Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Discovering the Next-Generation Plant Protection Products: A Proof-of-Concept via the Isolation and Bioactivity Assessment of the Olive Tree Endophyte Bacillus sp. PTA13 Lipopeptides

Endophytic microorganisms (EMs) have recently attracted interest for applications in plant protection, mainly due to their bioactive compound-producing capacity. Therefore, we underwent the task of isolating olive tree EMs and investigating their bioactivity against the devastating pathogen Colletotrichum acutatum. Several EMs were isolated; however, the Bacillus sp. PTA13 isolate exhibited the highest toxicity to the phytopathogen. Bacteria of the genus Bacillus exhibit superior bioactive metabolite-producing capacity, with the lipopeptides (LPs) of surfactin, iturin, and fengycin groups being the most studied. A total LP extract and several fractions were obtained, and their bioactivity was assessed against C. acutatum strains. LPs of the major surfactin, iturin, and fengycin groups and the minor gageotetrin and bacilotetrin groups were annotated. The results confirmed the bioactivity of the major LPs, with fengycins being the most fungitoxic. Interestingly, the minor LP fraction exhibited selective toxicity to the fungicide-resistant C. acutatum isolate, an observation that highlights the significance of our approach to comprehensively mine the total LP extract. This work represents a proof of concept of the exploitation of EMs in customized olive tree plant protection and aligns well with strategies that focus on the sustainability and safety of food production via the development of next-generation plant protection products.
ANFIS-Based Approach for Predicting the Scour Depth at Culvert Outlets

The processes involved in the local scour at culverts are so complex and that makes it difficult to establish a general empirical model to provide accurate estimation for scour. This paper describes the use of adaptive neurofuzzy inference system (ANFIS) to estimate the scour depth at culvert outlets. The data sets of laboratory measurements were compiled from published literature and used to train the ANFIS network. The developed network was validated by using the observations that were not involved in training. The performance of ANFIS was found to be more effective ( R2 =0.94 ) when compared with the results of regression equations and artificial neural networks modeling in predicting the scour depth at culvert outlets ( R2 =0.78 ) . Further work is required to collect field data of scour at culvert outlets to train the genetic programming approach and validate its usefulness.
RELATIONSHIP OF MOUTH OPENING AND LENGTH GROWTH TO FEED SIZE OF SNAKEHEAD LARVAE (CHANNA STRIATA)

The main factor causing the critical point in the larval rearing phase is the determination of the type of feed as initial feed. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between the development of mouth opening and the total length of snakehead fish larvae (Channa striata) for the accuracy of natural feeding. Research method Samples were taken from 3 stocked basins, 3 larvae tail were taken from day 3 to 35 day after hatching (HA). Measurement of mouth opening by measuring the maxillae of the larvae mouth with a digital micrometer every day starting on 3-day AH. Measurement of the total length of larvae on AH day 3, 10, 19, 28 and 35. Calculations using the formula Shirota (1970) were analyzed descriptively and calculated the percentage of the size of the mouth opening with the total length of the larvae. The data are presented in tables and graphs, the analysis is analyzed linear regression and descriptively. The results of this study were that the mouth opening of snakehead fish larvae on the 3rd to 5th day AH was less than 1 mm, the size of the larval mouth opening on the 6th day AH reached 1.41 mm and on the 35th day it reached the size of 2.58 mm. The relationship of larval mouth opening to larval length from 6 to 35-day AH was allometric negative, the size of the mouth opening decreased according to the increase in length and age of the larvae. The measured mouth opening makes it easy to feed the natural larvae accordingly.
Assessment of Awareness and Knowledge of Medication Related Osteonecrosis of Jaw among Dental Students at a Tertiary Hospital in Eastern Nepal

