Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Pre-Pregnancy Obesity vs. Other Risk Factors in Probability Models of Preeclampsia and Gestational Hypertension

In the face of the obesity epidemic around the world, attention should be focused on the role of maternal obesity in the development of pregnancy. The purpose of this analysis was to evaluate the prediction of preeclampsia (PE) and isolated gestational hypertension (GH) for a number of maternal factors, in order to investigate the importance of pre-pregnancy obesity (body mass index, BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2), compared to other risk factors (e.g., prior PE, pregnancy weight gain (GWG), infertility treatment, interpregnancy interval, family history, the lack of vitamin supplementation, urogenital infection, and socioeconomic factors). In total, 912 women without chronic diseases were examined in a Polish prospective cohort of women with a singleton pregnancy (recruited in 2015–2016). Separate analyses were performed for the women who developed GH (n = 113) vs. 775 women who remained normotensive, as well as for those who developed PE (n = 24) vs. 775 controls. The probability of each disease was assessed for the base prediction model (age + primiparity) and for the model extended by one (test) variable, using logistic regression. Three measures were used to assess the prediction: area under curve (AUC) of the base and extended model, integrated discrimination improvement (IDI) (the index shows the difference between the value of the mean change in the predicted probability between the group of sick and healthy women when a new factor is added to the model), and net reclassification improvement (NRI) (the index focuses on the reclassification table describing the number of women in whom an upward or downward shift in the disease probability value occurred after a new factor had been added, including results for healthy and sick women). In the GH prediction, AUC increased most strongly when we added BMI (kg/m2) as a continuous variable (AUC = 0.716, p < 0.001) to the base model. The highest IDI index was obtained for prior GH/PE (IDI = 0.068, p < 0.001). The addition of BMI as a continuous variable or BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2 improved the classification for healthy and sick women the most (NRI = 0.571, p < 0.001). In the PE prediction, AUC increased most strongly when we added BMI categories (AUC = 0.726, p < 0.001) to the base model. The highest IDI index was obtained for prior GH/PE (IDI = 0.050, p = 0.080). The addition of BMI categories improved the classification for healthy and sick women the most (NRI = 0.688; p = 0.001). After summing up the results of three indexes, the probability of hypertension in pregnancy was most strongly improved by BMI, including BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2 for the GH prediction, and BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2 for the PE prediction. Main conclusions: Pre-pregnancy BMI was the most likely factor to increase the probability of developing hypertension in pregnancy, compared to other risk factors. Hierarchies of PE and GH risk factors may suggest different (or common) mechanisms of their development.
Cost-effectiveness analysis of osimertinib for first-line treatment of locally advanced or metastatic EGFR mutation positive non-small cell lung cancer in Singapore

Abstract Objective Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for 80–90% of all lung cancer cases and is usually associated with a poor prognosis. However, targeted therapy with first and second generation tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) has so far improved progression-free survival of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutant NSCLC patients. Osimertinib, a third generation EGFR TKI has recently shown improved overall survival of 6.8 months in previously untreated EGFR mutant NSCLC patients. We assessed the cost-effectiveness of osimertinib versus standard EGFR TKIs (gefitinib or erlotinib) as first-line treatment for advanced or metastatic EGFR mutant NSCLC patients in Singapore. Methods A partitioned survival model with three health states (progression-free, progressive disease, and death) was developed from the Singapore healthcare payer perspective. Survival curves based on the overall trial population from the FLAURA trial were extrapolated beyond trial period over a 10-year time horizon to estimate the underlying progression-free survival and overall survival parametric distributions. Health state utilities were derived from the literature and direct costs were sourced from public healthcare institutions in Singapore. Deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were conducted to explore the impact of uncertainties and assumptions on cost-effectiveness results. Results Compared with first or second generation TKI, osimertinib had a base-case incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of SG$418,839 (US$304,277) per quality-adjusted life year gained. One-way sensitivity analysis showed the ICER was most sensitive to time horizon and variations in progression-free utility values. Scenario analyses showed that a 50% reduction in the cost of osimertinib was still associated with a high ICER that was unlikely to be deemed cost effective. Conclusions Osimertinib is not cost effective as a first-line treatment compared to standard EGFR TKIs in advanced EGFR mutant NSCLC patients in Singapore. The findings from our evaluation, alongside other considerations including the lack of survival benefit in the Asian subgroup of the FLAURA trial, will be useful to inform policy makers on funding decisions for NSCLC treatments in Singapore.
Activity of Temporin A and Short Lipopeptides Combined with Gentamicin against Biofilm Formed by Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa

