Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
“There Is No Link Between Resource Allocation and Use of Local Data”: A Qualitative Study of District-Based Health Decision-Making in West Bengal, India

Background: Effective coordination among multiple departments, including data-sharing, is needed for sound decision-making for health services. India has a district planning process involving departments for local resource-allocation based on shared data. This study assesses the decision-making process at the district level, with a focus on the extent of local data-use for resource allocation for maternal and child health. Methods: Direct observations of key decision-making meetings and qualitative interviews with key informants were conducted in two districts in the State of West Bengal, India. Content analysis of the data maintained within the district health system was done to understand the types of data available and sharing mechanisms. This information was triangulated thematically based on WHO health system blocks. Results: There was no structured decision-making process and only limited inter-departmental data-sharing. Data on all 21 issues discussed in the district decision-making meetings observed were available within the information systems. Yet indicators for only nine issues—such as institutional delivery and immunisation services were discussed. Discussions about infrastructure and supplies were not supported by data, and planning targets were not linked to health outcomes. Conclusion: Existing local data is highly under-used for decision-making at the district level. There is strong potential for better interaction between departments and better use of data for priority-setting, planning and follow-up.
Impact of Information Exposure on Perceived Risk, Efficacy, and Preventative Behaviors at the Beginning of the COVID-19 Pandemic in the United States

ABSTRACT This online survey took place on March 7, 2020 at the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States. Participants (n = 698) completed an online survey in which they were asked to reflect on their mediated and interpersonal information consumption, in addition to reporting on risk perceptions, general efficacy perceptions, and preventative behaviors specific to COVID-19 in the past seven days. Participant age and chronic condition status were controlled for in all analyses. Time spent consuming news, social media, and health website information was not related to risk perceptions. Time spent on health websites predicted time spent having interpersonal conversations about COVID-19, as well as general efficacy levels. Following the Extended Parallel Process Model, perceived severity, perceived susceptibility, and general perceived efficacy predicted preventative behaviors. The vast majority of participants did report taking preventative action against COVID-19, most commonly in the form of hand washing, with many enacting stronger preventative behaviors that had yet to be recommended for the general population. Overall, mediated and interpersonal information exposure had minimal effects on perceived risk and perceived general efficacy, which in turn predicted 27.5% of the variance in preventative behavior. Efficacy was the most powerful among these predictors, and health websites, specifically governmental websites, appeared to be underutilized resources with the potential to promote efficacy during outbreaks. Further research is needed to understand causation in these relationships and to assist in successful message transmission.
Le récepteur nucléaire de l'acide rétinoïque alpha (RARa) : nouveaux effets non-génomiques et nouveaux partenaires

Les recepteurs nucleaires de l’acide retinoique (AR) appeles RAR, se comportent comme des facteurs de transcription inductibles par le ligand. La transcription des genes cibles induite par l’AR, necessite la fixation des RAR au niveau de sequences specifiques des promoteurs et met en jeu des changements conformationnels des recepteurs qui controlent l’association/dissociation de toute une panoplie de coregulateurs. Cependant, en plus de ce modele genomique et nucleaire bien etabli, l’equipe du Dr Cecile Rochette-Egly a montre recemment que l’AR a aussi des effets non-genomiques et induit rapidement la voie de signalisation p38MAPK/MSK1 qui ensuite cible les RAR pour des cascades de phosphorylations et module la transcription des genes cibles. Pendant mon travail de these, j’ai mis en exergue trois nouveaux concepts originaux du mecanisme d’action du sous-type RARα. J’ai montre qu’une sous-population de RARα est presente dans des microdomaines membranaires, les radeaux lipiques ou “lipid rafts”ou elle interagit avec les proteines Gαq. Cette interaction est le signal des effets non genomiques de l’AR, l’activation de la voie de la p38MAPK. Ces effets ont ete correles a l’activite des genes cibles de l’AR, prouvant ainsi leur necessite. J’ai identifie un nouveau partenaire de RARα, la profiline IIA. J’ai analyse le mecanisme moleculaire de l’interaction et demontre qu’elle a lieu dans le noyau. La profiline IIA s’est revelee etre un regulateur des effects genomiques de RARα et est recrutee avec RARα au niveau des promoteurs des genes cibles. Finalement j’ai mis en evidence une nouvelle fonction de RARα dans le controle de l’adhesion et de l’etalement des cellules. D’ou l’hypothese de nouveaux effets genomiques de RARα avec la profiline IIA dans le controle de l‘expression des proteines d’adhesion. Cependant, de maniere inattendue, j ‘ai identifie une nouvelle population de RARα dans le cytoplasme de ces cellules. D’ou l’hypothese de nouveaux effets non genomiques dans le cytoplasme, via l’interaction de RARα avec des proteines d’adhesion.
Combinatorial chemistry : synthesis, analysis, screening