Introduction: The medication related osteonecrosis of jaw (MRONJ) is caused by bisphosphonates, antiresoptive or antiangiogenic drugs. It is the basic requirement for dental students to know the drugs that causing MRONJ and its management. The study was conducted to assess awareness and knowledge of MRONJ among dental students and to compare the mean knowledge score. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among dental students at College of Dental Surgery, B. P. Koirala institute of Health Sciences. A semi-structured questionnaires consisting of sociodemographic data and questions regarding awareness and knowledge of MRONJ. Descriptive statistics like mean, standard deviation, percentage and frequency were calculated. Students “t” test was used for statistical association between the variables at P-value of 0.05 using SPSS. Results: Out of 191, 63 (32.98%) students were aware that drugs other than bisphosphonates can also cause osteonecrosis of jaw while only 16.23% students were able to name such drugs. Majority of the students (91.62%) failed to give proper definition of the MRONJ. More than half of the students did not know that invasive dental treatments cannot be given to patients who are currently on oral or intravenous bisphosphonates. Majority (77.5%) of the students didn’t know the treatment guideline for MRONJ. Mean knowledge score of the students was 9.068±3.092. There was statistically significant association between the score and age, marital status and academic stream of the students (P-value <0.05). Conclusion: The study showed that students had average knowledge and awareness on MRONJ. The knowledge score was statistically associated with age, marital status and educational level. It suggests preeminent steps should be taken to educate future dental students about MRONJ at undergraduate and post graduate level of dentistry.
Distribution of Stenasellidae in Africa and description of a new species of Metastenasellus from Cameroonian groundwaters

During recent investigations of the groundwater fauna of Cameroon, specimens of a new species of the stygobitic genus Metastenasellus, M. boutini sp. nov. were collected in wells of the city of Douala. The new species can be easily distinguished from the other species of the genus by its relatively large size (up to 11 mm), pleonite 1 and 2 half the length of pereonite 7, the shape of pleopod 2 in males (presence of an external lobe on the protopodite, distal part of the spermatic duct slightly protruding out of the second article, lack of a distal seta on the exopodite), and uropod half the length of the pleotelson. Ecological data and a key to Metastenasellus species are provided. We also performed an exhaustive analysis of the literature on Stenasellidae in Africa to study the geographical distribution of the family in this continent and discuss some hypotheses about the origin of African species.
DEVELOPMENT OF RELAP5 NODALIZATION FOR IRIS NON-LOCA TRANSIENT ANALYSES

RELAP5/MOD 3.3 code has been selected as the main computer code for performing transient and accident calculations among members of the IRIS consortium. A rather detailed nodalization of the reference IRIS design has been developed with a basic set of protective functions and controls. The Engineered Safety Features of the concept are being also incorporated in the nodalization. This paper discusses some of the features of the developed model and the problems discovered during initial steady state and transient simulations of the nodalization.
Neoisoptera repetitively colonised Madagascar after the Middle Miocene climatic optimum

Madagascar is home to many endemic plant and animal species owing to its ancient isolation from other landmasses. This unique fauna includes several lineages of termites, a group of insects known for their key role in organic matter decomposition in many terrestrial ecosystems. How and when termites colonised Madagascar remains unknown. In this study, we used 601 mitochondrial genomes, 93 of which were generated from Madagascan samples, to infer the global historical biogeography of Neoisoptera, a lineage containing upwards of 80% of described termite species. Our results indicate that Neoisoptera colonised Madagascar between seven to ten times independently during the Miocene, between 8.4-16.6 Ma (95% HPD: 6.1-19.9 Ma). This timing matches that of the colonization of Australia by Neoisoptera. Furthermore, the taxonomic composition of the Neoisopteran fauna of Madagascar and Australia are strikingly similar, with Madagascar harbouring an additional two lineages absent from Australia. Therefore, akin to Australia, Neoisoptera colonised Madagascar during the global expansion of grasslands, possibly helped by the ecological opportunities arising from the spread of this new biome.
Slater-Pauling-like Behavior of Spin Hall Conductivity in Pt-based Superlattices

