Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Altered hemodynamics and vascular reactivity in a mouse model with severe pericyte deficiency

Pericytes are the mural cells of the microvascular network that are in close contact with underlying endothelial cells. Endothelial-secreted PDGFB leads to recruitment of pericytes to the vessel wall, but this is disrupted in Pdgfbret/ret mice when the PDGFB retention motif is deleted. This results in severely reduced pericyte coverage on blood vessels. In this study, we investigated vascular abnormalities and hemodynamics in Pdgfbret/ret mice throughout the cerebrovascular network and in different cortical layers by in vivo two-photon microscopy. We confirmed that Pdgfbret/ret mice are severely deficient in pericytes throughout the vascular network, with enlarged brain blood vessels and a reduced number of vessel branches. Red blood cell velocity, linear density, and tube hematocrit were reduced in Pdgfbret/ret mice, which may impair oxygen delivery to the tissue. We also measured intravascular PO2 and found that concentrations were higher in cortical Layer 2/3 in Pdgfbret/ret mice, indicative of reduced blood oxygen extraction. Finally, we found that Pdgfbret/ret mice had a reduced capacity for vasodilation in response to an acetazolamide challenge during functional MRI imaging. Taken together, these results suggest that severe pericyte deficiency can lead to vascular abnormalities and altered cerebral blood flow, reminiscent of pathologies such as arteriovenous malformations.
Diabatic processes modifying potential vorticity in a North Atlantic cyclone

Potential vorticity (PV) succinctly describes the evolution of large‐scale atmospheric flow because of its material conservation and invertibility properties. However, diabatic processes in extratropical cyclones can modify PV and influence both mesoscale weather and the evolution of the synoptic‐scale wave pattern. In this investigation, modification of PV by diabatic processes is diagnosed in a Met Office Unified Model (MetUM) simulation of a North Atlantic cyclone using a set of PV tracers. The structure of diabatic PV within the extratropical cyclone is investigated and linked to the processes responsible for it. On the mesoscale, a tripole of diabatic PV is generated across the tropopause fold extending down to the cold front. The structure results from a dipole in heating across the frontal interface due to condensation in the warm conveyor belt flanking the upper side of the fold and evaporation of precipitation in the dry intrusion and below. On isentropic surfaces intersecting the tropopause, positive diabatic PV is generated on the stratospheric side, while negative diabatic PV is generated on the tropospheric side. The stratospheric diabatic PV is generated primarily by long‐wave cooling which peaks at the tropopause itself due to the sharp gradient in humidity there. The tropospheric diabatic PV originates locally from the long‐wave radiation and non‐locally by advection out of the top of heating associated with the large‐scale cloud, convection and boundary layer schemes. In most locations there is no diabatic modification of PV at the tropopause itself but diabatic PV anomalies would influence the tropopause indirectly through the winds they induce and subsequent advection. The consequences of this diabatic PV dipole for the evolution of synoptic‐scale wave patterns are discussed.
Some Special Nonlinear Least Squares Problems

A least squares problem is called separable if the fitting function can be written as a linear combination of functions involving further parameters in a nonlinear manner. Here it is shown that a separable problem can be transformed to a minimization problem involving the nonlinear parameters only. This result can be interpreted as a generalization of the classical technique of Prony, and it also shows how the numerical difficulties associated with Prony’s method can be overcome. The transformation is then worked out in detail for two examples (exponential fitting to equispaced data and rational fitting). In both cases the condition for a stationary value of the transformed problem leads to a nonlinear eigenvalue problem. Two algorithms are then suggested and illustrated by numerical examples.
Development of a Novel NGS Methodology for Ultrasensitive Circulating Tumor DNA Detection as a Tool for Early-Stage Breast Cancer Diagnosis