Combinatorial Chemistry survey of solid phase organic reactions solid phase combinatorial chemistry combinatorial chemistry of multicomponent reactions solid phase anchors in organic chemistry the use of templates in combinatorial chemistry for solid phase synthesis of multiple core structure libraries combinatorial synthetic oligomers glycopeptide and oligosaccharide libraries RNA and DNA aptamers combinatorial approaches to molecular receptors for chemosensors peptide libraries in T-cell mediated immune response combinatorial biosynthesis of microbial metabolites design and diversity analysis of compound libraries for lead discovery how to scale-up while scaling down - EVOscreen, a miniaturized ultra high throughput screening system high throughput experimentation in catalysis FT-infrared spectroscopy and IR-microscopy for on bead analysis of compound libraries mass spectrometric analysis of combinatorially generated compounds and libraries ion-cyclotron-resonance-FT-mass spectrometry for elemental composition analysis of library components automation in combinatorial synthesis.
The Greater Proportion of Born-Light Progeny from Sows Mated in Summer Contributes to Increased Carcass Fatness Observed in Spring

Simple Summary Pig producers are required to supply consistent lean carcasses to the market. However, the pig production cycle contains seasonal variation in carcass fatness, such that pigs finished in spring have a greater carcass backfat thickness than those finished in summer. Our experiment showed that when sows were mated in summer they had an increased incidence of born-light progeny (≤1.1 kg), which when finished in spring, had increased fatness. This finding provides a novel explanation for the seasonal variation of carcass fatness and sets a research direction for future mitigation strategies. Abstract The backfat of pig carcasses is greater in spring than summer in Australia. The unexplained seasonal variation in carcass backfat creates complications for pig producers in supplying consistent lean carcasses. As a novel explanation, we hypothesised that the increased carcass fatness in spring was due to a greater percentage of born-light progeny from sows that were mated in summer and experienced hot conditions during early gestation. The first part of our experiment compared the birth weight of piglets born to the sows mated in summer (February, the Southern Hemisphere) with those born to sows mated in autumn (May; the Southern Hemisphere), and the second part of the experiment compared the growth performance and carcass fatness of the progeny that were stratified as born-light (0.7–1.1 kg) and born-normal (1.3–1.7 kg) from the sows mated in these two seasons. The results showed that the sows mated in summer experienced hotter conditions during early gestation as evidenced by an increased respiration rate and rectal temperature, compared with those mated in autumn. The sows mated in summer had a greater proportion of piglets that were born ≤1.1 kg (24.2% vs. 15.8%, p < 0.001), lower average piglet birth weight (1.39 kg vs. 1.52 kg, p < 0.001), lower total litter weights (18.9 kg vs. 19.5 kg, p = 0.044) and lower average placental weight (0.26 vs. 0.31 kg, p = 0.011) than those mated in autumn, although litter sizes were similar. Feed intake and growth rate of progeny from 14 weeks of age to slaughter (101 kg live weight) were greater for the born-normal than born-light pigs within the progeny from sows mated in autumn, but there was no difference between the born-light and normal progeny from sows mated in summer, as evidenced by the interaction between piglet birth weight and sow mating season (Both p < 0.05). Only the born-light piglets from the sows mated in summer had a greater backfat thickness and loin fat% than the progeny from the sows mated in autumn, as evidenced by a trend of interaction between piglet birth weight and sow mating season (Both p < 0.10). In conclusion, the increased proportion of born-light piglets (0.7–1.1 kg range) from the sows mated in summer contributed to the increased carcass fatness observed in spring.
Dexmedetomidine and Clonidine Attenuate Sevoflurane-Induced Tau Phosphorylation and Cognitive Impairment in Young Mice via α-2 Adrenergic Receptor.

