Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Zoledronic Acid Blocks Overactive Kir6.1/SUR2-Dependent KATP Channels in Skeletal Muscle and Osteoblasts in a Murine Model of Cantú Syndrome

Cantú syndrome (CS) is caused by the gain of function mutations in the ABCC9 and KCNJ8 genes encoding, respectively, for the sulfonylureas receptor type 2 (SUR2) and the inwardly rectifier potassium channel 6.1 (Kir6.1) of the ATP-sensitive potassium (KATP) channels. CS is a multi-organ condition with a cardiovascular phenotype, neuromuscular symptoms, and skeletal malformations. Glibenclamide has been proposed for use in CS, but even in animals, the drug is incompletely effective against severe mutations, including the Kir6.1wt/V65M. Patch-clamp experiments showed that zoledronic acid (ZOL) fully reduced the whole-cell KATP currents in bone calvaria cells from wild type (WT/WT) and heterozygous Kir6.1wt/V65MCS mice, with IC50 for ZOL block < 1 nM in each case. ZOL fully reduced KATP current in excised patches in skeletal muscle fibers in WT/WT and CS mice, with IC50 of 100 nM in each case. Interestingly, KATP currents in the bone of heterozygous SUR2wt/A478V mice were less sensitive to ZOL inhibition, showing an IC50 of ~500 nM and a slope of ~0.3. In homozygous SUR2A478V/A478V cells, ZOL failed to fully inhibit the KATP currents, causing only ~35% inhibition at 100 μM, but was responsive to glibenclamide. ZOL reduced the KATP currents in Kir6.1wt/VMCS mice in both skeletal muscle and bone cells but was not effective in the SUR2[A478V] mice fibers. These data indicate a subunit specificity of ZOL action that is important for appropriate CS therapies.
Iron Status and Supplementation during Tuberculosis

Tuberculosis (TB) is characterised by chronic non-resolving inflammation. The effects of the host immune and inflammatory response to reduce iron acquisition by the bacteria, together with other contributing factors, predispose TB patients to anaemia of infection and iron deficiency anaemia (IDA). The presence of anaemia in TB patients has been linked to poor clinical outcomes. However, due to the reliance of the bacteria on iron, the management of anaemia in TB is complicated, and anaemia of infection is likely to resolve with correct TB drug treatment. On the other hand, IDA may require iron supplementation. This review aims to describe iron metabolism in TB and how this contributes to the development of iron deficiency and anaemia. Additionally, we summarise the evidence on the association between iron status and clinical outcomes as well as the available preclinical and clinical trials on iron supplementation in TB.
Novel MXene-Modified Polyphenyl Sulfone Membranes for Functional Nanofiltration of Heavy Metals-Containing Wastewater

In this work, MXene as a hydrophilic 2D nanosheet has been suggested to tailor the polyphenylsulfone (PPSU) flat sheet membrane characteristics via bulk modification. The amount of MXene varied in the PPSU casting solution from 0–1.5 wt. %, while a series of characterization tools have been employed to detect the surface characteristics changes. This included atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), contact angle, pore size and porosity, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Results disclosed that the MXene content could significantly influence some of the membranes’ surface characteristics while no effect was seen on others. The optimal MXene content was found to be 0.6 wt. %, as revealed by the experimental work. The roughness parameters of the 0.6 wt. % nanocomposite membrane were notably enhanced, while greater hydrophilicity has been imparted compared to the nascent PPSU membrane. This witnessed enhancement in the surface characteristics of the nanocomposite was indeed reflected in their performance. A triple enhancement in the pure water flux was witnessed without compromising the retention of the membranes against the Cu2+, Cd2+ and Pd2+ feed. In parallel, high, and comparable separation rates (>92%) were achieved by all membranes regardless of the MXene content. In addition, promising antifouling features were observed with the nanocomposite membranes, disclosing that these nanocomposite membranes could offer a promising potential to treat heavy metals-containing wastewater for various applications.
Polar Factorization and Monotone Rearrangement of Vector-Valued Functions

