Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Synergistic Mechanisms Underlie the Peroxide and Coagent Improvement of Natural-Rubber-Toughened Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) Mechanical Performance

Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV) is a promising bio-based and biodegradable thermoplastic with restricted industrial applications due to its brittleness and poor processability. Natural rubber (NR) has been used as a toughening agent, but further physical improvements are desired. In this study, rubber toughening efficiency was significantly improved through the synergistic use of a trifunctional acrylic coagent and an organic peroxide during reactive extrusion of PHBV and NR. The rheological, crystallization, thermal, morphological, and mechanical properties of PHBV/NR blends with 15% rubber loading were characterized. The peroxide and coagent synergistically crosslinked the rubber phase and grafted PHBV onto rubber backbones, leading to enhanced rubber modulus and cohesive strength as well as improved PHBV–rubber compatibility and blend homogeneity. Simultaneously, the peroxide–coagent treatment decreased PHBV crystallinity and crystal size and depressed peroxy-radical-caused PHBV degradation. The new PHBV/NR blends had a broader processing window, 75% better toughness (based on the notched impact strength data), and 100% better ductility (based on the tensile elongation data) than pristine PHBV. This new rubber-toughened PHBV material has balanced mechanical performance comparable to that of conventional thermoplastics and is suitable for a wide range of plastic applications.
Non-Prescribed Buprenorphine Use Mediates the Relationship between Heroin Use and Kratom Use among a Sample of Polysubstance Users

ABSTRACT In Asia, Mitragyna speciosa (e.g., “kratom”) has been used to mitigate alcohol and drug dependence. Some preliminary findings suggest kratom’s potential use as an informal harm-reduction method in the United States, such as an opioid substitute or as a means of lessening opioid withdrawal symptoms. To determine correlates of past-year kratom use among a sample of polysubstance users enrolled in residential recovery programs in Kentucky, an anonymous survey was completed by clients in April 2017. Logistic regression was used to identify significant associations with past-year kratom use. Of the final sample (N = 478), 10.4% reported past-year kratom use. Past-year heroin use, but not past-year prescription opioid (e.g., oxycodone, hydrocodone) use, was significantly associated with kratom use, such that individuals who reported past-year heroin use were 2.5 times more likely to also report past-year kratom use. Non-prescribed buprenorphine (i.e., Suboxone) use partially mediated the relationship between past-year heroin and kratom use by explaining 36% of the association between the two drugs. Though amphetamines were highly preferred, past-year use was negatively correlated with past-year kratom use. Rates of past-year kratom use were lower than rates of alcohol and illicit drug use. Kratom was not preferred over heroin or prescription opioids.
In Vitro Evaluation of the Phytopharmacological Potential of Sargassum incisifolium for the Treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Diseases

Background: Comprised of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) are characterized by chronic inflammation of the gastro-intestinal tract, which often results in severe damage to the intestinal mucosa. This study investigated metabolites from the South African endemic alga, Sargassum incisifolium, as potential treatments for IBD. Phytochemical evaluation of S. incisifolium yielded prenylated toluhydroquinones and toluquinones, from which semi-synthetic analogs were derived, and a carotenoid metabolite. The bioactivities of S. incisifolium fractions, natural products, and semi-synthetic derivatives were evaluated using various in vitro assays. Methods: Sargahydroquinoic acid isolated from S. incisifolium was converted to several structural derivatives by semi-synthetic modification. Potential modulation of IBD by S. incisifolium crude fractions, natural compounds, and sargahydroquinoic acid analogs was evaluated through in vitro anti-inflammatory activity, anti-oxidant activity, cytotoxicity against HT-29 and Caco-2 colorectal cancer cells, and PPAR-γ activation. Results: Sargahydroquinoic acid acts on various therapeutic targets relevant to IBD treatment. Conclusions: Conversion of sargahydroquinoic acid to sarganaphthoquinoic acid increases peroxisome proliferator activated receptor gamma (PPAR-γ) activity, compromises anti-oxidant activity, and has no effect on cytotoxicity against the tested cell lines.
Analysis of Tribo-Charging during Powder Spreading in Selective Laser Sintering: Assessment of Polyamide 12 Powder Ageing Effects on Charging Behavior

