Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Drivers of Subjective Well-Being Under Different Economic Scenarios

This paper explores the evolution of the driving forces that shape individual subjective well-being (SWB) in Spain from 2013 to 2018. Several socio-demographic, material conditions and quality of life (QoL) variables are considered as potential drivers of SWB. The data come from a large survey carried in two different time periods. The first one (2013) is characterized by a negative economic scenario as a result of the global financial crisis of 2008. The second one (2018) is characterized by fast economic recovery. Our results suggest that the material conditions variables, especially unemployment, have a much deeper impact on SWB during economic downturns than during economic recovery periods. Social connections and health status are determinant factors behind SWB, especially if the economy is working well. Our results also point to changes in gender effects. While women were happier than men in 2013, this effect disappears in 2018. Paradoxically, this suggest an increase in female expectations about their own lives during this period.
Assembly Processes and Co-occurrence Patterns of Abundant and Rare Bacterial Community in the Eastern Indian Ocean

Microbial communities are composed of many rare species and a few abundant species. Considering the disproportionate importance of rare species for ecosystem functioning, it is important to understand the mechanisms structuring the rare and abundant components of a diverse community in response to environmental changes. Here, we used a 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing approach to investigate the bacterial community diversity in the Eastern Indian Ocean (EIO) during the monsoon and intermonsoon. We employed a phylogenetic null model and network analysis to evaluate the assembly processes and co-occurrence pattern of the microbial community. We found that higher bacterial diversity was detected in the intermonsoon with high temperature and low Chlorophyll a concentrations and N/P ratios. The balance between ecological deterministic processes and stochastic processes varied with seasons in the EIO. Meanwhile, conditionally rare taxa (CRT) were more likely modulated by variable selection processes than always rare taxa (ART) and abundant taxa (AT) (CRT > ART > AT). By linking assembly process and species co-occurrence, we demonstrated that the microbial co-occurrence associations tended to be higher when deterministic processes (mainly variable selection) were weaker. This negative trend was observed in rare species rather than abundant species. The linkage could enhance our understanding of the underlying mechanisms underpinning the generation and maintenance of microbial community diversity.
L-Citrulline Influences the Body Temperature, Heat Shock Response and Nitric Oxide Regeneration of Broilers Under Thermoneutral and Heat Stress Condition

Heat stress (HS) adversely affects several physiological responses in organisms, but the underlying molecular mechanisms involved are yet to be fully understood. L-Citrulline (L-Cit) is a nutraceutical amino acid that is gaining research interest for its role in body temperature regulation and nitric oxide synthesis. This study investigated whether dietary supplementation with L-Cit (1% of basal diet) could ameliorate the effects of acute HS on thermotolerance, redox balance, and inflammatory responses of broilers. Ross 308 broilers (288 chicks) were subjected to two environments; thermoneutral at 24°C (TNZ) or HS at 35°C for 5 h, and fed two diets; control or L-Cit. The results showed that HS increased the ear, rectal (RT), and core body (CBT) temperatures of broilers, along with higher respiratory rate. The RT and CBT readings were intermittently affected with time effect, whereas, L-Cit supplementation lowered the mean CBT than the control diet. Antioxidant assays showed that superoxide dismutase was increased during HS, while, catalase was promoted by L-Cit supplementation. In addition, L-Cit induced glutathione peroxidase activity compared to the control diet during HS. Hypothalamic heat shock protein (HSP)-90 was upregulated by HS, but L-Cit downregulated heat shock factor (HSF)-1, and HSP 60 mRNA expressions. HSF 3 mRNA expression was downregulated by L-Cit under TNZ condition. More so, HS increased the plasma nitric oxide (NO) concentration but lowered the total NO synthase (tNOS) activity. In contrast, L-Cit supplementation limited NO production but increased the tNOS activity. Arginase activity was increased in the control fed group during HS but L-Cit supplementation lowered this effect. The NOS-COX pathway was significantly affected under TNZ condition, since L-Cit supplementation downregulated the mRNA expression of iNOS-COX2 in the hypothalamus, and further reduced the serum PGE2 concentration. Together, these data indicates that L-Cit influenced the antioxidant defense, heat shock response and nitric oxide regeneration both under thermoneutral and HS conditions; and that L-Cit may be directly and/or indirectly involved in the central regulation of body temperature.
Liquid Inclusion Collision and Agglomeration in Calcium-Treated Aluminum-Killed Steel

