Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Accuracy of forensic pathologists in incorporating post‐mortem CT (PMCT) in forensic death investigation

Post‐mortem computed tomography (PMCT) is now performed routinely in some medical examiner's offices, and the images are typically interpreted by forensic pathologists. In this study, the question of whether pathologists appropriately identify significant PMCT findings and incorporate them into the death investigation report and the cause and manner of death (COD and MOD) statements was addressed. We retrospectively reviewed 200 cases where PMCT was performed. The cases were divided into four categories: (1) full autopsy without radiology consultation (n = 77), (2) external exam without radiology consultation (n = 79), (3) full autopsy with radiology consultation (n = 26), (4) external exam with radiology consultation (n = 18). A radiologist (not the consult radiologist) read the PMCT images, and a pathologist (not the case pathologist) reviewed the case pathologist's post‐mortem examination report in tandem to determine any PMCT findings omitted from the report. Omitted findings were classified into error types according to a modified Goldman classification including Major 1: Unrecognized fatal injury or pathology that would change COD and/or MOD, and Major 2: Unrecognized fatal injury or pathology that would not change COD and/or MOD. A total of 13 Major errors were identified (6.5%), and none definitively changed the MOD. All four Major‐1 errors which could change the COD were found in Category 2. Of 9 Major‐2 errors, 2 occurred in Category 1, 6 occurred in Category 2, and 1 occurred in Category 4. In conclusion, forensic pathologists who routinely utilize computed tomography (CT) interpret CT images well enough to reliably certify the COD and MOD.
Direct Assessment of Rabbit Cortical Bone Basic Multicellular Unit Longitudinal Erosion Rate: A 4D Synchrotron‐Based Approach

Cortical bone remodeling is carried out by basic multicellular units (BMUs), which couple resorption to formation. Although fluorochrome labeling has facilitated study of BMU formative parameters since the 1960s, some resorptive parameters, including the longitudinal erosion rate (LER), have remained beyond reach of direct measurement. Indeed, our only insights into this spatiotemporal parameter of BMU behavior come from classical studies that indirectly inferred LER. Here, we demonstrate a 4D in vivo method to directly measure LER through in‐line phase contrast synchrotron imaging. The tibias of rabbits (n = 15) dosed daily with parathyroid hormone were first imaged in vivo (synchrotron micro‐CT; day 15) and then ex vivo 14 days later (conventional micro‐CT; day 29). Mean LER assessed by landmarking the co‐registered scans was 23.69 ± 1.73 μm/d. This novel approach holds great promise for the direct study of the spatiotemporal coordination of bone remodeling, its role in diseases such as osteoporosis, as well as related treatments. © 2022 The Authors. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR).
Existence of nonzero positive solutions of systems of second order

Existence of nonzero positive solutions of systems of second order elliptic boundary value problems under sublinear conditions is obtained. The methodology is to establish a new result on existence of nonzero positive solutions of a fixed point equation in real Banach spaces by using the well-known theory of fixed point index for compact maps defined on cones, where the fixed point equation involves composition of a compact linear operator and a continuous nonlinear map. The conditions imposed on the nonlinear maps involve the spectral radii of the compact linear operators. Moreover, the nonlinear maps are not required to be increasing in ordered Banach spaces.
Neuronal imbalance of excitation and inhibition in schizophrenia: a scoping review of gamma‐band ASSR findings

Recent empirical findings suggest that altered neural synchronization, which is hypothesized to be associated with an imbalance of excitatory (E) and inhibitory (I) neuronal activities, may underlie a core pathophysiological mechanism in patients with schizophrenia. The auditory steady‐state response (ASSR) examined by electroencephalography (EEG) and magnetoencephalography (MEG) has been proposed as a potential biomarker for evaluating altered neural synchronization in schizophrenia. For this review, we performed a comprehensive literature search for papers published between 1999 and 2021 examining ASSRs in patients with schizophrenia. Almost all EEG‐ASSR studies reported gamma‐band ASSR reductions, especially to 40‐Hz stimuli both in power and/or phase synchronization in chronic and first‐episode schizophrenia. In addition, similar to EEG‐ASSR findings, MEG‐ASSR deficits to 80‐Hz stimuli (high gamma) have been reported in patients with schizophrenia. Moreover, the 40‐Hz ASSR is likely to be a predictor of the onset of schizophrenia. Notably, increased spontaneous (or ongoing) broadband (30–100 Hz) gamma power has been reported during ASSR tasks, which resembles the increased spontaneous gamma activity reported in animal models of E/I imbalance. Further research on ASSRs and evoked and spontaneous gamma oscillations is expected to elucidate the pathophysiology of schizophrenia with translational implications.
Cardiac response to changes in central venous sonomorphology: Mechanism of impaired heart relaxation in patients with varicose veins of lower extremities