The intrinsic spin Hall effect in the bulk systems of late transition metals (Os, Ir, Pt, and Au) as well as the Pt-based superlattices were investigated by using first-principle calculations. By comparing the computed spin Hall conductivities of Pt−M superlattices (M=Os, Ir, and Au) with different compositions and those obtained from atomic bulk composition, we saw that the spin Hall conductivities (SHCs) follow the behavior described by the Slater-Pauling curve, the maximum of which is at pure Pt bulk. From the examination of the band structures of the considered systems, we found that the origin of this behavior comes from the variation of the band structures as a direct consequence of the change of the number of electrons and hybridization effects.
Observers for vehicle tyre/road forces estimation: experimental validation

The motion of a vehicle is governed by the forces generated between the tyres and the road. Knowledge of these vehicle dynamic variables is important for vehicle control systems that aim to enhance vehicle stability and passenger safety. This study introduces a new estimation process for tyre/road forces. It presents many benefits over the existing state-of-art works, within the dynamic estimation framework. One of these major contributions consists of discussing in detail the vertical and lateral tyre forces at each tyre. The proposed method is based on the dynamic response of a vehicle instrumented with potentially integrated sensors. The estimation process is separated into two principal blocks. The role of the first block is to estimate vertical tyre forces, whereas in the second block two observers are proposed and compared for the estimation of lateral tyre/road forces. The different observers are based on a prediction/estimation Kalman filter. The performance of this concept is tested and compared with real experimental data using a laboratory car. Experimental results show that the proposed approach is a promising technique to provide accurate estimation. Thus, it can be considered as a practical low-cost solution for calculating vertical and lateral tyre/road forces.
Mitochondrial antiviral-signalling protein is a client of the BAG6 protein quality control complex

The heterotrimeric BAG6 complex coordinates the direct handover of newly synthesised tail-anchored (TA) membrane proteins from an SGTA-bound preloading complex to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) delivery component TRC40. In contrast, defective precursors, including aberrant TA proteins, form a stable complex with this cytosolic protein quality control factor, enabling such clients to be either productively re-routed or selectively degraded. We identify the mitochondrial TA protein MAVS (mitochondrial antiviral-signalling protein) as an endogenous client of both SGTA and the BAG6 complex. Our data suggest that the BAG6 complex binds to a cytosolic pool of MAVS before its misinsertion into the ER membrane, from where it can subsequently be removed via ATP13A1-mediated dislocation. This BAG6- associated fraction of MAVS is dynamic and responds to the activation of an innate immune response, suggesting that BAG6 may modulate the pool of MAVS that is available for coordinating the cellular response to viral infection. SUMMARY STATEMENT Mitochondrial antiviral-signalling (MAVS) protein is a favoured client of the cytosolic BAG6 complex. We discuss how this dynamic interaction may modulate MAVS biogenesis at signalling membranes.
Exposure to varenicline protects against locomotor alteration in a MPTP mouse model of Parkinson's disease