Breast cancer (BC) is the most prevalent cancer in women. While usually detected when localized, invasive procedures are still required for diagnosis. Herein, we developed a novel ultrasensitive pipeline to detect circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) in a series of 75 plasma samples from localized BC patients prior to any medical intervention. We first performed a tumor-informed analysis to correlate the mutations found in tumor tissue and plasma. Disregarding the tumor data next, we developed an approach to detect tumor mutations in plasma. We observed a mutation concordance between the tumor and plasma of 29.50% with a sensitivity down to 0.03% in mutant variant allele frequency (VAF). We detected mutations in 33.78% of the samples, identifying eight patients with plasma-only mutations. Altogether, we determined a specificity of 86.36% and a positive predictive value of 88.46% for BC detection. We demonstrated an association between higher ctDNA median VAF and higher tumor grade, multiple plasma mutations with a likelihood of relapse and more frequent TP53 plasma mutations in hormone receptor-negative tumors. Overall, we have developed a unique ultra-sensitive sequencing workflow with a technology not previously employed in early BC, paving the way for its application in BC screening.
Eosinophils and basophils in severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome patients: Risk factors for predicting the prognosis on admission

Background Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) virus (SFTSV) is an emerging tick-borne phlebovirus with a high fatality rate. Previous studies have demonstrated the poor prognostic role of eosinophils (EOS) and basophils (BAS) in predicting multiple viral infections. This study aimed to explore the role of EOS and BAS in predicting prognosis of patients with SFTS. Methodology A total of 194 patients with SFTS who were admitted to Yantai City Hospital from November 2019 to November 2021 were included. Patients’ demographic and clinical data were collected. According to the clinical prognosis, they were divided into survival and non-survival groups. Independent risk factors were determined by univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. Findings There were 171 (88.14%) patients in the survived group and 23 (11.86%) patients in the non-survived group. Patients’ mean age was 62.39 ± 11.85 years old, and the proportion of males was 52.1%. Older age, neurological manifestations, hemorrhage, chemosis, and increased levels of laboratory variables, such as EOS% and BAS% on admission, were found in the non-survival group compared with the survival group. EOS%, BAS%, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), direct bilirubin (DBIL), and older age on admission were noted as independent risk factors for poor prognosis of SFTS patients. The combination of the EOS% and BAS% had an area under the curve (AUC) of (0.82; 95% CI: 0.725, 0.932, P = 0.000), which showed an excellent performance in predicting prognosis of patients with SFTS compared with neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and both exhibited a satisfactory performance in predicting poor prognosis compared with De-Ritis ratio (AST/alanine aminotransferase (ALT) ratio). EOS% and BAS% were positively correlated with various biomarkers of tissue damage and the incidence of neurological complications in SFTS patients. Conclusion EOS% and BAS% are effective predictors of poor prognosis of patients with early-stage SFTS. The combination of EOS% and BAS% was found as the most effective approach.
Fermentation of White and Brown Rice Water Increases Plant Nutrients and Beneficial Microbes

The wastewater after washing rice grains is known as washed rice water (WRW). WRW is often recommended for reuse as plant fertilizer, but little is known about the difference in the nutrient and microbial contents of WRW between white and brown rice. The study aims to answer this question and determine how much the nutrient contents in the WRW would change with fermentation and how fermentation would affect the phosphorus (P)- and potassium (K)-solubilization bacteria in the WRW. Medium-grained rice was washed at a volumetric rice-to-water ratio of 1:3 for 90 seconds at 0.357 × g. WRW was then fermented for 0 (fresh), 3, 6, and 9 days. The rice grains and WRW were analyzed for pH, electrical conductivity (EC), carbon (C), nitrogen (N), sulfur (S), ammonium (NH4+), nitrate (NO3-), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), and boron (B), as well as for total microbial population and P- and K-solubilizing bacteria. Brown rice grains had 26 to 324% higher P, K, Mg, and Zn than white rice. Nutrient contents in the WRW increased with increasing fermentation, except for C, which decreased with fermentation. At 9 days of fermentation, P, Ca, Mg, Cu, and B in the white rice water increased by 4 to 207%, which were also higher than in the brown rice water. The microbial population increased with fermentation for 3 days, then decreased after that, following the same C trend in the WRW from both rice types. P-and K-solubilization by bacteria in the WRW from both rice types increased with fermentation. The P solubilization was 25% higher in brown rice water, while the K solubilization was 67% higher in white rice water. Fermented rice water from white and brown rice was revealed to potentially improve plant growth and increase overall soil health due to their plant nutrient and microbial contents.
The lattice of congruences on a band of groups