Aim This study examines the interactions between central venous and cardiac sonomorphologies to explain the mechanism of impaired heart relaxation in patients with varicose veins of lower extremities. Material and Methods Part 1: We performed retrospective analysis of influences of inferior vena cava (IVC) diameters on tricuspid and mitral inflow and annular velocities in 64 patients with primary varicose veins. Part 2: We compared IVC diameters and IVC collapsibility index (IVC CI) in patients with varicose veins with normal values. Results We found a significant positive influence of an increase in maximal expiratory and minimal inspiratory IVC diameters on mitral and tricuspid early annular velocities or e′-waves (p-values < .008), inflow velocities or E-waves (p-values < .05) and early to late inflow E/A ratios (p-values < .01). Less influenced by the changes in venous biometry (p-values > .05) were late mitral and tricuspid inflow, annular and systolic velocities (A-, a′-, s-waves). Expiratory and inspiratory diameters in patients with varicose veins were significantly smaller (p-values < .05 expiratory; < .0001 inspiratory), and IVC CI was significantly higher (p-values < .0001) than the normal values. Conclusion Chronic venous disease impairs the function and the morphology of the entire inferior caval system and the heart. Impaired relaxation of the heart in patients with varicose veins is the result of two factors: (1) impaired venous return resulting in the low central venous pressure and the low early diastolic cardiac inflow; (2) structural changes in the heart resulting in the compensatory increased late diastolic cardiac inflow. Increase in central venous pressure (IVC diameters) and early diastolic cardiac inflow (E-waves), accompanied by unchanged myocardial response (e′-wave) can serve as marker for return to normal physiology.
The clinical value of C-reactive protein and its association with tumour location in patients undergoing curative surgery for colorectal cancer – a ScotScan collaborative study

Abstract Introduction The presence of preoperative systemic inflammatory response (SIR) is an established negative prognostic factor for patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer (CRC). C-reactive protein (CRP) is known to be implicated in detrimental immune responses. The biological differences between right-sided and left-sided CRC are gaining increasing attention. Our aim was to analyse the prognostic value of CRP and explore the association between tumour location and SIR. Material and methods A total of 2059 patients treated for stage I–III CRC, identified from the prospectively sampled ScotScan Collaborative dataset, were included. The clinical and prognostic value of five CRP levels (<10/11–30/31–60/61–100/>100 mg/l) were examined. Additionally, the relationship between SIR and tumour location was explored. Results Increasing levels of CRP were associated with impaired overall and cancer-specific outcome. Presence of SIR was independently associated with right-sided tumour location (p<0.001). However, the impact of SIR on cancer-specific survival (CSS) was greater for left-sided tumour location, even when adjusted for other clinicopathological factors. Conclusions This study confirms CRP as a routinely available, valid, and clinically relevant strong prognostic marker of SIR in CRC patients. Right-sided tumours were more often associated with SIR, but the prognostic impact was stronger in left-sided tumours.
Establishment of a Mouse Submandibular Salivary Gland Organ Culture