Powder flowability is key to achieving high process stability and part quality by application of smooth and dense layers in selective laser sintering (SLS). This study sheds light on the rarely investigated effect of tribo-electric charge build-up during powder delivery in the SLS process. This is achieved by a novel approach to quantify electrostatic potentials during doctor blading. The presented model setup is used in combination with charge spectrometry and impedance spectroscopy to investigate the alterations in tribo-electric charging behavior for the most commonly used laser sintering material polyamide 12 in its virgin and aged, c.f. reused, states. We show that the electrostatic charge build-up is significantly enhanced for aged polymer powder material, likely contributing to altered performance in SLS processing.
Solvent Effects on Radical Copolymerization Kinetics of 2-Hydroxyethyl Methacrylate and Butyl Methacrylate

2-Hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) is an important component of many acrylic resins used in coatings formulations, as the functionality ensures that the chains participate in the cross-linking reactions required to form the final product. Hence, the knowledge of their radical copolymerization kinetic coefficients is vital for both process and recipe improvements. The pulsed laser polymerization (PLP) technique is paired with size exclusion chromatography (SEC) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) to provide kinetic coefficients for the copolymerization of HEMA with butyl methacrylate (BMA) in various solvents. The choice of solvent has a significant impact on both copolymer composition and on the composition-averaged propagation rate coefficient (kp,cop). Compared to the bulk system, both n-butanol and dimethylformamide reduce the relative reactivity of HEMA during copolymerization, while xylene as a solvent enhances HEMA reactivity. The magnitude of the solvent effect varies with monomer concentration, as shown by a systematic study of monomer/solvent mixtures containing 50 vol%, 20 vol%, and 10 vol% monomer. The observed behavior is related to the influence of hydrogen bonding on monomer reactivity, with the experimental results fit using the terminal model of radical copolymerization to provide estimates of reactivity ratios and kp,HEMA.
Bimetallic silver–platinum nanoparticles with combined osteo-promotive and antimicrobial activity

Bimetallic alloyed silver–platinum nanoparticles (AgPt NP) with different metal composition from Ag10Pt90 to Ag90Pt10 in steps of 20 mol% were synthesized. The biological effects of AgPt NP, including cellular uptake, cell viability, osteogenic differentiation and osteoclastogenesis as well as the antimicrobial activity towards Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli were analyzed in comparison to pure Ag NP and pure Pt NP. The uptake of NP into human mesenchymal stem cells was confirmed by cross-sectional focused-ion beam preparation and observation by scanning and transmission electron microscopy in combination with energy-dispersive x-ray analysis. Lower cytotoxicity and antimicrobial activity were observed for AgPt NP compared to pure Ag NP. Thus, an enhanced Ag ion release due to a possible sacrificial anode effect was not achieved. Nevertheless, a Ag content of at least 50 mol% was sufficient to induce bactericidal effects against both Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. In addition, a Pt-related (≥50 mol% Pt) osteo-promotive activity on human mesenchymal stem cells was observed by enhanced cell calcification and alkaline phosphatase activity. In contrast, the osteoclastogenesis of rat primary precursor osteoclasts was inhibited. In summary, these results demonstrate a combinatory osteo-promotive and antimicrobial activity of bimetallic Ag50Pt50 NP.
Analysis of Inflammatory Gene Expression Profile of Peripheral Blood Leukocytes in Type 2 Diabetes