The formation of biofilms on biomaterials causes biofilm-associated infections. Available treatments often fail to fight the microorganisms in the biofilm, creating serious risks for patient well-being and life. Due to their significant antibiofilm activities, antimicrobial peptides are being intensively investigated in this regard. A promising approach is a combination therapy that aims to increase the efficacy and broaden the spectrum of antibiotics. The main goal of this study was to evaluate the antimicrobial efficacy of temporin A and the short lipopeptides (C10)2-KKKK-NH2 and (C12)2-KKKK-NH2 in combination with gentamicin against biofilm formed by Staphylococcus aureus (SA) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA). Peptides were synthesized with solid-phase temperature-assisted synthesis methodology. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs), fractional inhibitory concentrations (FICs), minimum biofilm eradication concentrations (MBECs), and the influence of combinations of compounds with gentamicin on bacterial biofilm were determined for reference strains of SA (ATCC 25923) and PA (ATCC 9027). The peptides exhibited significant potential to enhance the antibacterial activity of gentamicin against SA biofilm, but there was no synergy in activity against planktonic cells. The antibiotic applied alone demonstrated strong activity against planktonic cells and poor effectiveness against SA biofilm. Biofilm formed by PA was much more sensitive to gentamicin, but some positive influences of supplementation with peptides were noticed. The results of the performed experiments suggest that the potential application of peptides as adjuvant agents in the treatment of biofilm-associated infections should be studied further.
Survival and Movements of Greater Sandhill Cranes Experimentally Released in Florida

The potential reintroduction of a population of whooping cranes (Grus americana) in Florida depends on having an effective introduction technique. We tested 2 experimental release techniques to evaluate post-release survival, dispersal, and the innate predilection to migration in cranes as a preliminary step in the establishment of a non-migrating population of whooping cranes. Thirty-four eggs of migratory greater sandhill cranes (GSHC) (G. canadensis tabida) were exchanged for the clutches in 23 nests of Florida sandhill cranes (FSHC) (G, c. pratensis), a non-migratory subspecies; 5 young were fledged from these introductions. Concurrently, 27 captive-reared, subadult GSHC were soft-released in the same area of north- central Florida
Learning a Single Model With a Wide Range of Quality Factors for JPEG Image Artifacts Removal

Lossy compression brings artifacts into the compressed image and degrades the visual quality. In recent years, many compression artifacts removal methods based on convolutional neural network (CNN) have been developed with great success. However, these methods usually train a model based on one specific value or a small range of quality factors. Obviously, if the test images quality factor does not match to the assumed value range, then degraded performance will be resulted. With this motivation and further consideration of practical usage, a highly robust compression artifacts removal network is proposed in this article. Our proposed network is a single model approach that can be trained for handling a wide range of quality factors while consistently delivering superior or comparable image artifacts removal performance. To demonstrate, we focus on the JPEG compression with quality factors, ranging from 1 to 60. Note that a turnkey success of our proposed network lies in the novel utilization of the quantization tables as part of the training data. Furthermore, it has two branches in parallel—i.e., the restoration branch and the global branch. The former effectively removes the local artifacts, such as ringing artifacts removal. On the other hand, the latter extracts the global features of the entire image that provides highly instrumental image quality improvement, especially effective on dealing with the global artifacts, such as blocking, color shifting. Extensive experimental results performed on color and grayscale images have clearly demonstrated the effectiveness and efficacy of our proposed single-model approach on the removal of compression artifacts from the decoded image.
Relationship between the concentration of pectin-like substances and the severity of internal browning in radish (Raphanus sativus L.) roots induced by high soil temperature