The salivary glands produce saliva and are important in maintaining oral health. Saliva keeps the mouth moist, cleanses the oral cavity, aids digestion, and has antibacterial properties. Saliva also helps in swallowing and speech. Investigating the development of the salivary glands is thus relevant in the context of both health and disease. Various cell culture methods have been used to study salivary gland development, including culturing cells in two dimensions (2D). Under physiological conditions, cells constantly interact with other cells and the extracellular matrix, which controls complex biological functions such as cell migration and apoptosis, and can modulate gene expression. Since many of these functions are not accurately represented or reproduced in 2D culture, the results of in vitro experiments using such culture methods are often not reflected in vivo. The use of 3D cultures, such as organ cultures, has helped address this issue and has emerged as a model that better reflects the in vivo physiological environment. Here, we describe a protocol for establishing submandibular salivary gland organ culture that is more concise and simpler than previous methods and includes the separation and dissection of the salivary glands. We also describe the use of environmental stress (hypoxic stimulation) and inhibitors (U0126, LY294002, and rapamycin) to elucidate signaling pathways involved in salivary gland development. This protocol can provide researchers with a simpler and more robust method of salivary gland organ culture, enabling analysis of organ‐based signaling pathways to advance developmental biology research. © 2022 Wiley Periodicals LLC.
Induction and Analogy in Mathematics

A guide to the practical art of plausible reasoning, this book has relevance in every field of intellectual activity. Professor Polya, a world-famous mathematician from Stanford University, uses mathematics to show how hunches and guesses play an important part in even the most rigorously deductive science. He explains how solutions to problems can be guessed at; good guessing is often more important than rigorous deduction in finding correct solutions. Vol. I, on "Induction and Analogy in Mathematics," covers a wide variety of mathematical problems, revealing the trains of thought that lead to solutions, pointing out false bypaths, discussing techniques of searching for proofs. Problems and examples challenge curiosity, judgment, and power of invention.
An ex-vivo organotypic culture platform for functional interrogation of human appendiceal cancer reveals a prominent and heterogenous immunological landscape.

PURPOSE Epithelial neoplasms of the appendix are difficult to study preclinically given their low incidence, frequent mucinous histology, and absence of a comparable organ in mice for disease modeling. While surgery is an effective treatment for localized disease, metastatic disease has a poor prognosis as existing therapeutics borrowed from colorectal cancer have limited efficacy. Recent studies reveal that appendiceal cancer has a genomic landscape distinct from colorectal cancer and thus preclinical models to study this disease are a significant unmet need. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN We adopted an ex-vivo slice model that permits the study of cellular interactions within the tumor microenvironment. Mucinous carcinomatosis peritonei specimens obtained at surgical resection were cut using a vibratome to make 150 mm slices cultured in media. RESULTS Slice cultures were viable and maintained their cellular composition regarding the proportion of epithelial, immune and fibroblasts over 7 days. Within donor specimens, we identified a prominent and diverse immune landscape and calciumimaging confirmed that immune cells were functional for 7 days. Given the diverse immune landscape, we treated slices with TAK981, an inhibitor of SUMOylation with known immunomodulatory functions, in early phase clinical trials. In 5 of 6 donor samples, TAK981 treated slices cultures had reduced viability, and regulatory T cells (TREGs). These data were consistent with TAK981 activity in purified TREGs using an in-vitro murine model. CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrates an approach to study appendiceal cancer therapeutics and pathobiology in a preclinical setting. These methods may be broadly applicable to the study of other malignancies.
The impact of prefrontal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) on theory of mind, emotion regulation and emotional‐behavioral functions in children with autism disorder: A randomized, sham‐controlled, and parallel‐group study

Advances in our knowledge about the neuropsychological mechanisms underlying core deficits in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have produced several novel treatment modalities. One of these approaches is modulation of activity of the brain regions involved in ASD symptoms. This study examined the effects of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) on autism symptom severity, theory of mind, emotion regulation strategies, and emotional‐behavioral functions in children with ASD. Thirty‐two children (Mage = 10.16, SD = 1.93, range 7–12 years) diagnosed with ASD were randomly assigned to active (N = 17) or sham stimulation (N = 15) groups in a randomized, sham‐controlled, parallel‐group design. Participants underwent 10 sessions of active (1.5 mA, 15 min, bilateral left anodal/right cathodal DLPFC, 2 sessions per week) or sham tDCS. Autism symptom severity, theory of mind, emotion regulation strategies, and emotional‐behavioral functioning of the patients were assessed at baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 1 month after the intervention. A significant improvement of autism symptom severity (i.e., communication), theory of mind (i.e., ToM 3), and emotion regulation strategies was observed for the active as compared to the sham stimulation group at the end of the intervention, and these effects were maintained at the one‐month follow‐up. The results suggest that repeated tDCS with anodal stimulation of left and cathodal stimulation of right DLPFC improves autism symptom severity as well as social cognition and emotion regulation in ASD.
Incidence and risk factors for syphilis infection among men who have sex with men: A cohort study from an urban sexual health clinic in Jakarta, Indonesia