ABSTRACT The pathophysiology of type 2 diabetes (T2DM) is associated with perturbation of innate immune response. Several studies indicated alteration of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines, chemokines and other mediators of innate immune response in T2DM. This study was designed to perform quantitative PCR-based expression profiling of genes involved in inflammation (i.e. CASP1, CASP5, CCL5, CXC11, CCR5, NF-Κb, IL-4, PPARG and PGC1α) in peripheral blood leukocytes of T2DM patients. The T2DM patients are often prescribed with metformin and insulin while metformin has also been reported to possess anti-inflammatory activity. To address the question whether metformin exerts any effect on inflammatory mediators in bloodstream, human subjects in this study were divided into four groups on the basis of medication they were taking during last 6 month. These groups included NT-T2DM (T2DM patients not taking medication, n = 34), Met-T2DM (T2DM patients taking metformin, n = 33), INS-T2DM (T2DM patients taking insulin, n = 15) and NGT (normoglycemic subjects, n = 34) groups. Differential expression of gene transcripts at a cutoff of fourfold was considered significant. In the NT-T2DM group, transcripts of inflammation-related genes (i.e. CASP1, CASP5, CCL5, CCR5 and NF-kB) were up-regulated while transcripts of PPARG and PGC1α genes were down-regulated compared to NGT group. On the other hand, down-regulation of CASP1, CASP5, CCL5, CCR5 and NF-kB transcripts was evident in Met-T2DM and INS-T2DM groups when compared to the NT-T2DM group. The Met-T2DM group and INS-T2DM group showed a significant difference in the transcript level of CASP1 and CCL5 which are more down-regulated in the Met-T2DM group compared to INS-T2DM group. These findings indicated that (a) in T2DM, expression of inflammation-related genes is up-regulated and (b) anti-inflammatory activity of metformin appears to be independent of its anti-hyperglycemic activity.
Critical Role of an MHC Class I-Like/Innate-Like T Cell Immune Surveillance System in Host Defense against Ranavirus (Frog Virus 3) Infection

Besides the central role of classical Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) class Ia-restricted conventional Cluster of Differentiation 8 (CD8) T cells in antiviral host immune response, the amphibian Xenopus laevis critically rely on MHC class I-like (mhc1b10.1.L or XNC10)-restricted innate-like (i)T cells (iVα6 T cells) to control infection by the ranavirus Frog virus 3 (FV3). To complement and extend our previous reverse genetic studies showing that iVα6 T cells are required for tadpole survival, as well as for timely and effective adult viral clearance, we examined the conditions and kinetics of iVα6 T cell response against FV3. Using a FV3 knock-out (KO) growth-defective mutant, we found that upregulation of the XNC10 restricting class I-like gene and the rapid recruitment of iVα6 T cells depend on detectable viral replication and productive FV3 infection. In addition, by in vivo depletion with XNC10 tetramers, we demonstrated the direct antiviral effector function of iVα6 T cells. Notably, the transitory iVα6 T cell defect delayed innate interferon and cytokine gene response, resulting in long-lasting negative inability to control FV3 infection. These findings suggest that in Xenopus and likely other amphibians, an immune surveillance system based on the early activation of iT cells by non-polymorphic MHC class-I like molecules is important for efficient antiviral immune response.
Prevalence of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus sp. (MRS) in Different Companion Animals and Determination of Risk Factors for Colonization with MRS

The aim of this study was to detect the prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus sp. (MRS) in populations of companion animals that either have previously been exposed or have not been exposed to antibiotic therapy or veterinary facilities, and if owners’ healthcare profession had an influence on colonization with MRS. In addition, the antimicrobial resistance pheno- and genotype were investigated and risks for colonization with MRS were assessed. During this study, 347 nasal swabs (dogs n = 152; cats n = 107; rabbits n = 88) were investigated for the presence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). In addition, 131 nasal swabs (dogs n = 79; cats n = 47; rabbits = 3; guinea pigs = 2) were examined for the presence of MRSA but also other MRS. In total, 23 MRS isolates belonged to nine staphylococcal species: Staphylococcus epidermidis (n = 11), Staphylococcus warneri (n = 3), Staphylococcus hominis (n = 2), Staphylococcus pseudintermedius (n = 2), and singletons Staphylococcus cohnii, Staphylococcus sciuri, Staphylococcus fleurettii, Staphylococcus lentus, and Staphylococcus haemolyticus. Twenty isolates displayed a multidrug-resistant phenotype. Various resistance and biocide resistance genes were detected among the examined staphylococci. Risk assessment for MRS colonization was conducted using a number of factors, including animal species, breed, age, gender, recent veterinary health care hospitalization, and antibiotic prescription, resulting in recent veterinary health care hospitalization being a significant risk factor. The detection of multidrug-resistant MRS in healthy animals is of importance due to their zoonotic potential.
Clostridium difficile in wild rodents and insectivores in the Netherlands