Given a probability space (X, p) and a bounded domain R in Rd equipped with the Lebesgue measure 1 . I (normalized so that 10 I = I ), it is shown (under additional technical assumptions on X and Q) that for every vector-valued function u E Lp(X, p; Rd) there is a unique “polar factorization” u = V$. s, where $ is a convex function defined on R and s is a measure-preserving mapping from (X, p) into (Q, I . I), provided that u is nondegenerate, in the sense that p(u-’(E)) = 0 for each Lebesgue negligible subset E of Rd. Through this result, the concepts of polar factorization of real matrices, Helmholtz decomposition of vector fields, and nondecreasing rearrangements of real-valued functions are unified. The Monge-Amgre equation is involved in the polar factorization and the proof relies on the study of an appropriate “Monge-Kantorovich” problem.
The ROSAT-ESO Flux-Limited X-Ray (REFLEX) Galaxy Cluster Survey III: The Power Spectrum

We present a measure of the power spectrum on scales from 15 to 800 Mpc/h using the ROSAT-ESO Flux-Limited X-Ray(REFLEX) galaxy cluster catalogue. The REFLEX survey provides a sample of the 452 X-ray brightest southern clusters of galaxies with the nominal flux limit S=3.0 10^{-12}erg/s/cm2 for the ROSAT energy band (0.1-2.4)keV. Several tests are performed showing no significant incompletenesses of the REFLEX clusters with X-ray luminosities brighter than 10^{43}erg/s up to scales of about 800 Mpc/h. They also indicate that cosmic variance might be more important than previous studies suggest. We regard this as a warning not to draw general cosmological conclusions from cluster samples with a size smaller than REFLEX. Power spectra, P(k), of comoving cluster number densities are estimated for flux- and volume-limited subsamples. The most important result is the detection of a broad maximum within the comoving wavenumber range 0.022<k<0.030 h/Mpc. The data suggest an increase of the power spectral amplitude with X-ray luminosity. Compared to optically selected cluster samples the REFLEX P(k)is flatter for wavenumbers k<0.05 h/Mpc thus shifting the maximum of P(k) to larger scales. The smooth maximum is not consistent with the narrow peak detected at k=0.05 h/Mpc using the Abell/ACO richness $\ge 0$ data. In the range 0.02<k<0.4 h/Mpc general agreement is found between the slope of the REFLEX P(k) and those obtained with optically selected galaxies. A semi-analytic description of the biased nonlinear power spectrum in redshift space gives the best agreement for low-density Cold Dark Matter models with or without a cosmological constant.
Plasma properties above coronal active regions inferred from SOHO/UVCS and radio spectrograph observations

Information on coronal plasma was inferred from the joint analysis of type  radio bursts and SOHO UltraViolet Coronagraph Spectrometer (UVCS) observations. The data sample comprises 37 metric type  radio bursts observed by ground- based radio spectrographs in 1999, during the rising phase of the solar cycle. The coronal electron densities ne were estimated with the diagnostic provided by UVCS observations of the O  doublet line intensities. Upper limits to the coronal Alfven speed above active regions were inferred from the derived shock speeds by requiring that the disturbances propagate at least faster than the local characteristic speed. Information on the magnetic field strength B and plasma β in the middle corona were finally extracted from the coronal Alfven speed upper limits. A major improvement with respect to previous studies that used type  radio bursts to derive plasma properties, is that density profiles of the pre-shock plasma obtained a few hours before the passage of the shock were used instead of general electron density models taken from literature. Our main result is expressed by the inequality B(r) ≤ (0.6 ± 0.3)(r − 1) −1.2 G, that is valid in the range 1.5 ≤ r ≤ 2.3 solar radii, and is consistent with previous estimates of the magnetic field above coronal active regions.
Hubble Space Telescope WFPC2 Observations of the Binary Fraction among Pre-Main-Sequence Cluster Stars in Orion