Objective: Syphilis infection remains a significant health issue among marginalised populations in Indonesia, in particular among men who have sex with men (MSM), in whom there are limited studies from Indonesia exploring risk factors associated with STI acquisition.Our study aimed to identify risk factors of syphilis infection among MSM attending large sexual health clinic in Jakarta. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort analysis using patient records (MSM aged 18 years or older) period Jan 2018-Dec 2019. We used Cox regression to identify risk factors associated with syphilis incidence. Results: Study population were 2912 MSM tested for syphilis, 473 (16.2%) were diagnosed with syphilis on their first visit; early syphilis (415; 14%) and latent syphilis (58, 2%). Among the cohort of 2439 MSM who tested negative at baseline, 40 MSM were identified with a new positive syphilis result during 2 years follow up. Risk factors remaining significantly associated with syphilis incidence included having STI symptom at 1st visit (aHR, 2.8; 95% CI, 1.38–5.65), and HIV-infection (aHR 4.53; 95% CI 2.24 – 9.17). Syphilis incidence rate was 8.19 (95% CI 6.01-11.16) per 100 PYFU. Conclusions: Syphilis infection at baseline and incidence was high among MSM attending this large clinic in Jakarta. Integrated and accessible syphilis prevention and detection coupled with HIV services are needed, with a special focus on high-risk individuals.
Structure of homogeneous Ricci solitons and the Alekseevskii conjecture

We bring new insights into the long-standing Alekseevskii conjecture, namely that any connected homogeneous Einstein manifold of negative scalar curvature is diffeomorphic to a Euclidean space, by proving structural results which are actually valid for any homogeneous expanding Ricci soliton, and generalize many well-known results on Einstein solvmanifolds, solvsolitons and nilsolitons. We obtain that any homogeneous expanding Ricci soliton M=G/K is diffeomorphic to a product U/K x N, where U is a maximal reductive Lie subgroup of G and N is the maximal nilpotent normal subgroup of G, such that the metric restricted to N is a nilsoliton. Moreover, strong compatibility conditions between the metric and the action of U on N by conjugation must hold, including a nice formula for the Ricci operator of the metric restricted to U/K. Our main tools come from geometric invariant theory. As an application, we give many Lie theoretical characterizations of algebraic solitons, as well as a proof of the fact that the following a priori much stronger result is actually equivalent to Alekseevskii's conjecture: Any expanding algebraic soliton is diffeomorphic to a Euclidean space.
Phosphorylation of CENP-R by Aurora B regulates kinetochore–microtubule attachment for accurate chromosome segregation

ABSTRACT Error-free mitosis depends on accurate chromosome attachment to spindle microtubules via a fine structure called the centromere that is epigenetically specified by the enrichment of CENP-A nucleosomes. Centromere maintenance during mitosis requires CENP-A-mediated deposition of constitutive centromere-associated network that establishes the inner kinetochore and connects centromeric chromatin to spindle microtubules during mitosis. Although previously proposed to be an adaptor of retinoic acid receptor, here, we show that CENP-R synergizes with CENP-OPQU to regulate kinetochore–microtubule attachment stability and ensure accurate chromosome segregation in mitosis. We found that a phospho-mimicking mutation of CENP-R weakened its localization to the kinetochore, suggesting that phosphorylation may regulate its localization. Perturbation of CENP-R phosphorylation is shown to prevent proper kinetochore–microtubule attachment at metaphase. Mechanistically, CENP-R phosphorylation disrupts its binding with CENP-U. Thus, we speculate that Aurora B-mediated CENP-R phosphorylation promotes the correction of improper kinetochore–microtubule attachment in mitosis. As CENP-R is absent from yeast, we reasoned that metazoan evolved an elaborate chromosome stability control machinery to ensure faithful chromosome segregation in mitosis.
Platyconic acid A-induced PPM1A upregulation inhibits the proliferation, inflammation and extracellular matrix deposition of TGF-β1-induced lung fibroblasts

