Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A rapid method for isolation of bacterial extracellular vesicles from culture media using epsilon-poly-L–lysine that enables immunological function research

Both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria can release vesicle-like structures referred to as bacterial extracellular vesicles (BEVs), which contain various bioactive compounds. BEVs play important roles in the microbial community interactions and host-microbe interactions. Markedly, BEVs can be delivered to host cells, thus modulating the development and function of the innate immune system. To clarify the compositions and biological functions of BEVs, we need to collect these vesicles with high purity and bioactivity. Here we propose an isolation strategy based on a broad-spectrum antimicrobial epsilon-poly-L-lysine (ϵ-PL) to precipitate BEVs at a relatively low centrifugal speed (10,000 × g). Compared to the standard ultracentrifugation strategy, our method can enrich BEVs from large volumes of media inexpensively and rapidly. The precipitated BEVs can be recovered by adjusting the pH and ionic strength of the media, followed by an ultrafiltration step to remove ϵ-PL and achieve buffer exchange. The morphology, size, and protein composition of the ϵ-PL-precipitated BEVs are comparable to those purified by ultracentrifugation. Moreover, ϵ-PL-precipitated BEVs retained the biological activity as observed by confocal microscopy studies. And THP-1 cells stimulated with these BEVs undergo marked reprogramming of their transcriptome. KEGG analysis of the differentially expressed genes showed that the signal pathways of cellular inflammatory response were significantly activated. Taken together, we provide a new method to rapidly enrich BEVs with high purity and bioactivity, which has the potential to be applied to BEVs-related immune response studies.
Factors influencing Adoption of Irrigation Technologies among Smallholder Farmers in Machakos County, Kenya

The study examined the factors that drive decisions to adopt and use irrigation technologies among smallholder farmers in Machakos County, Kenya. Data were collected from a sample of 300 smallholder farmers. Cross-sectional survey design, a multistage sampling procedure and random sampling method were employed. Percentages, means and econometric analysis were used in data analysis. Results showed that, 31.7% of the respondents practiced irrigation. Sex of household head, education, farm size, off-farm income, credit accessed and access to extension services positively influenced adoption of irrigation technologies. Adoption intensity was positively influenced by gender, off-farm income, farming experience, primary occupation and extension services. As a result, it is suggested that while formulating development strategies and programs for smallholder farmers, agricultural extension organizations should give priority to these factors.
Chronic diarrhoea in older adults and the role of dietary interventions

Chronic diarrhoea affects up to 10% of older adults, impacts quality of life and has potential adverse medical outcomes. Dietary changes can be effective but, if not managed correctly, could negatively impact health. This review summarises the prevalence, potential causes, and complications of chronic diarrhoea in older people. The evidence for dietary treatments, and the nutritional implications, are described.
Correlation between presence of radix entomolaris in mandibular first molars and C-shaped canals in mandibular second molars: a sample of CBCT scans in Taiwanese students

The anatomy of root canals is so complex that in many cases it is not sufficient to take an intraoral radiograph to diagnose the number and shape of root canals. Therefore, Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT) facilitating diagnosis and treatment planning in endodontics is gaining more and more importance. Radix entomolaris is an extra root which is found in mandibular molars and located distolingually. C-shaped canal is most commonly found in mandibular second molars and can differ significantly in shape from the typical anatomy of lower molars. The aim of the study was to evaluate the correlation between presence of radix entomolaris in mandibular first molars and presence of C-shaped mandibular second molars in Taiwanese students based on CBCT scans. The material consisted of 19 CBCT examinations taken in the Department of Dental and Maxillofacial Radiodiagnostics of the … Among 19 CBCT examinations 5 cases of coexistence of additional root and C- shaped canals were found. Up to 80.0% of cases were bilateral. In the studied sample there was high coincidence of radix entomolaris in mandibular first molars and C-shaped mandibular second molars. Knowledge of this correlation will prevent diagnostic errors during endodontic and surgical treatment planning.
Lower Vitamin D Levels are Associated with Higher Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii—a US National Survey Study

Vitamin D deficiency is associated with high susceptibility to infections. The present study aimed at exploring the relationship between vitamin D levels and Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) infection, on the basis of a nationally representative database. The study data came from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) 2001–2004. Participants underwent both Toxoplasma IgG antibody testing and serum vitamin D testing. Vitamin D deficiency was defined by a serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D level <20 ng/mL. Multivariate logistic regression and propensity score matching were used to adjust for potential confounders. All analyses were conducted in R software. A total of 10613 participants were included. Among these, 3973 (37.4%) were vitamin D deficient, and 2070 (19.5%) were seropositive for T. gondii IgG antibody. Vitamin D deficiency was found in 42.3% of the seropositive population, compared with 36.3% of the seronegative population (P<0.001). After adjustment for sex, age, body mass index, smoking history, drinking history and testing season, vitamin D deficiency was associated with an elevated risk of T. gondii infection (OR=1.303, 95% CI=1.136–1.495, P<0.001). This effect persisted in the propensity matching cohort. Low vitamin D levels are associated with high seroprevalence of T. gondii.
Are soccer players born later in the year more technically skilled than those born earlier in the year