We present estimates of the binary frequency for optically visible (IHST < 19 mag) members of the dense (mean star separation ~0.05 pc) embedded stellar clusters associated with NGC 2024, NGC 2068, and NGC 2071 (distance = 460 pc) based on Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2) observations. Of 99 targets, 15 are found to be double stars with projected linear separations of 138-1050 AU (0.″3 < θ < 2.″3). The resulting multiplicity fraction is 15/99 or 0.15 ± 0.04 in this separation range, while the comparable values observed for solar neighborhood G and K stars are 0.11 and 0.09, respectively. We also examined the archival F547M WFPC2 images of the Trapezium cluster obtained by O'Dell & Wen and found a binary frequency of 7/50 or 0.14 ± 0.05 in the separation range 138-828 AU for stars with VHST < 17. Our results compare well with the value of 0.16 ± 0.03 determined recently by Reipurth & Zinnecker from observations of 238 pre-main-sequence (PMS) stars in nearby (d ~ 150 pc) low-density (mean star separation ~0.3 pc) star-forming regions over comparable separation ranges. Our results suggest an excess of PMS binaries over main-sequence binaries with the same separations. In addition, we find no evidence that the fraction of binaries formed in relatively dense clusters differs from that characterizing low-density star-forming regions.
Evaluation of ASGE Criteria for Prediction of Choledocholithiasis: Can Early Endoscopic Ultrasound Utilization Make the Prediction More Accurate?

Background ASGE predictive model for the detection of choledocholithiasis is a reasonable approach for the management of patients with cholelithiasis. Surgeons do not pursue cholecystectomy without evaluation of the biliary system when laboratory tests and diagnostic imaging evidence show biliary duct involvement. Literature revisions reveal that the prediction of choledocholithiasis based on ASGE criteria suffers from poor accuracy which results in unnecessary ERCPs. We decided to estimate the sensitivity and specificity of the ASGE predictive model for the detection of choledocholithiasis with the hope that early EUS would obviate the need for unnecessary ERCPs among highly probable patients for choledocholithiasis based on ASGE criteria. Methods This is a prospective intervention and control study on the accuracy of ASGE criteria for the prediction of choledocholithiasis. To evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of ASGE criteria, patients were followed in two groups of controls who were treated based on ASGE guidelines and cases who underwent primary EUS. The clinical relevance of the ASGE criteria was estimated by sensitivity and specificity using SPSS Statistics 28 software. Then, absolute risk reduction utilizing primary EUS was also calculated. Results The sensitivity and specificity of the ASGE predictive guideline for choledocholithiasis were estimated to be 62.31% and 51.85%, respectively. Evaluation of the ASGE guideline also revealed that patients in the intermediate probability group who finally required ERCP based on EUS results (false-negatives) were estimated to be 49.1% and patients who were predicted to require ERCP but finally did not need ERCP (false positives) were estimated to be 37.68%. The comparison of the two groups revealed the need for ERCP in about 55.56% of the primary EUS group and 77.42% in the ASGE group. Utilization of primary EUS reduced the need for ERCP by an absolute risk reduction of 0.299. (Primary Endpoint) Conclusion ASGE guideline is associated with the overestimation of ERCP in cholelithiasis. The usage of primary EUS will reduce the need for ERCP.
BIPOLARON SATURATION IN POLYPYRROLE

Saturation of bipolaron, the species responsible for conduction in polypyrrole (PPy), has been studied using positron annihilation lifetime (PAL) spectroscopy, conductivity, and electron spin resonance (ESR) measurement. It is observed that when strong oxidizing agents are used, the defects are predominantly bipolarons as is evident from the PAL spectroscopic studies coupled with ESR measurements and its saturation occurs right at the onset of oxidation. However, in the case of a mild oxidizing agent, the dominant defects are bipolarons only at higher oxidizing strengths $[g~1.0(N)]$ and no saturation is attained even at the highest strength studied. Conductivity data corroborate the findings.
Allergen Sensitization in Patients with Skin Diseases in Shanghai, China