BACKGROUND Anesthetic sevoflurane induces tau phosphorylation and cognitive impairment in young mice. The underlying mechanism and the targeted interventions remain largely unexplored. We hypothesized that dexmedetomidine and clonidine attenuated sevoflurane-induced tau phosphorylation and cognitive impairment by acting on α-2 adrenergic receptor. METHODS Six-day-old mice received anesthesia with 3% sevoflurane 2 hours daily on postnatal days 6, 9, and 12. Alpha-2 adrenergic receptor agonist dexmedetomidine and clonidine were used to treat the mice with and without the α-2 adrenergic receptor antagonist yohimbine. Mouse hippocampi were harvested and subjected to western blot analysis. The New Object Recognition Test and Morris Water Maze were used to measure cognitive function. We analyzed the primary outcomes by using 2- and 1-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Mann-Whitney U test to determine the effects of sevoflurane on the amounts of phosphorylated tau, postsynaptic density-95, and cognitive function in young mice after the treatments with dexmedetomidine, clonidine, and yohimbine. RESULTS Both dexmedetomidine and clonidine attenuated the sevoflurane-induced increase in phosphorylated tau amount (94 ± 16.3% [dexmedetomidine plus sevoflurane] versus 240 ± 67.8% [vehicle plus sevoflurane], P < .001; 125 ± 13.5% [clonidine plus sevoflurane] versus 355 ± 57.6% [vehicle plus sevoflurane], P < .001; mean ± standard deviation), sevoflurane-induced reduction in postsynaptic density-95 (82 ± 6.6% [dexmedetomidine plus sevoflurane] versus 31 ± 12.4% [vehicle plus sevoflurane], P < .001; 95 ± 6.4% [clonidine plus sevoflurane] versus 62 ± 18.4% [vehicle plus sevoflurane], P < .001), and cognitive impairment in the young mice. Interestingly, yohimbine reversed the effects of dexmedetomidine and clonidine on attenuating the sevoflurane-induced changes in phosphorylated tau, postsynaptic density-95, and cognitive function. CONCLUSIONS Dexmedetomidine and clonidine could inhibit the sevoflurane-induced tau phosphorylation and cognitive impairment via activation of α-2 adrenergic receptor. More studies are needed to confirm the results and to determine the clinical relevance of these findings.
Women with mild fasting hyperglycemia in early pregnancy have more neonatal intensive care admissions

Abstract Aims To determine impact of mild fasting hyperglycemia in early pregnancy [fasting plasma glucose (FPG) (5.1-5.5mmol/l)] on pregnancy outcomes. Methods We measured FPG at 11.9 ±1.8 weeks in 2006 women from a prospective cohort study. Women with FPG ≥5.6mmol/l (19) received treatment and were excluded from further analyses. 1838 women with FPG <5.6mmol/l received a 75g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) between 24-28 weeks of pregnancy. Results Of all participants, 78 (4.2%) had FPG 5.1-5.5mmol/l in early pregnancy, of which 49 had a normal OGTT later in pregnancy [high fasting normal glucose tolerance (NGT) group]. Compared to the NGT group with FPG <5.1 mmol/l in early pregnancy (low fasting NGT group, n=1560), the high fasting NGT group had a higher BMI, higher insulin resistance with more impaired insulin secretion and higher FPG and 30 min glucose levels on the OGTT. The admission rate to neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) was significantly higher in the high fasting NGT group compared to the low fasting NGT group [20.4% (10) vs. 9.3% (143), p=0.009], with no difference in duration (7.0±8.6 vs. 8.4±14.3 days, p= 0.849) or indication for NICU admission between both groups. The admission rate to NICU remained significantly higher [OR 2.47 (95% CI 1.18-5.19), p=0.017] after adjustment for age, BMI and glucose levels at the OGTT. Conclusions When provision of an OGTT is limited such as in the Covid-19 pandemic, using FPG in early pregnancy could be an easy alternative to determine who is at increased risk for adverse pregnancy outcomes.
A Comparison between Elite Swimmers and Kayakers on Upper Body Push and Pull Strength and Power Performance