In many youth sports, selection into elite training academies is dominated by athletes born earlier in the year. Previous research suggests this is partly due to these athletes being more physically developed than their younger peers. How athletes born later in the year survive in elite academies is less understood. Here, we tested the hypothesis that players born later in the year are more technically skilled than their peers born earlier in the same year. Using 150 youth players (10–19 years of age) from an elite Brazilian soccer academy, we measured each player's date of birth, height, and mass; sprinting ability; dribbling ability; and kicking accuracy and speed. We found most players in this academy were born in the first half of the year, and those born earlier in the year (relatively older) tended to be taller and heavier than those born later in the same year (relatively younger). In addition, relatively older players were faster when sprinting and dribbling the ball in a straight line. Conversely, relatively younger players were more accurate when passing the ball with their nondominant foot, providing some evidence these players were more technically skilled than their older peers of the same age. We suggest skill tests with youth players need to consider relative age and physical size in order to best assess a player's potential.
SPATIOTEMPORAL ANALYSIS OF CRIME INCIDENCE IN BAYELSA WEST SENATORIAL DISTRICT, BAYELSA STATE, NIGERIA

The prevalence of crime is a major social issue in Nigeria. This study seeks to examine the spatiotemporal variations of crime incidence in Bayelsa West Senatorial District, Bayelsa State, Nigeria. Police crime records data were obtained from the Divisional Police Headquarters within Bayelsa West Senatorial District. Line graphs and Analysis of Variance were used for data analysis. It was found that Oporomor III had the highest crime rate with 12%, followed by Sagbama (8.8%), while Oyiakiri I and IV had the least with 0.6% each of the total crime cases reported in the study area. The findings revealed that there were variations in the frequencies of the crime incidents among the 26 administrative wards in Bayelsa West Senatorial District. The findings further revealed that 2014 recorded the highest crime cases with 23.5%, while 2015 had the lowest with only 14.7%. The study further revealed that there was no significant temporal variation of crime events from 2014-2018 across the study area. The study recommends that community policing committees be constituted in the political wards of Oporomor, Sagbama, and other wards plagued by criminal events in the Local government areas.
A Comparative Study for Nutritional and Phytochemical Profiling of Coffea arabica (C. arabica) from Different Origins and Their Antioxidant Potential and Molecular Docking

Coffee is the most widely used beverage globally and contains many bioactive compounds, including phenolic compounds, alkaloids, triterpenes, organic acids, amino acids, hormones, and fatty acids. The main objective of this study was the comparative profiling of Australian, Colombian, Ethiopian, and Peruvian C. arabica using LC-ESI-QTOF-MS/MS. In this study, we tentatively identified 136 bioactive metabolites, including five (05) organic acids, six (06) alkaloids, three (03) amino acids (l-phenylalanine, l-tyrosine, and l-pyroglutamic acid), two (02) hormones (melatonin and serotonin), two fatty acids, one (01) furopyrans (goniothalenol), one (01) carotenoid (crocetin), three (03) terpenoids, thirty-eight (38) phenolic acids, forty-one (41) flavonoids, five (05) stilbenes, three (03) lignans and twenty-three (23) other polyphenols in C. arabica. The highest TPC value (17.74 ± 0.32 mg GAE/g) was measured in Colombian coffee while the lowest TPC value (10.24 ± 0.73 mg GAE/g) was in Peruvian coffee. Colombian coffee has a higher antioxidant potential than other studied coffee samples. A total of nineteen phenolic metabolites were mapped through LC-MS/MS. Quinic acid derivatives were quantified in higher concentrations than other metabolites. Furthermore, molecular docking predicted that chlorogenic acid is a main bioactive compound that contributes to anti-Alzheimer and anti-diabetic activities of C. arabica. The obtained results indicate that C. arabica contains a vast number of bioactive compounds which have potential health benefits. Furthermore, research could be conducted to validate the effect of these metabolites on the flavor profile of coffee beverages.
Role of Spatial Configuration in Commuting Trade-Offs of Two-Worker Households: A Case Study in the Greater Toronto Area

