Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Intracranial self-stimulation reverses impaired spatial learning and regulates serum microRNA levels in a streptozotocin-induced rat model of Alzheimer disease

Background The assessment of deep brain stimulation (DBS) as a therapeutic alternative for treating Alzheimer disease (AD) is ongoing. We aimed to determine the effects of intracranial self-stimulation at the medial forebrain bundle (MFB-ICSS) on spatial memory, neurodegeneration, and serum expression of microRNAs (miRNAs) in a rat model of sporadic AD created by injection of streptozotocin. We hypothesized that MFB-ICSS would reverse the behavioural effects of streptozotocin and modulate hippocampal neuronal density and serum levels of the miRNAs. Methods We performed Morris water maze and light–dark transition tests. Levels of various proteins, specifically amyloid-β precurser protein (APP), phosphorylated tau protein (pTAU), and sirtuin 1 (SIRT1), and neurodegeneration were analyzed by Western blot and Nissl staining, respectively. Serum miRNA expression was measured by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Results Male rats that received streptozotocin had increased hippocampal levels of pTAU S202/T205, APP, and SIRT1 proteins; increased neurodegeneration in the CA1, dentate gyrus (DG), and dorsal tenia tecta; and worse performance in the Morris water maze task. No differences were observed in miRNAs, except for miR-181c and miR-let-7b. After MFB-ICSS, neuronal density in the CA1 and DG regions and levels of miR-181c in streptozotocin-treated and control rats were similar. Rats that received streptozotocin and underwent MFB-ICSS also showed lower levels of miR-let-7b and better spatial learning than rats that received streptozotocin without MFB-ICSS. Limitations The reversal by MFB-ICSS of deficits induced by streptozotocin was fairly modest. Conclusion Spatial memory performance, hippocampal neurodegeneration, and serum levels of miR-let-7b and miR-181c were affected by MFB-ICSS under AD-like conditions. Our results validate the MFB as a potential target for DBS and lend support to the use of specific miRNAs as promising biomarkers of the effectiveness of DBS in combatting AD-associated cognitive deficits.
Diabase dyke swarms in the Lac de Gras area, Northwest Territories, and their significance to kimberlite exploration: initial results

In the Lac de Gras area, geochemical composition and field relationships characterize five Proterozoic diabase dyke swarms and provide data for the development of a tectonic model of dyke emplacement that has implications for kimberlite exploration. Patterns in dyke characteristics (age, orientation, geochemical composition, paleomagnetism) divide the dykes into populations, whose spatial relationship to known kimberlite pipes is tested using GIS and Bayesian techniques. Three Paleoproterozoic dyke swarms (Malley, MacKay, Lac de Gras), both individually and combined as a single population, have a moderate to strong spatial association with known kimberlite bodies. No apparent spatial association exists between younger dyke swarms (Mackenzie and 305°) and known kimberlite bodies. 2001-C8 L. Wilkinson et al. 1 CURRENT RESEARCH RECHERCHES EN COURS 2001 Article Article Titles Titres Purchase Information Information pour acheter
Agricultural Adaptation to Climate Change in Africa: Food Security in a Changing Environment