This work addresses conflicting results in the literature regarding liquid inclusion agglomeration. To assess whether liquid calcium aluminates do agglomerate in liquid steel, laboratory experiments were performed: melting electrolytic iron, deoxidizing the melt with aluminum and subsequently calcium treating the deoxidation products (alumina and magnesia-alumina spinel inclusions). Under laboratory conditions, solid spinels and alumina inclusions were successfully modified, producing a new population of much smaller calcium aluminate inclusions. The new population of inclusions forms because the presence of calcium in the liquid steel destabilizes alumina and MgO-alumina inclusions, which then dissolve into the melt. The liquid inclusions exhibited a weak but statistically significant tendency to agglomerate. Laboratory results were assessed in the light of different collision mechanisms. Agglomeration mainly occurs by Stokes and laminar fluid flow collision when no external stirring is imposed. Monte Carlo simulations of collisions agree reasonably well with experimental results. For industrial conditions, where the liquid steel is agitated by argon bubbling and/or electromagnetic stirring, turbulent collisions dominate.
Economic Crisis and Attitudes Towards Democracy: How Ideology Moderates Reactions to Economic Downturns

This paper studies the extent to which economic crises bust different reactions depending on individual ideological identity. Our argument is that individual left-right identification shapes how citizens evaluate the functioning of democracy, and consequently, it moderates the impact of economic crises on democratic discontent. We argue that left-wing individuals’ views on democratic performance would be more heavily affected by economic results and strongly shaped by the (in)capacity of a democracy to represent its citizens in its reaction to the economic crisis. After testing our argument with data from the ESS, we provide evidence from a survey experiment conducted in Spain. Both analyses show that economic crises are relevant in explaining democratic dissatisfaction, but the strength of their impact depends on ideological identities. Economic results have a stronger effect on the satisfaction with democracy of left-wing individuals by negatively affecting their perception of the functioning of democratic representation.
Adenylate Cyclase 1 Links Calcium Signaling to CFTR-Dependent Cytosolic Chloride Elevations in Chick Amacrine Cells

The strength and sign of synapses involving ionotropic GABA and glycine receptors are dependent upon the Cl− gradient. We have shown that nitric oxide (NO) elicits the release of Cl− from internal acidic stores in retinal amacrine cells (ACs); temporarily altering the Cl− gradient and the strength or even sign of incoming GABAergic or glycinergic synapses. The underlying mechanism for this effect of NO requires the cystic fibrosis transmembrane regulator (CFTR) but the link between NO and CFTR activation has not been determined. Here, we test the hypothesis that NO-dependent Ca2+ elevations activate the Ca2+-dependent adenylate cyclase 1 (AdC1) leading to activation of protein kinase A (PKA) whose activity is known to open the CFTR channel. Using the reversal potential of GABA-gated currents to monitor cytosolic Cl−, we established the requirement for Ca2+ elevations. Inhibitors of AdC1 suppressed the NO-dependent increases in cytosolic Cl− whereas inhibitors of other AdC subtypes were ineffective suggesting that AdC1 is involved. Inhibition of PKA also suppressed the action of NO. To address the sufficiency of this pathway in linking NO to elevations in cytosolic Cl−, GABA-gated currents were measured under internal and external zero Cl− conditions to isolate the internal Cl− store. Activators of the cAMP pathway were less effective than NO in producing GABA-gated currents. However, coupling the cAMP pathway activators with the release of Ca2+ from stores produced GABA-gated currents indistinguishable from those stimulated with NO. Together, these results demonstrate that cytosolic Ca2+ links NO to the activation of CFTR and the elevation of cytosolic Cl−.
A Simulation Study of the Use of Vaccination to Control Foot-and-Mouth Disease Outbreaks Across Australia

This study examines the potential for foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) control strategies that incorporate vaccination to manage FMD spread for a range of incursion scenarios across Australia. Stakeholder consultation was used to formulate control strategies and incursion scenarios to ensure relevance to the diverse range of Australian livestock production regions and management systems. The Australian Animal Disease Spread model (AADIS) was used to compare nine control strategies for 13 incursion scenarios, including seven control strategies incorporating vaccination. The control strategies with vaccination differed in terms of their approaches for targeting areas and species. These strategies are compared with two benchmark strategies based on stamping out only. Outbreak size and duration were compared in terms of the total number of infected premises, the duration of the control stage of an FMD outbreak, and the number of vaccinated animals. The three key findings from this analysis are as follows: (1) smaller outbreaks can be effectively managed by stamping out without vaccination, (2) the size and duration of larger outbreaks can be significantly reduced when vaccination is used, and (3) different vaccination strategies produced similar reductions in the size and duration of an outbreak, but the number of animals vaccinated varied. Under current international standards for regaining FMD-free status, vaccinated animals need to be removed from the population at the end of the outbreak to minimize trade impacts. We have shown that selective, targeted vaccination strategies could achieve effective FMD control while significantly reducing the number of animals vaccinated.
The Predictive Effect of Parental Adult Attachment on Parent–Adolescent Attachment: The Mediating Role of Harsh Parenting