The beneficial effects of drugs that act via nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) on Parkinson's disease (PD) symptomatology may explain the negative correlation between cigarette smoking and risk of this neurological condition. Varenicline, an α4β2 nAChR partial agonist approved for smoking cessation treatments, could be valuable for PD treatment. Here, we investigated varenicline effects in a 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) PD mouse model. From postnatal day (PN) 90 to PN119, male C57BL/6 mice were exposed daily to varenicline (2 mg/kg) by gavage. After that, MPTP was injected (30 mg/kg, ip) once a day for five days. At PN125, locomotor and anxiety-like effects were assessed with the open field test. At PN126, immobile behavior was assessed with the forced swimming test. At PN127, the frontal cerebral cortex was collected to evaluate dopamine and DOPAC levels. To verify whether varenicline was protective during the MPTP insult, a separate group of MPTP animals received varenicline from PN90 to PN124. MPTP reduced cortical dopamine content and increased dopamine turnover. Those effects were not reversed by varenicline treatment. Interestingly, varenicline reversed the MPTP-induced hyperactivity in the open field. Both maintenance of varenicline treatment during MPTP exposure or its interruption before MPTP exposure elicited similar results. No alterations were observed in anxiety-like behavior or in immobility time. Altogether, these findings suggested that varenicline treatment reduced the MPTP-induced hyperactivity, but did not protect against dopaminergic damage. Based on this partial protective effect, varenicline could exert neuroprotective effects on circuits that control motor activity in PD.
Outcomes Based on Plasma Biomarkers for the Phase 3 CELESTIAL Trial of Cabozantinib versus Placebo in Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Introduction: Cabozantinib, an inhibitor of MET, AXL, and VEGF receptors, significantly improved overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) versus placebo in patients with previously treated advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In this exploratory analysis, outcomes were evaluated according to plasma biomarker levels. Methods: Baseline plasma levels were evaluated for MET, AXL, VEGFR2, HGF, GAS6, VEGF-A, PlGF, IL-8, EPO, ANG2, IGF-1, VEGF-C, and c-KIT for 674/707 randomized patients; and Week 4 levels were evaluated for MET, AXL, VEGFR2, HGF, GAS6, VEGF-A, PlGF, IL-8, and EPO for 614 patients. OS and PFS were analyzed by baseline levels as dichotomized or continuous variables and by on-treatment changes at Week 4 as continuous variables; biomarkers were considered potentially prognostic if p < 0.05 and predictive if p < 0.05 for the interaction between treatment and the biomarker. Multivariable analyses adjusting for clinical covariates were also performed. Results: In the placebo group, high levels of MET, HGF, GAS6, IL-8, and ANG2 and low levels of IGF-1 were associated with shorter OS in univariate and multivariable analyses; these associations were also observed for MET, IL-8, and ANG2 in the cabozantinib group. Hazard ratios for OS and PFS favored cabozantinib over the placebo at low and high baseline levels for all biomarkers. No baseline biomarkers were predictive of a treatment benefit. Cabozantinib promoted pharmacodynamic changes in several biomarkers, including increases in VEGF-A, PlGF, AXL, and GAS6 levels and decreases in VEGFR2 and HGF levels; these changes were not associated with OS or PFS. Conclusion: Cabozantinib improved OS and PFS versus placebo at high and low baseline concentrations for all biomarkers analyzed. Low baseline levels of MET, HGF, GAS6, IL-8, and ANG2 and high levels of IGF-1 were identified as potential favorable prognostic biomarkers for survival in previously treated advanced HCC. Although cabozantinib promoted pharmacodynamic changes in several biomarkers, these changes were not associated with survival.
Lossy Compression of Communication Traces Using Recurrent Neural Networks

In high performance computing (HPC) systems, collecting and replaying communication traces are fundamental approaches to analyze performance. With increasingly large-scale HPC systems and applications, tracing tools can produce huge trace data that is costly and challenging to store and analyze. Due to the inherent repetition of behaviors of HPC applications, domain-aware data compression methods can effectively reduce the storage cost of trace data. This study proposes LCR (Lossy Compression and Replay), a framework that aggressively compresses and replays MPI communication traces. Differing from existing trace compression methods, which explicitly identify loop and synchronization structures of communication events, LCR models traces as time series and compactly represents them by lightweight recurrent neural networks. Experimental results demonstrate that LCR can further reduce the size of irregular traces by three orders of magnitude at most, compared with existing structural methods. Meanwhile, LCR accurately reproduces performance and communication patterns of original MPI programs.
Trans*Forming Access and Care in Rural Areas: A Community-Engaged Approach

Research indicates that rural transgender and gender diverse (TGD) populations have a greater need for health services when compared with their urban counterparts, face unique barriers to accessing services, and have health disparities that are less researched than urban TGD populations. Therefore, the primary aim of this mixed-methods study (n = 24) was to increase research on the health care needs of TGD people in a rural Appalachian American context. This study was guided by a community-engaged model utilizing a community advisory board of TGD people and supportive parents of TGD children. Quantitative results indicate that travel burden is high, affirming provider availability is low, and the impacts on the health and mental health of TGD people in this sample are notable. Qualitative results provide recommendations for providers and health care systems to better serve this population. Integrated mixed-methods results further illustrate ways that rural TGD people and families adapt to the services available to them, sometimes at significant economic and emotional costs. This study contributes to the small but growing body of literature on the unique needs of rural TGD populations, including both adults and minors with supportive parents, by offering insights into strategies to address known disparities.
Tragverhalten von Dübeln in Stahlfaserbeton