In response to global opportunities and domestic challenges, Ethiopia is revising its energy policy to switch from high-cost imported fossil fuel to domestically produced biofuels. Currently, there are biofuel investment activities in different parts of the country to produce ethanol and biodiesel. However, there is no rigorous empirical study to assess impacts of such investments. This paper assesses the distributive effect and food security implications of biofuels investment in Ethiopia, using data from 15 biofuels firms and 2 NGOs in a CGE (computable general equilibrium) analysis. Findings suggest that biofuels investments in the context of Ethiopia might have a ‘win-win’ outcome that can improve smallholder productivity (food security) and increase household welfare. In particular, the spillover effects of certain biofuels can increase the production of food cereals (with the effect being variable across regions) without increasing cereal prices. When spillover effects are considered, biofuel investment tends to improve the welfare of most rural poor households. Urban households benefit from returns to labor under some scenarios. These findings assume that continued government investment in roads allows biofuels production to expand on land that is currently unutilized, so that smallholders do not lose land. Investment in infrastructure such as roads can thus maximize the benefits of biofuels investment.
Prevalence and predictors of depression and anxiety in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is a persistent inflammation of the sinuses. As a result of long-term discomfort, patients may experience symptoms of common mental disorders such as anxiety and depression. This may affect the quality of life and disease progression. However, there is still uncertainty about the extent of the problem. Objective This meta-analysis aimed to determine the prevalence of depression and anxiety symptoms in patients with CRS. Search strategy We searched PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and CBM databases for relevant studies published before 15 July 2022 in patients with CRS with concomitant depression and anxiety symptoms. Data collection and analysis Two authors independently performed screening and quality assessment using validated tools. Extraction of data using predefined standardised data collection spreadsheets. Heterogeneity and inconsistency were checked using the I² statistic. Results The meta-analysis included 32 articles involving 56 933 patients. The prevalence of depression and anxiety symptoms was estimated at 24.7% (95% CI, 21.3% to 28. 1%) and 29.7% (95% CI, 19.3% to 40.2%). Subgroup analysis revealed the following: (1) CRS without nasal polyps (CRSsNP): 26.2% (95% CI, 21.9% to 30.5%), CRS with nasal polyps(CRSwNP): 20% (95% CI, 15.9% to 24%); (2) Female patients: 36. 1% (95% CI, 25.3% to 46.9%), male patients: 24.3% (95% CI, 12. 1% to 36.6%); and (3) The average age≤50 years patients: 29.8% (95% CI, 21.3% to 38.2%), the average age>50 years patients: 22. 1% (95% CI, 17.1% to 27%). Conclusion A significant proportion of people with CRS have symptoms of depression and anxiety, and early screening for depression and anxiety in people with CRS is critical. And, more attention needs to be given to females and patients with CRSsNP during screening. PROSPERO registration number CRD42022345959).
Exploring Local Influences on Zika Virus Rates in Puerto Rico Utilizing Geographically Weighted Regression

ABSTRACT This study explores the potential factors influencing the incidence of Zika virus in Puerto Rico. The primary transmission of the Zika virus to the human population is through mosquito bites. This study uses geographically weighted regression (GWR) to better understand what influences the rate of Zika transmission. By September 2016, there were 22,348 confirmed cases of the Zika virus in Puerto Rico. Results indicated municipalities with higher poverty also had some of the highest Zika rates, ranging from 24.03 to 97.62 per 100,000 of the population. Additionally, communities or municipalities facing higher incidence of poverty have a greater potential for stagnant water accumulation (breeding grounds for mosquitoes) and reduced access to resources to combat the mosquito population. With the increased threat to fetal development and the rapid spread of the virus, studying local variation of influences on incidence rates has the potential to reduce risk of infection, which is paramount to the public health and safety initiatives currently underway in Puerto Rico and abroad. As of May 2017, the number of documented Zika cases has reached 39,088, which represents an increase of 16,740 cases since September 2016.
Clouds in the Martian Atmosphere

Although resembling an extremely dry desert, planet Mars hosts clouds in its atmosphere. Every day somewhere on the planet a part of the tiny amount of water vapor held by the atmosphere can condense as ice crystals to form mainly cirrus-type clouds. The existence of water ice clouds has been known for a long time and they have been studied for decades, leading to the establishment of a well-known climatology and understanding on their formation and properties. Despite their thinness, they have a clear impact on the atmospheric temperatures, thus affecting the Martian climate. Another, more exotic type of clouds forms as well on Mars. The atmospheric temperatures can plunge to such frigid values that the major gaseous component of the atmosphere, CO2, condenses as ice crystals. These clouds form in the cold polar night where they also contribute to the formation of the CO2 ice polar cap, and also in the mesosphere at very high altitudes, near the edge of space, analogously to the noctilucent clouds on Earth. The mesospheric clouds, discovered in the early 2000s, have put our understanding of the Martian atmosphere to a test. On Mars, cloud crystals form on ice nuclei, mostly provided by the omnipresent mineral dust. Thus, the clouds link the three major climatic cycles: those of the two major volatiles, H2O and CO2, and that of dust, which is a major climatic agent itself.
Overview of the 2023 ALTA Shared Task: Discriminate between Human-Written and Machine-Generated Text