Summary In white radish (Raphanus sativus L.) roots, internal browning (IB), a physiological disorder characterised by a brown discolouration in the central stele, is frequently associated with summer-sown crops. In this study, nine cultivars of white radish were studied to clarify the association between pectin-like substances and the severity of IB. Radish cultivars could be classified into three types according to the severity of the IB disorder: resistant, moderately susceptible, or susceptible. An increase in the severity of the disorder was accompanied by a parallel increase in polyphenol oxidase activity.The mean cell length in each IB-resistant cultivar was < 135 µm, while the mean cell length in each moderately susceptible or susceptible cultivar, with one exception, was 1.2- to 1.8-times larger. Although there was no association between the severity of IB and the concentration of water-soluble pectin or pectic acid, the IB-resistant cultivars contained a higher concentration of protopectin than the moderately susceptible or susceptible cultivars. These results suggest that IB in radish roots is closely associated with the concentration of protopectin, which varies according to cell size.
SARS‐CoV‐2 respiratory viral loads and association with clinical and biological features

To determine the distribution of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) respiratory viral loads (VL) during the acute phase of infection and their correlation with clinical presentation and inflammation‐related biomarkers. Nasopharyngeal swabs from 453 adult SARS‐CoV‐2‐infected patients from the Department of Infectious Diseases, Besançon, France, were collected at the time of admission or consultation for reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) analysis. Clinical information and concentrations of biological parameters (C‐reactive protein [CRP], fibrinogen, lactate dehydrogenase [LDH], prealbumin) were noticed. Mean respiratory VL homogeneously decreased from 7.2 log10 copies/ml (95% confidence interval [CI]: 6.6–7.8) on the first day of symptoms until 4.6 log10 copies/ml (95% CI: 3.8–5.4) at day 10 (slope = −0.24; R2 = .95). VL were poorly correlated with COVID‐19 symptoms and outcome, excepted for dyspnea and anosmia, which were significantly associated with lower VL (p < .05). CRP, fibrinogen, and LDH concentrations significantly increased over the first 10 days (median CRP concentrations from 36.8 mg/L at days 0–1 to 99.5 mg/L at days 8–10; p < .01), whereas prealbumin concentrations tended to decrease. Since SARS‐CoV‐2 respiratory VL regularly decrease in the acute phase of infection, determining the level of VL may help predicting the onset of virus shedding in a specific patient. However, the role of SARS‐CoV‐2 VL as a biomarker of severity is limited.
Influence of Sexual Hormones on the Secretary Rate in Uropygial Glands of Cockerels

性ホルモンを投与したニワトリに,3H-チミジン注射を行ない,尾腺における標識された細胞数をオートラジオグラフィによって調べ,性ホルモンが尾腺の分泌速度に及ぼす影響を検討した. 尾腺における基底細胞の細胞標識率は無処理区および去勢区と比較して,去勢後アンドロジェン投与区で著しく高く,また去勢後エストロジェン投与区において,若干高い傾向を示した. ,アンドロジェンは尾腺の分泌機能を高め,またエストロジェンも微弱ながら,同様の働きをすることがうかがわれた. 去勢後アンドロジェン投与区において,標識された基底細胞は24時間以後移行層,48時間以後退行層で観察された. 去勢後エストロジェン投与区および無処理区の標識された基底細胞は24時間以後移行層において認められたものの,退行層では72時間以後に観察された. 去勢区では48時間以後移行層,96時間以後退行層に認められた. これらのことから,アンドロジェンは尾腺の分泌速度を速めうことが示唆された.
Thermostability of photosystem II is increased in salt-stressed sorghum