This research investigates the commuting trade-offs between individuals in two-worker households with home and work locations in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). A commuting trade-off occurs when a home relocation results in one worker incurring a higher commute distance for the other worker to work closer to the home location. This research uses stated preference data and multilevel modeling to demonstrate that two-worker households adjust their home–work spatial configuration which results in commuting trade-offs between individuals. This research uses the angle between the two workplaces, measured at the home location, as a variable in its empirical model. This variable is a descriptor of the home–work spatial configuration and a predictor of total household commute distance. The modeling results indicate an inverse relationship between total household commute distance and the difference between individual commutes. This suggests that individuals in two-worker households trade off their individual commute distances and, in that process, reduce total household commute distance. A key policy implication arising from this research relates to the jobs–housing balance within a catchment area. Two-worker households have been regarded as a hindrance to achieving jobs–housing balance as the two work locations present a constraint in relocating the home near both work locations. However, as this research shows, workers will trade off their individual commute distances such that a home relocation results in a shorter commute distance for one worker and longer commute distance for the other.
Improving English Learning Outcomes with Learning Interests, Learning Motivation, through Learning Activities Learners in the Covid-19 pandemic

This research aims to find out the influence of English learning outcomes on interests and learning Motivation through learning activities of learners during the Covid-19 pandemic. With a population of class XI of 320 people. The sample took using the Cluster sampling method for as many as 172 learners with morgan's table as a reference to the number of research samples beyond the number of pieces for the validity and reliability test for as many as 32 students. Path analysis uses multiple linear regressions with two substructures. Our F test reveals the simultaneous influence of independent variables on dependent variables. The t-test test tests each variable independently of the dependent variable partially among direct or indirect effects. This research yielded several conclusions, both free variables, interest in learning, and learning. Motivation affects the bound variables, namely teaching activities, learning outcomes, and learning interests.
Emotions in Student Teachers’ L2 Learning Experiences: Do Language Ideologies Play a Role?

This paper reports on a qualitative study which investigated a group of student teachers’ emotions in their second language (L2) learning experiences, with particular attention to the mediating role of language ideologies. The findings revealed that the participants reported both positive emotions (enjoyment and pride) and negative emotions (anxiety, frustration and embarrassment) in their L2 learning experiences. In particular, these different emotions were found to be mediated by multiple and sometimes conflicting language ideologies, including the ideology of native-speakerism, the World Englishes ideology and the ideology of language as a tool for communication. The findings also showed that the different emotions evoked in the participants’ L2 learning experiences not only impacted on their identities as L2 learners and L2 users/communicators in divergent ways, but also shaped their goals and agentive efforts in their subsequent L2 learning. Overall, the analysis points to the complex, dynamic and reciprocal relationship between emotions, language ideologies, identities and agency in understanding the affective dimension of L2 learning in a more holistic manner. It also calls attention to the potential of incorporating reflections on L2 learning experiences in student teachers’ professional development programmes in order to enhance their emotional awareness for L2 learning and teaching.
Mineralocorticoid Receptor Activation in Vascular Insulin Resistance and Dysfunction

Systemic insulin resistance is characterized by reduced insulin metabolic signaling and glucose intolerance. Mineralocorticoid receptors (MRs), the principal receptors for the hormone aldosterone, play an important role in regulating renal sodium handling and blood pressure. Recent studies suggest that MRs also exist in tissues outside the kidney, including vascular endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells, fibroblasts, perivascular adipose tissue, and immune cells. Risk factors, including excessive salt intake/salt sensitivity, hypertension, and obesity, can lead to the activation of vascular MRs to promote inflammation, oxidative stress, remodeling, and fibrosis, as well as cardiovascular stiffening and microcirculatory impairment. These pathophysiological changes are associated with a diminished ability of insulin to initiate appropriate intracellular signaling events, resulting in a reduced glucose uptake within the microcirculation and related vascular insulin resistance. Therefore, the pharmacological inhibition of MR activation provides a potential therapeutic option for improving vascular function, glucose uptake, and vascular insulin sensitivity. This review highlights recent experimental and clinical data that support the contribution of abnormal MR activation to the development of vascular insulin resistance and dysfunction.
Parameter estimation of structural equation models with misclassification: The MC-SIMEX approach

Abstract The random errors in the measurement process, called measurement error or misclassification, are inevitable and cause bias and inconsistent parameter estimates. Misclassification Simulation Extrapolation (MC-SIMEX) is a simulation based measurement error estimation method to obtain reduced parameter bias under misclassification. The main purpose of this study is an adaptation of MC-SIMEX method on Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The effects of misclassification on the parameter estimates of a binary explanatory variables in SEM and the performance of MC-SIMEX method investigated with both Monte Carlo and an empirical study. According to the main results, finding the best extrapolant function is just as important as estimating the misclassification matrix although MC-SIMEX corrected a part of the bias.
Narrative Review of the Control and Prevention of Knowlesi Malaria