It is implicit in a result of Kapp and Schneider [3] that, if Sisa completely simple semigroup, then the lattice Λ(S) of congruences on S can be embedded in the product of certain sublattices. In this paper we consider the problem of embedding Λ(S) in a product of sublattices, when S is an arbitrary band of groups. The principal tool is the θ-relation of Reilly and Scheiblich [7]. The class of θ-modular bands of groups is definedby means of a type of modularity condition on Λ(S). It is shown that the θ-modular bands of groups are precisely those for which a certain function is an embedding of Λ(S) into a product of sublattices. The problem of embedding the inverse semigroup congruences into a certain product lattice is also considered.
Continuous Algorithms in n-Term Approximation and Non-Linear Widths

In the present paper we investigate optimal continuous algorithms in n-term approximation based on various non-linear n-widths, and n-term approximation by the dictionary V formed from the integer translates of the mixed dyadic scales of the tensor product multivariate de la Vallee Poussin kernel, for the unit ball of Sobolev and Besov spaces of functions with common mixed smoothness. The asymptotic orders of these quantities are given. For each space the asymptotic orders of non-linear n-widths and n-term approximation coincide. Moreover, these asymptotic orders are achieved by a continuous algorithm of n-term approximation by V, which is explicitly constructed.
Sub-Lethal Effects of Bifenthrin and Imidacloprid on Megacephala carolina carolina L. (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in Turfgrass

Simple Summary Tiger beetles are important predators in turfgrass in Georgia, USA. Many insecticides are sprayed on turfgrass to manage pests. Among them, bifenthrin and imidacloprid are the most commonly used insecticides in turfgrass. These insecticides may harm beneficial insects or the behavior of tiger beetles in turfgrass. Therefore, the objective was to determine whether lower doses of bifenthrin and imidacloprid would alter the normal hunting behavior of larvae and adult tiger beetles. Lower doses of bifenthrin altered the normal hunting behavior of larvae and adult tiger beetles. However, lower doses of imidacloprid did not alter the larval behavior. These results suggest that not all insecticides are equally harmful to the beneficial insects in turfgrass. Turfgrass managers should carefully inspect the presence of tiger beetle holes before spraying insecticides on turfgrass. Abstract The tiger beetle, Megacephala carolina carolina L. (Coleoptera: Carabidae), is a common predator in turfgrass and ornamental landscapes in Georgia, USA. Among insecticides used in turfgrass to control foliar and root-feeding insect pests, bifenthrin and imidacloprid are routinely used. It was unclear whether sub-lethal doses of bifenthrin and imidacloprid could cause nontarget effects on larvae and M. carolina carolina adults. Thus, the objective was to determine the sub-lethal effects of bifenthrin and imidacloprid on larvae and M. carolina carolina adults. The results show that M. carolina carolina larvae actively hunt for passing prey by waiting at the hole of the tunnel during the day and nighttime. This larval behavior was affected by sub-lethal doses (up to 25% of full label rate) of bifenthrin but not of imidacloprid. The walking behavior of adult M. carolina carolina was also altered when exposed to sub-lethal doses of bifenthrin as they traveled further distances at greater velocities than the nontreated control. The results imply that turfgrass managers should avoid treating lawns where tiger beetles have actively colonized.
Differential diagnostic value of magnetic resonance diffusion-weighted imaging and apparent diffusion coefficient for renal clear cell carcinoma and non-clear cell carcinoma