This study examines the relationship between parental adult attachment and parent–adolescent attachment and investigates the mediating role of harsh parenting from the perspective of family systems theory. The sample included adolescents and their parents from 1,030 families in Henan Province, China. Measures included the Experiences in Close Relationships Scale, Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment Scale, and Harsh Parenting Scale. The results showed that paternal avoidance negatively predicts father–adolescent and mother–adolescent attachments, while maternal avoidance and maternal anxiety negatively predict father–adolescent attachment and mother–adolescent attachment, respectively. Paternal harsh parenting not only mediated the relationship between paternal adult and father–adolescent attachment but also between paternal adult and mother–adolescent attachment. However, maternal harsh parenting only plays an intermediary role between maternal adult and mother–adolescent attachment. The results of the study show that compared with the adverse effects of maternal adult attachment and maternal harsh parenting on parent–adolescent attachment, paternal avoidance and paternal harsh parenting more negatively affect parent–adolescent attachment, which is not conducive to familial harmony.
New Insights Into Mitochondrial Dysfunction at Disease Susceptibility Loci in the Development of Type 2 Diabetes

This study investigated the potential genetic mechanisms which underlie adipose tissue mitochondrial dysfunction in Type 2 diabetes (T2D), by systematically identifying nuclear-encoded mitochondrial genes (NEMGs) among the genes regulated by T2D-associated genetic loci. The target genes of these ‘disease loci’ were identified by mapping genetic loci associated with both disease and gene expression levels (expression quantitative trait loci, eQTL) using high resolution genetic maps, with independent estimates co-locating to within a small genetic distance. These co-locating signals were defined as T2D-eQTL and the target genes as T2D cis-genes. In total, 763 cis-genes were associated with T2D-eQTL, of which 50 were NEMGs. Independent gene expression datasets for T2D and insulin resistant cases and controls confirmed that the cis-genes and cis-NEMGs were enriched for differential expression in cases, providing independent validation that genetic maps can identify informative functional genes. Two additional results were consistent with a potential role of T2D-eQTL in regulating the 50 identified cis-NEMGs in the context of T2D risk: (1) the 50 cis-NEMGs showed greater differential expression compared to other NEMGs and (2) other NEMGs showed a trend towards significantly decreased expression if their expression levels correlated more highly with the subset of 50 cis-NEMGs. These 50 cis-NEMGs, which are differentially expressed and associated with mapped T2D disease loci, encode proteins acting within key mitochondrial pathways, including some of current therapeutic interest such as the metabolism of branched-chain amino acids, GABA and biotin.
Dynamic Functional Connectivity of EEG: From Identifying Fingerprints to Gender Differences to a General Blueprint for the Brain's Functional Organization

An individual's brain functional organization is unique and can reliably be observed using modalities such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Here we demonstrate that a quantification of the dynamics of functional connectivity (FC) as measured using electroencephalography (EEG) offers an alternative means of observing an individual's brain functional organization. Using data from both healthy individuals as well as from patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) (n = 103 healthy individuals, n = 57 PD patients), we show that “dynamic FC” (DFC) profiles can be used to identify individuals in a large group. Furthermore, we show that DFC profiles predict gender and exhibit characteristics shared both among individuals as well as between both hemispheres. Furthermore, DFC profile characteristics are frequency band specific, indicating that they reflect distinct processes in the brain. Our empirically derived method of DFC demonstrates the potential of studying the dynamics of the functional organization of the brain using EEG.
Screening of MicroRNA Related to Irradiation Response and the Regulation Mechanism of miRNA-96-5p in Rectal Cancer Cells

Neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy has been widely used in the treatment of locally advanced rectal cancer due to the excellent advantages of irradiation in cancer therapy. Unfortunately, not every patient can benefit from this treatment, therefore, it is of great significance to explore biomarkers that can predict irradiation sensitivity. In this study, we screened microRNAs (miRNAs) which were positively correlated with irradiation resistance and found that miRNA-552 and miRNA-183 families were positively correlated with the irradiation resistance of rectal cancer, and found that high expression of miRNA-96-5p enhanced the irradiation resistance of rectal cancer cells through direct regulation of the GPC3 gene and abnormal activation of the canonical Wnt signal transduction pathway. Based on the radioreactivity results of patient-derived xenograft models, this is the first screening report for radio-resistant biomarkers in rectal cancer. Our results suggest that miRNA-96-5p expression is an important factor affecting the radiation response of colorectal cancer cells.
Higher Dietary Inflammatory Index Scores Increase the Risk of Diabetes Mellitus: A Meta-Analysis and Systematic Review