Despite the reduction in the number of cases of human malaria throughout the world, the incidence rate of knowlesi malaria is continuing to rise, especially in Southeast Asia. The conventional strategies for the prevention and control of human malaria can provide some protection against knowlesi malaria. Despite the numerous studies on the risk factors and the innovative methods that may be used to prevent and control the vectors of Plasmodium knowlesi, the incidence rate remains high. An integrated approach that includes environmental intervention should be adopted in order to ensure the successful control of zoonotic malaria. A combination of personal-level protection, vector control and environmental control may mitigate the risk of Plasmodium knowlesi transmission from macaques to humans and, ultimately, reduce the incidence rate of knowlesi malaria.
Effects of Fire Diurnal Variation and Plume Rise on U.S. Air Quality During FIREX‐AQ and WE‐CAN Based on the Multi‐Scale Infrastructure for Chemistry and Aerosols (MUSICAv0)

We analyze the effects of the diurnal cycle of fire emissions (DCFE) and plume rise on U.S. air quality using the MUSICAv0 (Multi‐Scale Infrastructure for Chemistry and Aerosols Version 0) model during the FIREX‐AQ (Fire Influence on Regional to Global Environments and Air Quality) and WE‐CAN (Western wildfire Experiment for Cloud chemistry, Aerosol absorption and Nitrogen) field campaigns. To include DCFE in the model, we employ two approaches: a DCFE climatology and DCFE derived from a satellite fire radiative power product. We also implemented two sets of plume‐rise climatologies, and two plume‐rise parameterizations. We evaluate the model performance with airborne measurements, U.S. EPA Air Quality System surface measurements, and satellite products. Overall, including plume rise improves model agreement with observations such as aircraft observations of CO and NOx for FIREX‐AQ and WE‐CAN. Applying DCFE also improves model performance, such as for surface PM2.5 in fire‐impacted regions. The impact of plume rise is larger than the impact of DCFE. Plume rise can greatly enhance modeled long‐range transport of fire‐emitted pollutants. The simulations with plume‐rise parameterizations generally perform better than the simulations with plume‐rise climatologies during FIREX‐AQ, but not for WE‐CAN. The 2019 Williams Flats Fire case study demonstrates that DCFE and plume rise change fire impacts because fire emissions are subject to different meteorology and chemistry when emitted at different times of a day and altitudes. Moreover, DCFE and plume rise also impact local‐to‐regional meteorology and chemical reaction rates. DCFE and plume rise will be included in future MUSICA versions.
Differing associations between sex determination and sex‐linked inversions in two ecotypes of Littorina saxatilis

Sexual antagonism is a common hypothesis for driving the evolution of sex chromosomes, whereby recombination suppression is favored between sexually antagonistic loci and the sex‐determining locus to maintain beneficial combinations of alleles. This results in the formation of a sex‐determining region. Chromosomal inversions may contribute to recombination suppression but their precise role in sex chromosome evolution remains unclear. Because local adaptation is frequently facilitated through the suppression of recombination between adaptive loci by chromosomal inversions, there is potential for inversions that cover sex‐determining regions to be involved in local adaptation as well, particularly if habitat variation creates environment‐dependent sexual antagonism. With these processes in mind, we investigated sex determination in a well‐studied example of local adaptation within a species: the intertidal snail, Littorina saxatilis. Using SNP data from a Swedish hybrid zone, we find novel evidence for a female‐heterogametic sex determination system that is restricted to one ecotype. Our results suggest that four putative chromosomal inversions, two previously described and two newly discovered, span the putative sex chromosome pair. We determine their differing associations with sex, which suggest distinct strata of differing ages. The same inversions are found in the second ecotype but do not show any sex association. The striking disparity in inversion‐sex associations between ecotypes that are connected by gene flow across a habitat transition that is just a few meters wide indicates a difference in selective regime that has produced a distinct barrier to the spread of the newly discovered sex‐determining region between ecotypes. Such sex chromosome‐environment interactions have not previously been uncovered in L. saxatilis and are known in few other organisms. A combination of both sex‐specific selection and divergent natural selection is required to explain these highly unusual patterns.
The Effects of Mobile-mediated Explicit and Implicit Feedback onThe Effects of Mobile-mediated Explicit and Implicit Feedback on EFL Learners’ Use of English Prepositions EFL Learners’ Use of English Prepositions

Making mistakes is a natural part of learning process requiring correction; accordingly, corrective feedback is indispensable. On this ground, the present study compared the effects of mobile-mediated explicit and implicit corrective feedback on Iranian EFL learners’ use of English prepositions of manner and movement. To this end, the participants including 60 learners were randomly assigned to three groups of 20 individuals on WhatsApp application. These three groups included two experimental and one control groups. The treatment groups sat for a pre-test, received instruction on the errors under study, and practiced correcting them in response to the corrective feedback condition. Next, participants took immediate post-test and delayed post-test. The statistical analysis revealed that although the control group was more proficient than its experimental counterparts on the pre-test, their performance did not improve on immediate and delayed post-tests. However, both of the experimental groups significantly improved on immediate post-test and retained their gains on the delayed post-test. The pedagogical implication is provided for both teachers and learners.