The aim of the present study was to compare the load-power curve expressed at bench press (PR) and prone bench pull (PU) between elite swimmers and kayakers. Another aim was to calculate the strength and power PR/PU ratio in the same populations. Fifteen elite swimmers (SW: age = 23.8 ± 2.9 y; body mass = 82.8 ± 5.6 kg; body height = 184.1 ± 4.6 cm) and 13 elite kayakers (KA: age = 23.8 ± 2.9 y; body mass = 91.0 ± 3.5 kg; body height = 180.1 ± 5.4 cm) were assessed for PR 1RM and PU 1RM. They were then assessed for power produced at 40, 60 and 80% of 1RM in both PR and PU. The area under the load-power curve (AUC) and PR/PU ratios were calculated for both the SW and KA groups. The KA group showed significantly higher PR1RM (+18.2%; p = 0.002) and PU1RM (+25.7%; p < 0.001) compared to the SW group. Significant group differences were also detected for PUAUC (p < 0.001) and for the PR/PU power ratio (p < 0.001). No significant group differences were detected for PRAUC (p = 0.605) and for the PR/PU strength ratio (p = 0.065; 0.87 and 0.82 in SW and KA, respectively). The present findings indicate that elite KA were stronger and more powerful than elite SW in the upper body. Not consistently with other athletic populations, both KA and SW athletes were stronger and more powerful in upper body pull compared to push moves.
Multimode Chalcogenide Fibre Based Platform for the Mid-IR Evanescent Wave Spectroscopy of Liquids

Development of distant real-time analysis of substances content by means of the fiber-based evanescent wave mid-IR spectroscopy encounters many problems such as fragility of few-mode chalcogenide fibers with sub-wavelength-size core, limited power density of radiation in the few-mode fibers, large coupling losses between sensing elements and the few-mode fibers. Using of multimode chalcogenide fibers provide a solution that is discussed in this paper. Examples of numerical characterisation of multimode fibers prove their suitability for combined functionalities as sensing elements and nonlinear frequency converters in the fiber-based sensors.
On the Concept of the Transmitted Field and Transmitted Power Density for Simplified Case of Hertz Dipole

The paper deals with a simple analytical approach to determine the transmitted field and transmitted power density (TPD) due to radiation of Hertz dipole in front of planar lossy half-space representing the simplified human tissue model. Human tissue is represented by muscle electrical properties on a given frequency. Dependence on the frequency and distance from the planar interface is analyzed. Some illustrative examples are presented.
Natural Antioxidant Control of Neuropathic Pain—Exploring the Role of Mitochondrial SIRT3 Pathway

Neuropathic pain is a chronic painful disease. Data have shown that reactive oxygen species (ROS) are implicated in chronic pain. Particularly, the enhanced ROS production alters the mitochondrial genome and proteome through the accumulation of lipid peroxidation products, such as 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE) and malondialdehyde (MDA). Sirtuin 3 (SIRT3) is a mitochondrial protein and its activity can reduce ROS levels by modulating key antioxidant enzymes, such as manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD). Here, we evaluated the role of SIRT3 in the maintenance of basal levels of ROS in a model of chronic constriction injury (CCI) of the sciatic nerve and the protective effects of a natural antioxidant, the bergamot polyphenolic fraction (BPF). Rats were exposed to CCI of the sciatic nerve in the presence or absence of BPF (25–75 mg/kg). Level of acetylation, post-translational modulation on cysteine residues of proteins by HNE and SIRT3 activation, were detected in the spinal cord through western blotting, WES methodology and enzymatic assays. Our results reported that SIRT3 carbonylation and therefore its inactivation contributes to mitochondrial MnSOD hyperacetylation during CCI induced neuropathic pain in rats. In particular, we have demonstrated a close relation between oxidative stress, hyperalgesia, allodynia and sirtuins inactivation reverted by BPF administration.
LRH-1 (liver receptor homolog-1) derived affinity peptide ligand to inhibit interactions between β-catenin and LRH-1 in pancreatic cancer cells: from computational design to experimental validation