Introduction Allergen distribution has obvious geographical characteristics. Understanding local epidemiological data may provide evidence-based strategies for the prevention and management of disease. We investigated the distribution of allergen sensitization in patients with skin diseases in Shanghai, China. Methods Data from tests for serum-specific immunoglobulin E were collected from 714 patients with three skin diseases who visited the Shanghai Skin Disease Hospital from January 2020 to February 2022. The prevalence of 16 allergen species, as well as age, sex, and disease-group differences in allergen sensitization, were investigated. Results Dermatophagoides farinae and Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus were the most common aeroallergen species to cause allergic sensitization in patients with skin diseases, whereas shrimp and crab were the most common food-allergen species. Children were more susceptible to various allergen species. With regard to sex differences, males were sensitized to more allergen species than females. Patients suffering from atopic dermatitis were sensitized to more allergenic species than patients with non-atopic eczema or urticaria. Conclusion Allergen sensitization in patients with skin diseases in Shanghai differed by age, sex, and disease type. Knowing the prevalence of allergen sensitization across age, sex, and disease type may help facilitate diagnostic and intervention efforts, and guide the treatment and management of skin diseases in Shanghai.
Nonlinear wave motion governed by the modified Burgers equation

The modified Burgers equation (MBE) ∂V∂X+V2∂V∂τ=ε∂2V∂τ2 has recently been shown by a number of authors to govern the evolution, with range X, of weakly nonlinear, weakly dissipative transverse waves in several distinct physical contexts. The only known solutions to the MBE correspond to the steady shock wave (analogous to the well-known Taylor shock wave in a thermoviscous fluid) or to a similarity form. It can, moreover, be proved that there can exist no Bäcklund transformation of the WBE onto itself or onto any other parabolic equation, and in particular, therefore, that no linearizing transformation of Cole-Hopf type can exist. Attempts to understand the physics underlying the MBE must then, for the moment, rest on asymptotic studies and direct numerical computation.
Information-Theoretic Statistical Mechanics without Landauer’s Principle

This article distinguishes two different senses of information-theoretic approaches to statistical mechanics that are often conflated in the literature: those relating to the thermodynamic cost of computational processes and those that offer an interpretation of statistical mechanics where the probabilities are treated as epistemic. This distinction is then investigated through Earman and Norton’s ([1999]) ‘sound’ and ‘profound’ dilemma for information-theoretic exorcisms of Maxwell’s demon. It is argued that Earman and Norton fail to countenance a ‘sound’ information-theoretic interpretation and this paper describes how the latter inferential interpretations can escape the criticisms of Earman and Norton ([1999]) and Norton ([2005]) by adopting this ‘sound’ horn. This article considers a standard model of Maxwell’s demon to illustrate how one might adopt an information-theoretic approach to statistical mechanics without a reliance on Landauer’s principle, where the incompressibility of the probability distribution due to Liouville’s theorem is taken as the central feature of such an interpretation. 1 Introduction 2 Information-Theoretic SM 3 A Dilemma? 4 Maxwell’s Demon 5 The Cogency of the IT Account 6 Does Landauer’s Principle Save the Second Law? 7 Conclusion 1 Introduction 2 Information-Theoretic SM 3 A Dilemma? 4 Maxwell’s Demon 5 The Cogency of the IT Account 6 Does Landauer’s Principle Save the Second Law? 7 Conclusion
Lung Function Impairment, Associating Hyperinflation with Impaired Diffusion Capacity and Transfer Coefficient, Is a Risk Factor for Hip Osteoporosis in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a risk factor for osteoporosis. Our objective is to determine if functional indices associated with emphysema on pulmonary function tests (DLCO—diffusion capacity of the lung for CO-; DLCO/AV—DLCO corrected for alveolar volume- and TLC—total lung capacity), considered alone or together, can identify COPD patients with osteoporosis. Methods: 90 COPD patients underwent dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) and pulmonary function tests. Results: 26% of the COPD patients were osteoporotic. In univariate analysis, each functional parameter associated with emphysema, analyzed separately, was not associated with osteoporosis. In contrast, patients with hyperinflation associated with impaired diffusion capacity and transfer coefficient, defined by the association of the three functional indices (DLCO < 70%, DLCO/AV < 80% and CPT > 115%), had significantly more osteoporosis at the total hip (OR: 5.9, CI: 1.5–23.8, p = 0.013). In multivariate analysis, this phenotype was confirmed as an independent factor associated with hip osteoporosis. In contrast, COPD airway obstruction severity, based on FEV1 (%), was not associated with osteoporosis. A lower BMI, female gender and age were also identified as osteoporosis risk factors. Conclusions: COPD patients with hyperinflation associated with impaired diffusion capacity and transfer coefficient are at higher risk for osteoporosis. Pulmonary function tests associated with emphysema detection can help to identify COPD patients with osteoporosis, in addition to the classical risk factors.
Comparison of the Distribution of Household Financial Contributions to the Health System before and during COVID-19 Outbreak: Evidence from Nationwide Survey in Iran