The relationship between dietary inflammatory index (DII) scores and the risk of diabetes mellitus (DM) is unclear; therefore, a systematic review and meta-analysis of the current published literature was conducted. Relevant studies published online (PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science) until February 1, 2021 were identified for review. The initial search yielded 13 reports, and after perusing their titles, abstracts, and full texts, 5 studies were deemed appropriate for inclusion in the systematic review and meta-analysis. Individuals with higher DII scores (representing a more proinflammatory diet) had a higher risk of DM (pooled odds ratio 1.32, 95% confidence interval 1.01–1.72, I2 58.6%, p < 0.05). Although the current meta-analysis indicated a trend toward a positive association between DII and DM, further evidence—especially from larger prospective studies in different countries—is needed to clarify this association.
Grammar and Hands: Manual Turn-Taking and Its Relationships to Verbal Turn-Taking in the Transfer of Objects

When customers bring a material item to a shop for repair, they must make the item and its troubles inspectable to the staff at the shop. This typically requires physical manipulation of the object by the customer. For their part, the staff person may then need to take the item into their own hands to further inspect it. A physical transfer of the object from customer to staff person may thus need to be accomplished. A practical problem that can arise in such transfers is this: who has the rights and responsibilities to touch and hold the object at any given time? In our data from a shoe repair shop, this practical problem is one of turn-taking of the participants’ hands, and the participants exhibit a clear normative orientation to “one person touches at a time”, with gaps and overlaps being common but brief. The parallels to verbal turn-taking are explored, as are the different affordances of each semiotic resource. The data are in American English.
The Predictive Role of Lymphocyte-to-Monocyte Ratio in Acute Kidney Injury in Acute Debakey Type I Aortic Dissection

Background: The post-operative acute kidney injury (AKI) represents a common complication in the Acute Debakey Type I Aortic Dissection (ADTIAD) and predicts a poorer prognosis. The clinical evidence is scarce supporting the predictive value of the pre-operative lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR) in post-operative AKI in ADTIAD. Methods: In this retrospective cohort study, 190 consecutive patients with ADTIAD enrolled for surgical treatment between January 1, 2013, and December 31, 2018. The diagnosis of AKI followed the Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes guidelines (KDIGO). Pre-operative LMR and other possible risk factors were analyzed for their prognostic value in the post-operative AKI in ADTIAD. Results: The subjects were assigned to the low-LMR and high-LMR groups according to the median value of pre-operative LMR. For post-operative AKI, the incidence and the severity in the low-LMR group were statistically different from that of the high-LMR group. Besides, the lower LMR was statistically associated with the more extended ICU stay and intubation time and higher incidences of ischemic stroke and in-hospital mortality. Additionally, in the multivariable analysis, the pre-operative LMR was an independent predictor for post-operative AKI in ADTIAD. A predictive model for post-operative AKI in ADTIAD was established incorporating LMR. Conclusions: LMR is an independent prognostic indicator incorporated into the predictive model with other risk factors to predict the post-operative AKI in ADTIAD.
Preclinical Characterization of a Novel Anti-Cancer PD-L1 Inhibitor RPH-120

RPH-120 is a novel fully human anti-PD-L1 IgG1 monoclonal antibody with specifically designed Asn300Ala mutation in Fc fragment. Surface plasmon resonance assay showed that affinity of the RPH-120 to the dimeric form of human PD-L1-Fc fusion protein was much higher than affinity to the monomeric His-tagged PD-L1. Further binding studies demonstrated that RPH-120 is able to bind to human and monkey but not mouse PD-L1. Tissue cross-reactivity study showed good comparability of human and Cynomolgus monkeys tissue staining. Bioactivity was assessed using mixed lymphocyte reaction assay. This study revealed that RPH-120 was able to activate T cells preventing PD1/PD-L1 interaction. Antitumor efficacy was analyzed in HCC-827 lung cancer xenografts in humanized CD34+ mice at three dosage levels: 20, 80, and 200 mg/kg. RPH-120 demonstrated significant tumor growth inhibition, and this inhibition was comparable to that of atezolizumab. In a single dose toxicity, toxicokinetic and dose range finding study performed in Cynomolgus monkeys, RPH-120 was administered via intravenous (IV) bolus or 60-min IV infusion, followed by 8-weeks recovery period. An acceptable toxicokinetic profile was demonstrated and administration at doses of up to 200 mg/kg was well tolerated by all animals. In conclusion, RPH-120 revealed promising in vitro and in vivo activity and safety. RPH-120 is a potent anti-PD-L1 drug candidate for cancer immunotherapy.