Accurate identification of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) subtypes before surgery is important to determine appropriate surgical methods and clinical prognosis. The objective of the present study was to investigate the differential diagnostic value of magnetic resonance diffusion-weighted imaging (MRI-DWI) and the measured apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) in clear cell (cc) RCC and non-ccRCC. Imaging data (DWI and ADC) from 100 patients with pathologically confirmed RCC from March 2018 to March 2021 in Affiliated Hospital of Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, (Lanzhou, China) were retrospectively analyzed, including 32 cases of non-ccRCC (21 cases of chromophobe and 11 cases of papillary cell carcinoma) and 68 cases of ccRCC. Patients underwent MRI examination, including high and low B-value DWI, to compare the imaging features of the two RCC subtypes and the ADC values of tumor sites were measured. The results of the DWI and ADC were statistically different between the two RCC subtypes (P<0.01). The DWI of ccRCC was primarily low, equal or slightly high signal. ADC of ccRCC was mainly equal or slightly high signal and the high B-value DWI signal was lower than the low B-value DWI. DWI of non-ccRCC was mostly obviously high signal. ADC of non-ccRCC was mostly uniform, obviously low signal and the high B-value DWI signal was markedly higher than the low B-value DWI. The ADC values of non-ccRCC were lower than those of ccRCC, and the ADC values <1.42±0.48×10−3 mm2/s were mostly non-ccRCC. In conclusion, MRI-DWI and ADC can be used to differentiate subtypes of RCC to determine appropriate surgical methods and clinical prognosis.
Metabolic Comorbidities in Pediatric Atopic Dermatitis: A Narrative Review

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is an itchy dermatitis with multifactorial aetiology, chronic-recurrent course, and typical distribution of lesions according to the age, affecting the 10–20% of pediatric population. Patients with AD, including children, suffer from many metabolic comorbidities, including metabolic syndrome, being overweight, obesity, dyslipidaemia, and arterial hypertension, all of which had a prevalence that was demonstrated to be higher than in healthy patients. The association between AD and metabolic comorbidities is multifactorial and involves the deregulation of immune system. In fact, hypertrophic adipose tissue produces soluble adipokines involved in inflammation and immunity, which stimulate the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, responsible for a chronic low-grade inflammatory state and a higher predisposition to hypersensitivity reactions. Especially in pediatric population with AD, these metabolic disorders are usually underestimated and are associated with long term sequelae and an increased risk of a cardiovascular event, which may also occur later in adult age. Therefore, metabolic comorbidities should be carefully evaluated and early treated in children with AD, to minimize the long-term risk of cardiovascular events.
Wear modelling and sealing performance prediction of C/C composite finger seal

Due to the high speed and high pressure operating conditions, wear between the finger seal and the rotor is inevitable, and this leads to an increase of leakage clearance and becomes an important factor affecting the seal life. The theory of anisotropic elasticity was employed to describe the mechanical characteristics of the seal material. An improved Archard wear model was proposed to calculate the nodal wear rate, and the local wear direction was also determined. The wear simulation model and procedure were established based on the Arbitrary Lagrangian Eulerian adaptive mesh strategy. The effects of material density, fabric orientation, pressure differential and rotor speed on the wear characteristics of finger seal and the change of leakage clearance caused by wear loss were studied. The results show that the wear first occurs at the heel area of the finger foot bottom and gradually extends to the toe area. C/C (carbon fibre reinforced carbon matrix) composite finger seal with higher material density has smaller leakage clearance and wear depth. With the increase of fabric orientation angle, the wear depth in the heel area of finger foot is smaller, and the circumferential wear area is narrower. The average wear depth of finger seal decreases with the orientation angle. When the orientation angle is 0, the seal leakage clearance is smaller. The increase of pressure differential not only aggravates the seal wear, but also expands the wear area, and also increases the average contact pressure and leakage clearance. Increasing the rotor speed make the wear depth of the heel area of finger foot gradually increase, but the wear area becomes narrower. The average contact pressure decreases and the average leakage clearance increases. This study provides a theoretical method and basis for the prediction and evaluation of the wear life and performance of C/C composite finger seal.
Evaluating the Effect of Climate Variability on Zea Mays Productivity over Glen Research Station: South Africa