Modulated chlorophyll fluorescence and rapid fluorescence induction kinetics were used to evaluate the functions of photosystem II (PSII) photochemsitry in sorghum leaves exposed to salinity (0–100 mM NaCl) and/or high temperature stress (30–50°C). No differences were detected in the steady- state fluorescence parameters and rapid fluorescence induction kinetics in salt-stressed leaves, indicating that PSII was highly resistant to salinity stress alone. However, salinity stress modified the responses of PSII to high temperature. When the temperature was above 45°C, the thermostability of PSII was strongly enhanced in salt-stressed leaves, which was reflected in a smaller decrease in maximum efficiency of PSII photochemistry, coefficients of photochemical and non-photochemical quenching, and efficiency of excitation capture by open PSII reaction centres, and in a smaller increase in the proportion of the QB-non-reducing PSII centres in salt-stressed leaves than in control leaves. This increased thermostability in salt-stressed leaves exposed to high temperature seemed to be independent of the imposed salt concentration since there were no significant variations in the above fluorescence parameters among the salt-stressed plants treated with different salt concentrations. The results are discussed in terms of the physiological significance of such increased resistance of PSII to high temperature.
Hybrid Bluegrass, Kentucky Bluegrass, and Tall Fescue Response to Nitrogen Fertilization in the Transition Zone

'Dura Blue' and 'Thermal Blue' hybrid bluegrass have been selected for heat and drought tolerance. These grasses offer alternatives to traditional Kentucky bluegrass and tall fescue in the transition zone. Experiments were conducted in two locations during 2003 and 2004 at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tenn. Nitrogen (N) was applied at 50, 150, or 300 kg·ha -1 N per year to 'Apollo' Kentucky bluegrass, 'Dura Blue', and 'Thermal Blue' hybrid bluegrass, and 'Dynasty' and 'Kentucky 31' tall fescue. The main effects of turfgrass and N were significant for color and quality observations. However, their interactions were not significant; therefore, only the main effects are shown. Acceptable turfgrass color (>6) and quality (>6) was observed for all varieties in May, August, and November. All N regimens showed acceptable turfgrass color and quality. However, 150 kg·ha -1 N per year was required to achieve optimum color and quality. 'Kentucky 31' produced higher clipping dry weights when N was applied at 50 kg·ha -1 per year than the other varieties. Nitrogen applied at 150 and 300 kg·ha -1 per year on 'Kentucky 31' and 'Thermal Blue' produced higher clipping dry weights than the other varieties. 'Dynasty' and 'Kentucky 31' had similar brown patch incidences at each nitrogen level. Increases in brown patch incidence occurred as N levels decreased from 300 (21%) to 50 kg·ha -1 per year (31%) for 'Dynasty' and 'Kentucky 31'. Dollar spot incidence occurred on all bluegrass varieties from 7% to 24%. However, dollar spot decreased with increased N fertility. All turfgrass species tested were acceptable for use in the transition zone.
Site-specific characterization of SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein receptor-binding domain

Abstract The novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, the infective agent causing COVID-19, is having a global impact both in terms of human disease as well as socially and economically. Its heavily glycosylated spike glycoprotein is fundamental for the infection process, via its receptor-binding domains interaction with the glycoprotein angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 on human cell surfaces. We therefore utilized an integrated glycomic and glycoproteomic analytical strategy to characterize both N- and O- glycan site-specific glycosylation within the receptor-binding domain. We demonstrate the presence of complex-type N-glycans with unusual fucosylated LacdiNAc at both sites N331 and N343 and a single site of O-glycosylation on T323.
Metformin Attenuates Osteoporosis in Diabetic Patients with Carcinoma in Situ: A Nationwide, Retrospective, Matched-Cohort Study in Taiwan