Background Health and economy has substantially been influenced by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Because of these impacts, household financial contribution to health system is likely to be changed. This study aimed to compare the distribution of household financial contributions before and during the COVID-19 epidemic. Methods This is a cross-sectional study. The data were obtained from Iran's Households Income and Expenditure Survey as a national representative survey and included 38,328 households in 2019 (before COVID-19) and 37,577 households in 2020 (during COVID-19 pandemic). The household expenditures deflated according to the Consumer Price Index. The indices of households’ out-of-pocket Payments (OPP), catastrophic health expenditures (CHE), and impoverishment were calculated based on a standard methodology. Data analysis was done using an Excel-based software. Results The households' total expenditures declined for both urban and rural areas during the COVID-19 outbreak. Meanwhile, health expenditure experienced a negative growth rate for urban and rural households at –25.75% and –15.47%, respectively. The average per capita of OOP annually was 1,220,416 ($41.086 PPP) Rials for urban households and 1,017,760 Rials ($34.263 PPP) for rural households in 2020 (the era of COVID-19), which had dropped –30% and –16%, respectively, relative to 2019 (before COVID-19). The proportional share of health service types from the total health expenditure did not change importantly after the onset of COVID-19. The incidence of CHE and impoverishment due to health payments reduced after the onset of COVID-19. Conclusion The households' health expenditures changed considerably during the COVID-19 pandemic and these changes were the same for the urban and rural areas. Despite COVID-19 multi-faceted shocks, the findings of this study showed a slight decline in the incidence of CHE and impoverishment caused by health expenditures. It might be due to forgone health services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data from these household surveys have some limits to depicting the real effects of this crisis.
Spatial Sampling Points Selection for 3D REM Construciton

Radio environment map (REM) play an important role in managing frequency resources. In this paper, we exploit the sparsity of the signal source in spatial domain to construct a three-dimensional radio environment map(3D-REM) by compressed sensing (CS). Firstly, we proposed a spatial sampling points selection algorithm based on minimizing the column correlation values of sensing matrix. It is proved that the proposed algorithm can improve the recovery accuracy of REM under the same sampling rate. In practical scenarios, there may be some limitations to place sampling receivers in some specific locations, e.g., obstacles. Therefore, we consider a limted set of points which can not be sampled. Simulated annealing (SA) algorithm is used to find candidates when they are not available. Simulation results show that the proposed scheme can achieve better performance of recovery accuracy of REM than other algorithms.
Exploration of the Antioxidant Effect of Spermidine on the Ovary and Screening and Identification of Differentially Expressed Proteins

Spermidine is a naturally occurring polyamine compound that has many biological functions, such as inducing autophagy and anti-inflammatory and anti-aging effects. Spermidine can affect follicular development and thus protect ovarian function. In this study, ICR mice were fed exogenous spermidine drinking water for three months to explore the regulation of ovarian function by spermidine. The results showed that the number of atretic follicles in the ovaries of spermidine-treated mice was significantly lower than that in the control group. Antioxidant enzyme activities (SOD, CAT, T-AOC) significantly increased, and MDA levels significantly decreased. The expression of autophagy protein (Beclin 1 and microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 LC3 II/I) significantly increased, and the expression of the polyubiquitin-binding protein p62/SQSTM 1 significantly decreased. Moreover, we found 424 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) were upregulated, and 257 were downregulated using proteomic sequencing. Gene Ontology and KEGG analyses showed that these DEPs were mainly involved in lipid metabolism, oxidative metabolism and hormone production pathways. In conclusion, spermidine protects ovarian function by reducing the number of atresia follicles and regulating the level of autophagy protein, antioxidant enzyme activity, and polyamine metabolism in mice.