The ALTA shared tasks have been running annually since 2010. In 2023, the purpose of the task is to build automatic detection systems that can discriminate between human-written and synthetic text generated by Large Language Models (LLM). In this paper we present the task, the evaluation criteria, and the results of the systems participating in the shared task.
De novo evolution of transmissible tumors in Hydra

While most cancers are not transmissible, there are rare cases where cancer cells have acquired the ability to spread vertically or horizontally to other individuals, and sometimes species, causing epidemics in their hosts. However, as these transmissible cancers are usually detected once they are relatively well disseminated in host populations, the conditions associated with their origin remain poorly understood. Using the freshwater cnidarian Hydra oligactis, which exhibits spontaneous tumor development that in some strains became vertically transmitted, this study presents the first experimental observation of the evolution of a transmissible tumor. Specifically, we assessed the initial vertical transmission rate of spontaneous tumors and explored the potential for optimizing this rate through artificial selection. One of the hydra strains, which evolved transmissible tumors over five generations, was characterized by analysis of cell type and microbiome, as well as assessment of life-history traits. Our findings indicate that tumor transmission can be immediate for some strains and can be enhanced by selection. The resulting tumors are characterized by overproliferation of large interstitial stem cells and, in contrast with other transmissible tumors on Hydra, are not associated with a specific microbiome. Furthermore, although tumor transmission has only been established over 5 generations, it was sufficient to alter life-history traits in the host, suggesting a compensatory response. This work, therefore, makes the first contribution to understanding the conditions of transmissible cancer emergence and their short-term consequences for the host.
Emotion arousal but not valence is strongly represented in aperiodic EEG activity stemming from thalamocortical interactions

Oscillatory EEG signals contain both periodic and aperiodic (1/f components), segregating which is important for gaining insights into the underlying neural computations. Several studies have explored the periodic features underlying neural basis of emotion processing, while 1/f component is less explored. Hence, the present study sought to determine whether seeing emotionally laden music video clips have an impact on aperiodic components along with the periodic components and their underlying basis by conceptualizing a biophysically realistic computational model. Using the publicly available Data for Emotional Analysis using Physiological Signals (DEAP) dataset we elucidate that there is a significant increase in exponent and offset of aperiodic background during high arousal compared to low arousal trials. In contrast, there were no discernible variations between the aperiodic components during the high and low valence categories. In high arousal, we also discovered reduction in alpha power in line with previous studies. Finally, to elucidate the underlying mechanisms, we employed a biophysically realistic and previously established thalamo-cortical model of neural field activity, which which allowed us to characterize that heightened emotional arousal appears emerge from an increased cooperation in information communication between neuronal populations in reticular and relay nuclei of thalamus. Significance statement Dissociation of emotion and valence and arousal is an established theory in affective neuroscience. Are these dimensions represented in aperiodic background of macrocscopic electrophysiological scales of EEG? We sought to ask this question in the publicly available DEAP data. Our findings of increased aperiodic components during high arousal in contrast to low arousal suggest heightened neural activity alongside an inhibitory influence. Using a neural field model of thalamo-cortical interactions reveals a mechanistic approach that suggests heightened arousal corresponds to an enhanced inhibitory coupling between thalamic reticular and relay neuronal populations. In essence, this study advances our understanding of the intricate relationship between electrophysiological signals and emotion dimensions, shedding light on the mechanisms underlying arousal-related emotional responses.
A biological model of nonlinear dimensionality reduction