With wild rodents and insectivores being present around humans and their living, working and food production environments, it is important to gain knowledge of the zoonotic pathogens present in these animals. The enteropathogen Clostridium difficile, an opportunistic anaerobic bacteria, can be carried by both animals and humans, and is distributed globally. It is known that there is genetic overlap between human and animal sources of C. difficile. In this study, the aim was to assess the presence of C. difficile in rodents and insectivores trapped on and around pig and cattle farms in the Netherlands. In total 347 rodents and insectivores (10 different species) were trapped and 39·2% tested positive for presence of C. difficile. For all positive samples the ribotype (RT) was determined, and in total there were 13 different RTs found (in descending order of frequency: 057, 010, 029, 005, 073, 078, 015, 035, 454, 014, 058, 062, 087). Six of the RTs isolated from rodents and insectivores are known to be associated with human C. difficile infection; RT005, RT010, RT014, RT015, RT078 and RT087. The presence of rodents and insectivores in and around food production buildings (e.g. farms) could contribute to the spread of C. difficile in the human environment. In order to enable on‐farm management for pathogen control, it is essential to comprehend the role of wild rodents and insectivores that could potentially affect the ecology of disease agents on farms.
Physical Processes in Polymeric Filters Used for Dialysis

The key physical processes in polymeric filters used for the blood purification include transport across the capillary wall and the interaction of blood cells with the polymer membrane surface. Theoretical modeling of membrane transport is an important tool which provides researchers with a quantification of the complex phenomena involved in dialysis. In the paper, we present a dense review of the most successful theoretical approaches to the description of transport across the polymeric membrane wall as well as the cell–polymer surface interaction, and refer to the corresponding experimental methods while studying these phenomena in dialyzing filters.
Treatment of atopic dermatitis with dupilumab: experience from a tertiary referral centre

Management of moderate‐to‐severe atopic dermatitis (AD) frequently requires treatment with systemic therapies. Dupilumab is the first biological agent approved for treatment of moderate‐to‐severe AD. Although promising results have appeared in clinical trials, real‐life data on efficacy and safety are lacking.
Polysaccharide-Rich Fractions from Rosa rugosa Thunb.—Composition and Chemopreventive Potential

The huge health-beneficial potential of polysaccharides encourages the search for novel sources and applications of these compounds. One poorly explored source of polysaccharides is the rose. The content and biological activity of polysaccharides in rose organs is an almost completely unaddressed topic, therefore, polysaccharide-rich extracts (crude polysaccharides, CPLs) from petals, leaves, hips, and achenes of Rosa rugosa Thunb. were studied for their composition and the influence on various cellular processes involved in the development of cancer and other civilization diseases. The study revealed the presence of water-soluble and -insoluble polysaccharides (including β-glucans) and protein-polysaccharide conjugates in rose organs. Rose hips were found to be the most abundant source of polysaccharides. Different polysaccharide-rich extracts showed the ability to inhibit pro-inflammatory enzymes (COX-1, COX-2, hyaluronidase), a radical scavenging effect (against DPPH• and ABTS•+), and antiproliferative activity (in the A549 lung and SW480 colon cancer cell lines) in in vitro assays. Therefore, rose crude polysaccharides are very promising and can potentially be used as natural chemopreventive agents.
Analysis of Association between Vitamin D Deficiency and Insulin Resistance

Recent evidence revealed extra skeleton activity of vitamin D, including prevention from cardiometabolic diseases and cancer development as well as anti-inflammatory properties. It is worth noting that vitamin D deficiency is very common and may be associated with the pathogenesis of insulin-resistance-related diseases, including obesity and diabetes. This review aims to provide molecular mechanisms showing how vitamin D deficiency may be involved in the insulin resistance formation. The PUBMED database and published reference lists were searched to find studies published between 1980 and 2019. It was identified that molecular action of vitamin D is involved in maintaining the normal resting levels of ROS and Ca2+, not only in pancreatic β-cells, but also in insulin responsive tissues. Both genomic and non-genomic action of vitamin D is directed towards insulin signaling. Thereby, vitamin D reduces the extent of pathologies associated with insulin resistance such as oxidative stress and inflammation. More recently, it was also shown that vitamin D prevents epigenetic alterations associated with insulin resistance and diabetes. In conclusion, vitamin D deficiency is one of the factors accelerating insulin resistance formation. The results of basic and clinical research support beneficial action of vitamin D in the reduction of insulin resistance and related pathologies.
Does the Andersen Behavioral Model of Health Services Use predict college students’ use of on-campus mental health services?