Abstract Poor prognosis, rapid progression and the lack of an effective treatment make pancreatic cancer one of the most lethal malignancies. Recent studies point to a role for liver receptor homolog-1 (LRH-1) in pathogenesis of pancreatic cancer and suggest prevention of the β-catenin/LRH-1 complex formation as a potential strategy for inhibition of the pancreas cancer cells progression. In the current investigation, we have followed a biomimetic strategy and designed an affinity peptide with sequence DEMEEPQQTE to inhibit formation of the β-catenin/LRH-1 complex. Quantitative real-time PCR experiments on the AsPC-1 pancreatic metastatic cells showed that the peptide has an inhibitory effect on the Wnt signaling proliferation line by reducing the expression levels of the CCND1, CCNE1, and MYC genes. Furthermore, the increased expression level of BAX gene showed that AsPC-1 cells were directed to the apoptosis pathway. At last, POU5F1, KLF4, and CD44 gene expression levels suggested that the peptide has an inhibitory effect on the stemness feature of the AsPC-1 cells. Here, we introduced a novel peptide inhibitor targeting an important protein–protein interaction, the β-catenin/LRH-1 complex, which may provide highly promising starting points for subsequent drug design. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma
Visual image quality after small-incision lenticule extraction compared with that of spectacles and contact lenses

The objective visual image quality after small-incision lenticule extraction for high myopia is statistically but not clinically lowered when compared with myopic controls wearing spectacles and/or contact lenses. Purpose: To assess the influence of small-incision lenticule extraction (SMILE) for high myopia on the visual image quality assessed by the logarithm of the visual Strehl ratio (logVSX) and put this into a clinical context by pairwise comparing the logVSX of postoperative eyes with those of myopic controls wearing spectacles and/or contact lenses. Setting: University hospital. Design: Prospective and cross-sectional clinical study. Methods: Patients with a myopic spherical equivalent of at least 6.00 diopters treated with SMILE aimed at emmetropia and correspondingly myopic controls corrected with spectacles and/or contact lenses were included. The logVSX calculation was divided into habitual logVSX based on the wavefront aberration measurement directly and optimal logVSX calculated in a theoretical through-focus experiment to obtain the best-achievable logVSX. Results: A total of 117 eyes of 61 patients and 64 eyes of 34 myopic controls were included. SMILE did not affect the habitual logVSX but worsened the optimal logVSX (P < .001). The postoperative habitual logVSX was statistically significantly worse compared with contact lenses (P = .002). The postoperative optimal logVSX was significantly worse compared with both spectacles (P < .01) and contact lenses (P = .003). There was no statistically significant difference in habitual or optimal logVSX between spectacles and contact lenses. Conclusions: SMILE for high myopia does not affect the habitual logVSX but decreases the optimal logVSX slightly. The postoperative habitual logVSX is worse than for contact lenses but not spectacles, and the postoperative optimal logVSX is worse than for both contact lenses and spectacles. There is no statistically significant difference in either habitual or optimal logVSX between spectacles and contact lenses.
Pilot Trial of a Sleep-Promoting Intervention for Children With Type 1 Diabetes.

OBJECTIVE To assess the feasibility and acceptability of an educational sleep-promoting intervention (Sleep Coach Jr.) for school-aged children (ages 5-9) with type 1 diabetes (T1D) and their parents. METHODS Parents and children (N = 39 dyads, mean child age = 8 years, 64% girls,) were randomized to either the Sleep Coach Jr. intervention, consisting of educational materials and three individual phone calls (N = 20), or the Standard Care condition (N = 19). Data were collected at enrollment and 3 months later. Children and parents wore actigraphy devices to obtain an objective measure of sleep characteristics, and parents completed questionnaire measures of sleep quality and psychosocial outcomes. Clinical data (i.e., hemoglobin A1c, glucose data) were obtained from children's medical records. RESULTS Feasibility and acceptability of the study were demonstrated to be high; all three sessions were completed by 80% of parents randomized to the Sleep Coach Jr. intervention, and 90% of parents completed follow-up data at 3 months. Parents reported high levels of satisfaction with the study and identified barriers to participation. No changes were observed in children's sleep or diabetes outcomes, but parental sleep quality and well-being improved. CONCLUSIONS A brief, behavioral sleep-promoting intervention is feasible and acceptable for school-aged children with T1D and their parents. A larger trial is needed to evaluate efficacy of the intervention.