In den europäischen Zulassungen liegen keine Angaben darüber vor, ob sich für Befestigungsmittel das Tragverhalten durch Stahlfasern im Beton verändert. Bei ausreichend hohem Stahlfasergehalt und idealer Faserausrichtung könnten die Stahlfasern im Beton das Tragverhalten von Befestigungsmitteln verbessern. Es könnten höhere Bruchlasten und ein duktileres Tragverhalten erzielt werden. Gleichzeitig besteht die Möglichkeit, dass die im Beton enthaltenen Stahlfasern die Montage der Dübel erschweren oder das Tragverhalten aufgrund von ungleichmäßiger Verteilung negativ beeinflussen könnten.
EWSR1-WT1 Target Genes and Therapeutic Options Identified in a Novel DSRCT In Vitro Model

Simple Summary Desmoplastic small round cell tumor (DSRCT) is an extremely rare soft tissue sarcoma arising in the abdomen of adolescents and young adults. This sarcoma is driven by a single genomic rearrangement, resulting in the expression of the EWSR1-WT1 fusion gene. No effective treatment exists for DSRCT patients, which highlights the need for preclinical models to study disease progression and drug sensitivity. The aim of this study is to develop a pre-clinical DSRCT in vitro model, which enables investigating the molecular target genes of the EWSR1-WT1 fusion gene and allows for medium-throughput drug screening to discover new therapeutic options. Abstract Desmoplastic small round cell tumor (DSRCT) is a rare and aggressive soft tissue sarcoma with a lack of effective treatment options and a poor prognosis. DSRCT is characterized by a chromosomal translocation, resulting in the EWSR1-WT1 gene fusion. The molecular mechanisms driving DSRCT are poorly understood, and a paucity of preclinical models hampers DSRCT research. Here, we establish a novel primary patient-derived DSRCT in vitro model, recapitulating the original tumor. We find that EWSR1-WT1 expression affects cell shape and cell survival, and we identify downstream target genes of the EWSR1-WT1 fusion. Additionally, this preclinical in vitro model allows for medium-throughput drug screening. We discover sensitivity to several drugs, including compounds targeting RTKs. MERTK, which has been described as a therapeutic target for several malignancies, correlates with EWSR1-WT1 expression. Inhibition of MERTK with the small-molecule inhibitor UNC2025 results in reduced proliferation of DSRCT cells in vitro, suggesting MERTK as a therapeutic target in DSRCT. This study underscores the usefulness of preclinical in vitro models for studying molecular mechanisms and potential therapeutic options.
Genetic architecture of dispersal and local adaptation drives accelerating range expansions

Contemporary evolution has the potential to significantly alter biotic responses to global change, including range expansion dynamics and biological invasions. However, predictive models often make highly simplifying assumptions about the genetic architecture underlying relevant traits. This can be problematic since genetic architecture defines evolvability, that is, evolutionary rates, and higher order evolutionary processes, which determine whether evolution will be able to keep up with environmental change or not. Therefore, we here study the impact of the genetic architecture of dispersal and local adaptation, two central traits of high relevance for range expansion dynamics, on the speed and variability of range expansions into an environmental gradient, such as temperature. In our theoretical model we assume that dispersal and local adaptation traits result from the products of two non-interacting gene-regulatory networks (GRNs). We compare our model to simpler quantitative genetics models and show that in the GRN model, range expansions are accelerated, faster and more variable. Increased variability implies that these evolutionary changes reduce predictability. We further find that acceleration in the GRN model is primarily driven by an increase in the rate of local adaptation to novel habitats which results from greater sensitivity to mutation (decreased robustness) and increased gene expression. Our results highlight how processes at microscopic scales, here, within genomes, can impact the predictions of large scale, macroscopic phenomena, such as range expansions, by modulating the rate of evolution.