Platyconic acid A (PA), the active component of Platycodi radix-derived saponin, exerts ameliorating effects on liver fibrosis. Platycodon grandiflorum is used to treat lung disease. Therefore, the present study evaluated the effects of PA on pulmonary fibrosis. Transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) was used to induce MRC-5 cells to establish an in vitro pulmonary fibrosis model. The viability of MRC-5 cells in the presence or absence of TGF-β1 induction was examined using a Cell Counting Kit-8 assay and the results demonstrated that PA markedly decreased viability of TGF-β1-induced MRC-5 cells in a dose-dependent manner. Wound healing analysis, immunofluorescent staining and western blotting were performed to determine the levels of cell migration and expression of α-smooth muscle actin and extracellular matrix (ECM)-associated proteins. The results of the present study demonstrated that PA significantly suppressed the migration and ECM deposition of TGF-β1-induced MRC-5 cells. Furthermore, results obtained from ELISA and western blotting demonstrated that PA exerted suppressive effects on the inflammation of MRC-5 cells following TGF-β1 stimulation. The mRNA and protein expression levels of protein phosphatase Mg2+/Mn2+-dependent 1A (PPM1A) before and after transfection were assessed using reverse transcription-quantitative PCR and western blotting and the results demonstrated that the mRNA and protein expression levels of PPM1A were significantly decreased following transfection with small interfering RNA targeting PPM1A. Moreover, following PPM1A knockdown, PA significantly inhibited the proliferation, migration, inflammation and ECM deposition of TGF-β1-induced MRC-5 cells via activation of the SMAD/β-catenin signaling pathway. In conclusion, PA activated PPM1A to ameliorate TGF-β1-elicited lung fibroblast injury via modulating SMAD/β-catenin signaling.
Ideology and COVID-19 Vaccination Intention: Perceptual Mediators and Communication Moderators

Widespread COVID-19 vaccination is critical to slow the spread of the illness. This study investigates how political ideology is associated with COVID-19 vaccine intention via perceived effectiveness of the vaccine, perceived side effects, and perceived severity of the illness, three key aspects of the Health Belief Model (HBM). This study also examines how partisan information flow moderates the effects of ideology on these three HBM components. Using survey data collected from two battleground states in the 2020 election (N = 1849), regression, mediation and moderation analyses revealed that conservatives were less likely to intend to get vaccinated against COVID-19, and this association was significantly mediated by perceived effectiveness and perceived side effects of vaccination, as well as perceived severity of COVID-19. In addition, partisanship of news sources and discussion partners were significant moderators of ideology’s association with perceived vaccine effectiveness, with conservatives viewing COVID-19 vaccination as less effective if they were frequently exposed to liberal news, and if they had frequent conversations with fellow conservatives. This suggests boomerang effects for cross-cutting mass media exposure, and reinforcement effect for interpersonal communication. Implications for efforts to promote COVID-19 vaccine uptake are discussed, including tailored and targeted campaign strategies.
Self‐enhancement and physical health: A meta‐analysis

Abstract A prior meta‐analysis yielded a positive relation between self‐enhancement and psychological health. We present the first meta‐analysis of the association between self‐enhancement and physical health (k = 87; N = 22,415). We relied predominantly on social desirability as an operationalization of self‐enhancement and secondarily on comparative judgement and narcissism. Further, we operationalized physical health in terms of self‐rated health, symptoms and biomarkers. Overall, self‐enhancement yielded a near‐zero association with physical health, r = . 01. However, this association was more pronounced for comparative judgement (r = .18, k = 6) than social desirability (r = .03, k = 41) or narcissism (r = −.0001, k = 8), and for self‐rated health (r = .09, k = 9) than symptoms (r = .01, k = 29) or biomarkers (r = −.13, k = 17). The association between self‐enhancement and physical health fluctuates across measures of both constructs calling for more focussed and nuanced investigations.