrenergic receptors dominate the function of adrenergic activation in lateral amygdala. In this study, we investigated the action of β1-adrenergic receptor antagonist-metoprolol and β2-adrenergic receptor antagonist-butoxamine on the retention of conditioned fear memory and synaptic adaptation in the lateral amygdala of rats. We found metoprolol not butoxamine attenuated the reactivation-induced strengthening of fear retention and restored the impaired long-term depression in lateral amygdala. Intra-amygdala infusion of metoprolol not butoxamine attenuated reactivation-induced enhancement of fear retention. Our results suggest that β1-adrenergic receptor antagonist-metoprolol may be more suitable for the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder.
Glycosaminoglycan from Apostichopus japonicus Improves Glucose Metabolism in the Liver of Insulin Resistant Mice

Holothurian glycosaminoglycan isolated from Apostichopus japonicus (named AHG) can suppress hepatic glucose production in insulin resistant hepatocytes, but its effects on glucose metabolism in vivo are unknown. The present study was conducted to investigate the effects of AHG on hyperglycemia in the liver of insulin resistant mice induced by a high-fat diet (HFD) for 12 weeks. The results demonstrated that AHG supplementation apparently reduced body weight, blood glucose level, and serum insulin content in a dose-dependent manner in HFD-fed mice. The protein levels and gene expression of gluconeogenesis rate-limiting enzymes G6Pase and PEPCK were remarkedly suppressed in the insulin resistant liver. In addition, although the total expression of IRS1, Akt, and AMPK in the insulin resistant liver was not affected by AHG supplementation, the phosphorylation of IRS1, Akt, and AMPK were clearly elevated by AHG treatment. These results suggest that AHG could be a promising natural marine product for the development of an antihyperglycemic agent.
Reactive Postural Responses to Continuous Yaw Perturbations in Healthy Humans: The Effect of Aging

Maintaining balance stability while turning in a quasi-static stance and/or in dynamic motion requires proper recovery mechanisms to manage sudden center-of-mass displacement. Furthermore, falls during turning are among the main concerns of community-dwelling elderly population. This study investigates the effect of aging on reactive postural responses to continuous yaw perturbations on a cohort of 10 young adults (mean age 28 ± 3 years old) and 10 older adults (mean age 61 ± 4 years old). Subjects underwent external continuous yaw perturbations provided by the RotoBit1D platform. Different conditions of visual feedback (eyes opened and eyes closed) and perturbation intensity, i.e., sinusoidal rotations on the horizontal plane at different frequencies (0.2 Hz and 0.3 Hz), were applied. Kinematics of axial body segments was gathered using three inertial measurement units. In order to measure reactive postural responses, we measured body-absolute and joint absolute rotations, center-of-mass displacement, body sway, and inter-joint coordination. Older adults showed significant reduction in horizontal rotations of body segments and joints, as well as in center-of-mass displacement. Furthermore, older adults manifested a greater variability in reactive postural responses than younger adults. The abnormal reactive postural responses observed in older adults might contribute to the well-known age-related difficulty in dealing with balance control during turning.
Physical Workload Tracking Using Human Activity Recognition with Wearable Devices

In this work, authors address workload computation combining human activity recognition and heart rate measurements to establish a scalable framework for health at work and fitness-related applications. The proposed architecture consists of two wearable sensors: one for motion, and another for heart rate. The system employs machine learning algorithms to determine the activity performed by a user, and takes a concept from ergonomics, the Frimat’s score, to compute the corresponding physical workload from measured heart rate values providing in addition a qualitative description of the workload. A random forest activity classifier is trained and validated with data from nine subjects, achieving an accuracy of 97.5%. Then, tests with 20 subjects show the reliability of the activity classifier, which keeps an accuracy up to 92% during real-time testing. Additionally, a single-subject twenty-day physical workload tracking case study evinces the system capabilities to detect body adaptation to a custom exercise routine. The proposed system enables remote and multi-user workload monitoring, which facilitates the job for experts in ergonomics and workplace health.
Effects of preemptive intravenous paracetamol and ibuprofen on headache and myalgia in patients after electroconvulsive therapy

Abstract Background: The aim of this study is to determine the efficacy of preemptive analgesia with paracetamol and ibuprofen to reduce the intensity and incidence of headache and myalgia after electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). Methods: Sixty patients with major depression who were treated with ECT were randomized to receive ECT 3 times a week. The first 3 sessions were included in the study. The patients were divided into 3 groups; Group C (Control, Saline, n = 20), Group P (Paracetamol, n = 20), and Group I (Ibuprofen, n = 20). Demographics, duration of seizure, visual analog scale (VAS) for headache and myalgia and nausea, vomiting and pruritus were evaluated at postoperative 24 hours period. Results: Duration of seizure after ECT was similar in all groups (P = .148). In the study, heart rate and mean arterial pressure were found to be some changes in some of the sessions. There were no significant differences in any comparison for all groups in all sessions regarding VAS scores for headache and myalgia. Incidence of headache and myalgia in Group I was lower than the other groups (P = .233, P = .011, respectively). But, there was no significant difference between the other groups. There was no significant difference in vomiting, intergroups, and intragroup. Conclusions: The findings of our study indicate that pain intensity of headache and myalgia did not show a significant change between groups and within groups. While pain intensity of myalgia between the groups reached no statistical significance, ibuprofen was significantly lowered the incidence of myalgia at postoperative 24 hours period.
Static and Dynamic Cognitive Performance in Youth and Collegiate Athletes With Concussion

Objective: To determine if individuals with a concussion demonstrate altered cognitive performance while standing still or while walking relative to uninjured controls. Design: Cross-sectional. Setting: Sports-medicine clinic. Participants: Youth and collegiate athletes diagnosed with a concussion, assessed within 10 days of injury, and a group of uninjured control subjects. Independent Variables: Concussion and control groups. Main Outcome Measures: Participants stood still for 30 seconds while completing a cognitive task (spelling words backward, serial subtraction, or reverse month recitation) and completed a similar set of cognitive tasks while walking. Our primary outcome variables were (1) overall cognitive task performance (accuracy) and (2) the total number of task items completed during testing (completion rate) during standing and walking conditions. Results: One hundred ninety-one participants completed the study: 94 with concussion (tested mean = 5.1 ± 2.9 days postconcussion; 51% female; mean age = 17.1 ± 3.3 years) and 97 control subjects (40% female; mean age = 17.5 ± 2.1 years). The concussion group completed significantly fewer responses than the control group while standing still (37.3 ± 14.5 vs 45.1 ± 17.6 responses; P = 0.03) and while walking (22.7 ± 7.5 vs 33.6 ± 13.4 responses; P < 0.001). They were also significantly less accurate at spelling words backward (81.2 ± 28.6% correct vs 89.8 ± 15.0% correct; P = 0.049) and reciting months in reverse order (95.8 ± 10.4% correct vs 98.2 ± 4.2% correct; P = 0.034) while walking. Conclusions: Athletes displayed lower cognitive task accuracy rates after concussion compared with control subjects during backward spelling and reverse month recitation tasks while walking but similar levels of accuracy while standing. Assessment of cognitive performance during dynamic tasks may be a clinically viable method to evaluate post-concussion deficits.