Obtaining appropriate low-dimensional representations from high-dimensional sensory inputs in an unsupervised manner is essential for straightforward downstream processing. Although nonlinear dimensionality reduction methods such as t-distributed stochastic neighbor embedding (t-SNE) have been developed, their implementation in simple biological circuits remains unclear. Here, we develop a biologically plausible dimensionality reduction algorithm compatible with t-SNE, which utilizes a simple three-layer feedforward network mimicking the Drosophila olfactory circuit. The proposed learning rule, described as three-factor Hebbian plasticity, is effective for datasets such as entangled rings and MNIST, comparable to t-SNE. We further show that the algorithm could be working in olfactory circuits in Drosophila by analyzing the multiple experimental data in previous studies. We finally suggest that the algorithm is also beneficial for association learning between inputs and rewards, allowing the generalization of these associations to other inputs not yet associated with rewards.
Anti-fungal recombinant psoriasin effectively inhibits Candida albicans growth on denture base

Oral candidiasis leading to denture stomatitis is a fungal infection resulting from unregulated growth and adhesion mainly of Candida albicans onto acrylic denture base. Once the biofilm is formed, it is immune resistant and mainstay treatments involve toxic chemical antifungal agents or mechanical cleaning techniques, both offer limited efficacy. Consequently, there is an urgent need for more effective and safer therapeutic approaches. While biological modalities are expanding in general medicine, the exploration of protein-based therapeutics in dental medicine remains limited. This research evaluates the inhibitory effect of recombinantly expressed psoriasin on the growth of Candida albicans on polymethyl methacrylate denture bases. Psoriasin, also known as S100-A7, has shown promise in treating microbial skin infections, and its natural presence in saliva makes it a promising candidate for treating oral microbial infections. Our findings indicate that psoriasin exhibits a strong, dose-dependent inhibition of Candida albicans growth. Further, we incubated a polymethyl methacrylate denture base within the psoriasin solution. Notably, immersing the denture base in the solution completely eradicated fungal growth. Our research utilizes natural antifungal proteins within biomedical devices like denture bases, suggesting psoriasin as a safe alternative to chemical antifungals in dental medicine.
The Effect of Rosmarinus officinalis and Trachyspermum ammi on the Growth of Eruca vesicaria ssp. sativa in Hydroponics Versus Natural Soil

Despite technology being developed to address the food shortages due to increasing population, current methods of cultivating crops are not sufficient. Scientists are addressing this issue by researching biostimulants that stimulate plant growth without harming the environment and researching the use of hydroponics, a way of growing crops without soil. The purpose of this study was to combine the use of essential oils and growing methods (hydroponics and soil) and measure its impact on the height of E. sativa . It was hypothesized that if E. sativa was grown hydroponically with added Rosmarinus officinalis (REO) and Trachyspermum ammi (TEO) over time, it would demonstrate greater growth because manipulating these aspects would directly impact the plants ’ development and nutrient uptake. A 0.7% spray mixture of REO and of TEO was added to different sets of plants every five days in both the soil and hydroponic environments, and the height of the plants were measured each time. The results of the one - way ANOVAs (comparing the two environments) and z - and t - tests (comparing REO, TEO, and no treatment in the environments) suggest that there were no significant differences between the treatment of the oil used and the environment in which the plants were grown. Thus, it was concluded that there is not sufficient evidence to suggest there is a difference between the height of the E. sativa exposed to essential oils and those not exposed to essential oils in soil or hydroponics.
Treatment of Patients with Asymptomatic Ventricular Pre-Excitation Results of a Tiered Non-Invasive Electrocardiographic and Invasive Electrophysiological Risk Stratification Approach