Abstract Objective: 10–50% of college students meet the diagnostic criteria for one or more mental illnesses; unfortunately, less than half seek treatment. This study assessed the predictive power of specific variables on students’ use of on-campus mental health resources using the American College Health Association’s National College Health Assessment (ACHA-NCHA) II. Participants: Respondents included undergraduate and graduate students ages 18–35 years (n = 96,121). Methods: We analyzed data from the ACHA-NCHA II Fall 2014 and Spring 2015. Andersen’s Behavioral Model of Health Services Use enabled selection of predisposing, enabling, and need predictor variables; these were analyzed individually and collectively. Results: Predisposing, enabling, and need variables accounted for 9%, 2.3%, and 17% of the overall variance. Significant variables associated with a student’s decision to access on-campus mental health services accounted for 23% of variance total. Conclusions: This insight could allow universities to better recognize students at-risk for needing but not accessing mental health services.
Effective Diagnosis and Treatment through Content-Based Medical Image Retrieval (CBMIR) by Using Artificial Intelligence

Medical-image-based diagnosis is a tedious task‚ and small lesions in various medical images can be overlooked by medical experts due to the limited attention span of the human visual system, which can adversely affect medical treatment. However, this problem can be resolved by exploring similar cases in the previous medical database through an efficient content-based medical image retrieval (CBMIR) system. In the past few years, heterogeneous medical imaging databases have been growing rapidly with the advent of different types of medical imaging modalities. Recently, a medical doctor usually refers to various types of imaging modalities all together such as computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), X-ray, and ultrasound, etc of various organs in order for the diagnosis and treatment of specific disease. Accurate classification and retrieval of multimodal medical imaging data is the key challenge for the CBMIR system. Most previous attempts use handcrafted features for medical image classification and retrieval, which show low performance for a massive collection of multimodal databases. Although there are a few previous studies on the use of deep features for classification, the number of classes is very small. To solve this problem, we propose the classification-based retrieval system of the multimodal medical images from various types of imaging modalities by using the technique of artificial intelligence, named as an enhanced residual network (ResNet). Experimental results with 12 databases including 50 classes demonstrate that the accuracy and F1.score by our method are respectively 81.51% and 82.42% which are higher than those by the previous method of CBMIR (the accuracy of 69.71% and F1.score of 69.63%).
Transcriptomic Response to 1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D in Human Fibroblasts with or without a Functional Vitamin D Receptor (VDR): Novel Target Genes and Insights into VDR Basal Transcriptional Activity

The vitamin D receptor (VDR) mediates vitamin D actions beyond bone health. While VDR activation by 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25D) leads to robust transcriptional regulation, less is known about VDR actions in the absence of 1,25D. We analyzed the transcriptomic response to 1,25D in fibroblasts bearing a severe homozygous hereditary vitamin D resistant rickets-related p.Arg30* VDR mutation (MUT) and in control fibroblasts (CO). Roughly 4.5% of the transcriptome was regulated by 1,25D in CO fibroblasts, while MUT cells without a functional VDR were insensitive to 1,25D. Novel VDR target genes identified in human fibroblasts included bone and cartilage factors CILP, EFNB2, and GALNT12. Vehicle-treated CO and MUT fibroblasts had strikingly different transcriptomes, suggesting basal VDR activity. Indeed, oppositional transcriptional effects in basal conditions versus after 1,25D activation were implied for a subset of target genes mostly involved with cell cycle. Cell proliferation assays corroborated this conjectured oppositional basal VDR activity, indicating that precise 1,25D dosage in target tissues might be essential for modulating vitamin D actions in human health.