Patients with diabetes are at increased risk of cancer development and osteoporosis. Metformin is an effective agent for diabetes management. Epidemiological studies have identified an association between metformin use and cancer prevention. This article outlines the potential for metformin to attenuate the rate of osteoporosis in diabetic patients with carcinoma in situ (CIS). From the National Health Insurance Research Database of Taiwan, 7827 patients with diabetes with CIS who were receiving metformin therapy were selected, along with 23,481 patients as 1:3 sex-, age- and index year-matched controls, who were not receiving metformin therapy. A Cox proportional hazard analysis was used to compare the rate of osteoporosis during an average of 15-year follow-up. Of the subjects who were enrolled, 801 (2.56%) had osteoporosis, including 168 from the metformin group (2.15%) and 633 from the without metformin group (2.70%). The metformin group presented a lower rate of osteoporosis at the end of follow-up (p = 0.009). The Cox proportional hazard regression analysis revealed a lower rate of osteoporosis for the metformin group (adjusted hazard ratio of 0.820; 95% confidence interval = 0.691–0.972, p = 0.022). Diabetic patients with CIS under metformin therapy presented lower osteoporosis rate than those who were not receiving metformin therapy.
Background-suppressed live visualization of genomic loci with an improved CRISPR system based on a split fluorophore

The higher-order structural organization and dynamics of the chromosomes play a central role in gene regulation. To explore this structure–function relationship, it is necessary to directly visualize genomic elements in living cells. Genome imaging based on the CRISPR system is a powerful approach but has limited applicability due to background signals and nonspecific aggregation of fluorophores within nuclei. To address this issue, we developed a novel visualization scheme combining tripartite fluorescent proteins with the SunTag system and demonstrated that it strongly suppressed background fluorescence and amplified locus-specific signals, allowing long-term tracking of genomic loci. We integrated the multicomponent CRISPR system into stable cell lines to allow quantitative and reliable analysis of dynamic behaviors of genomic loci. Due to the greatly elevated signal-to-background ratio, target loci with only small numbers of sequence repeats could be successfully tracked, even under a conventional fluorescence microscope. This feature enables the application of CRISPR-based imaging to loci throughout the genome and opens up new possibilities for the study of nuclear processes in living cells.
Fusion Potential of Human Osteoclasts In Vitro Reflects Age, Menopause, and In Vivo Bone Resorption Levels of Their Donors—A Possible Involvement of DC-STAMP

It is well established that multinucleation is central for osteoclastic bone resorption. However, our knowledge on the mechanisms regulating how many nuclei an osteoclast will have is limited. The objective of this study was to investigate donor-related variations in the fusion potential of in vitro-generated osteoclasts. Therefore, CD14+ monocytes were isolated from 49 healthy female donors. Donor demographics were compared to the in vivo bone biomarker levels and their monocytes’ ability to differentiate into osteoclasts, showing that: (1) C-terminal telopeptide of type I collagen (CTX) and procollagen type I N-terminal propeptide (PINP) levels increase with age, (2) the number of nuclei per osteoclast in vitro increases with age, and (3) there is a positive correlation between the number of nuclei per osteoclast in vitro and CTX levels in vivo. Furthermore, the expression levels of the gene encoding dendritic cell-specific transmembrane protein (DCSTAMP) of osteoclasts in vitro correlated positively with the number of nuclei per osteoclast, CTX levels in vivo, and donor age. Our results furthermore suggest that these changes in gene expression may be mediated through age-related changes in DNA methylation levels. We conclude that both intrinsic factors and age-induced increase in fusion potential of osteoclasts could be contributing factors for the enhanced bone resorption in vivo, possibly caused by increased expression levels of DCSTAMP.
A Review of the Potential Interaction of Selenium and Iodine on Placental and Child Health

A healthy pregnancy is important for the growth and development of a baby. An adverse pregnancy outcome is associated with increased chronic disease risk for the mother and offspring. An optimal diet both before and during pregnancy is essential to support the health of the mother and offspring. A key mediator of the effect of maternal nutrition factors on pregnancy outcomes is the placenta. Complicated pregnancies are characterized by increased oxidative stress in the placenta. Selenium and iodine are micronutrients that are involved in oxidative stress in placental cells. To date, there has been no comprehensive review investigating the potential synergistic effect of iodine and selenium in the placenta and how maternal deficiencies may be associated with increased oxidative stress and hence adverse pregnancy outcomes. We undertook a hypothesis-generating review on selenium and iodine, to look at how they may relate to pregnancy complications through oxidative stress. We propose how they may work together to impact pregnancy and placental health and explore how deficiencies in these micronutrients during pregnancy may impact the future health of offspring.