Aims: Treatment of asymptomatic Wolff-Parkinson-White (aWPW) patients has been a controversial issue, with approaches ranging from only follow up to ablation of all Accessory Pathways (APs). We aimed to assess the ability of a stepwise, non-invasive and invasive risk stratification approach to detect and manage high risk aWPW patients. Methods: The first step was the detection of low-risk APs with intermittent pre-excitation (pre-excitation disappearance - PED - on 12-lead ECG, on 24-hour Holter recording, or during an exercise stress test). In cases of no PED, invasive Electrophysi - ological Study (EPS) was pursued in order to determine the Ef - fective Refractory Period (ERP) of the AP, and, should it be found ≤250msec, endocardial ablation was offered. Results : Eighty-five aWPW patients were included (55 male, mean age 29 years), in 32 of whom PED was noted. The remain - ing 53 patients were submitted to EPS revealing at least one AP (23 were located at the left ventricular free wall, 24 at the poste - rior septal area, 2 were anteroseptal, and 5 were located at the right ventricular wall - a single patient had 2 APs - mean ERP was 302msec). Ablation of the AP was offered to 10 high-risk patients with one of them declining. All procedures were successful with pre-excitation disappearance. During a prolonged follow up pe - riod (171±90months), no sudden cardiac deaths were observed, with all patients remaining asymptomatic. Conclusion: A tiered, mixed non-invasive electrocardiographic and invasive electrophysiological risk stratification approach leading to ablation of high-risk APs is safe and effective among aWPW patients.
Spatial Analysis of Gene Expression: Impact of Long-Distance Running on Cellular Pathways

: This study conducts a systematic review and computational analysis of over 15 research papers to explore the impact of exhaustive endurance running on genetic and metabolic pathways. Focusing on variations in WBC counts, CK serum metabolites, cortisol levels, and gene expression among ultramarathon and marathon runners, the research identifies stress-induced genetic alterations affecting metabolic and oxidative pathways. The findings highlight temporary and permanent genetic changes, underscoring the need for further research into the complex relationship between running and genetic regulation. This work serves as a foundational reference for future investigations in sports physiology, offering valuable insights for the public, coaches, and healthcare professionals.
An Investigation of Ski-Snow Friction

Traditional cross country skiing is an interplay between the active motion of the body of the skier and the physical interaction between the surface of the skis and the snow. Friction and glide between the solid substrate and the snow is a function of the snow temperature, surface chemistry and roughness, dry friction and liquid film flow. It is a truly multi-scale phenomenon with physics from the thickness of the water film (< 100 nm) to a snow crystal (∼ mm) to the length of the skis (1-2 m). Although a great amount of resources have been spent on understanding glide and friction — the Norwegian National team in skiing plan to use 15 million NOK in 2014/2018 alone [22], a basic physical understanding of the phenomenon is still at large and limits novel development of new and robust methods to control glide. This thesis work focuses on the basic mechanical effects that can help to better understand the phenomena of glide and friction that occur between snow and skis. Two experimental systems were developed, one in the laboratory and one in the field. Both experiments features versatile instruments assembled from off-the-shelf sensors and open-source electronics. The laboratory setup is a novel linear tribometer (3 m long and 0.1 m wide) that allows studies of various friction regimes. The setup has been validated against known coefficients of kinetic friction. Furthermore, the investigation of other frictional regimes, e.g. hydrodynamic lubrication, yields results in compliance with theory. Seeing that a lot of the same instruments were to be used in both experiments, the laboratory setup also functioned as a preparation for the experiment to be conducted in the field. The field setup features a mobile, novel linear tribometer allowing investigation with whole skis in realistic cross-country conditions. The coefficient of kinetic friction between ski and snow is measured by a load cell, i.e. the force necessary to pull a ski sled along a flat track. Thermistors measures the temperature in the ski-snow interface. In addition, a GPS measures displacement and velocity (accuracy ± 0.06 m/s). Coefficient of frictions ranging from μk = 0.033 during cold weather (T = −11C) to μk = 0.0145 during warm weather (T = 0C) were measured. The highest temperature increase (∆T ≈ 5C) was measured 40 cm from the ski tip at the highest velocity of 27 km/h. The obtained results are in compliance with several reported properties from similar experiments, e.g. coefficient of friction, temperature increase in ski-snow interface and the frictions dependence on velocity. Furthermore, cold and wet grinded skis were instrumented with thermistors enabling us to differentiate the difference in