Rainfall and temperature are one of the key environmental parameters that determines the development of a crop and livestock from one growing stage to maturity. Furthermore, temperature is critical beyond maturity but to post harvesting and storage. Rainfall is fundamental in the selection of planting dates, cultivar selection and planting density. Whereas, temperature is essential for calculation of chill and heat units for determining conducive environmental conditions for crop productivity and livestock well-being. In this study, Instat Plus statistical package is utilized to determine potential planting dates, the growing seasons, maize (Zea Mays) for different planting dates from last dekad of October to 1st dekad of January. The growing period length vary from short (less than 100), medium (above 100 days) and long term (above 120 days) varieties. The correct choice of planting time and crop type in the most important decision a farmer or a researcher can make. Taking considerations of water productivity and thermal time requirement for a selected cultivar lessons the effects of high frost risks and water shortages, which leads to soil water deficit and crop wilting but encourage supporting maize growth and development. The study also looks at how heat stress jeopardizes the growth in crops, and further determine crop suitability whether to be early or late in season based on thermal times. A thorough analysis and interpretation of log-term climate data would enable the intermediaries to understand valuable knowledge for improved productivity. This paper analysed a long-term climate (1922-2020) data analysis for Glen automatic weather station, to determine climate variability and climate change possibilities, calculate heat unit and chill units. Further, develop suitable adaptation strategies relating to maize crop.
Rotation of a tangle of quantized vortex lines in He II

The densities of vortex lines in He II due to rotation and axial counterflow do not simply add. With slow rotation, the critical counterflow velocity is greatly reduced. At high counterflow velocities, rotation adds fewer lines than expected, suggesting that the vortex tangle is polarized by rotation. Two critical velocities are found, the smaller of which agrees quantitatively with an explanation by Glaberson, Johnson, and Ostermeier of an instability found by Cheng, Cromar, and Donnelly.
From quantum electrodynamics to mean-field theory. II. Variational stability of the vacuum of quantum electrodynamics in the mean-field approximation

For pt.I see ibid., vol.22, no.23, p.3791-814 (1989). The authors use a minimisation principle to analyse the variational stability of the translationally invariant vacuum of quantum electrodynamics, with a Coulomb two-body interaction. They show how the magnitude of the coupling constant alpha determines the existence of a stable variational ground state. This ground state does exist within the considered variational space, provided that alpha is smaller than a critical value alpha c. The ground state collapses if alpha is larger than alpha c. Bounds on the critical value alpha c are given, and the physical value alpha =1/137 is shown to be undercritical.
Output-feedback guaranteed cost control for uncertain time-delay systems with Markov jumps

This paper considers the guaranteed cost control problem of jump linear system with uncertain parameters and constant time-delay. Sufficient and necessary condition for the system to be mean square quadratic stable (MSQS) is obtained. Using the LMI technique, a method to design an output-feedback guaranteed controller which stabilizes the system in the MSQS sense is developed.
Design concepts for avoiding story mechanisms in steel MRFs under seismic loading

This paper proposes alternative seismic design approaches for steel moment‐resisting frames (MRFs) that improve their performance and reduce the number of undesirable one‐story and two‐story yield mechanisms that form under seismic loading, compared to MRFs designed using the conventional strong‐column‐weak‐beam (SCWB) design approach. The alternative design approaches are capacity‐design approaches that directly compare story shear force demands from nonlinear time‐history analyses (NTHA) with corresponding shear force capacities in design iterations to avoid one‐story and two‐story mechanisms. To implement the capacity‐design approach, the NTHA use special capacity‐controlled numerical models for design, in which the one‐story and two‐story shear force design demands are limited by the intended yield mechanisms of the MRF. Unlike the SCWB approach, the alternative design approaches directly address the cause of undesirable one‐story and two‐story mechanisms. The paper presents NTHA results for a set of MRFs, where some were designed using a conventional approach (including SCWB) and some were designed using the alternative approaches. The increases in nominal steel weight of the MRFs designed using the alternative approaches are relatively small compared to the weight of the MRF designed using the conventional SCWB approach. Compared to the MRF designed using the SCWB approach, the MRFs designed using the alternative design approaches have improved seismic performance with reduced tendency to form one‐story and two‐story mechanisms, more uniform story drifts, reduced maximum story drift, and improved collapse performance.