Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Identification and Validation of Reference Genes for Gene Expression Analysis Using Quantitative PCR in Spodoptera litura (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

Reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) has rapidly become the most sensitive and accurate method for the quantification of gene expression. To facilitate gene expression studies and obtain more accurate qRT-PCR data, normalization relative to stable housekeeping genes is required. These housekeeping genes need to show stable expression under the given experimental conditions for the qRT-PCR results to be accurate. Unfortunately, there are no studies on the stability of housekeeping genes used in Spodoptera litura. In this study, eight candidate reference genes, elongation factor 1 alpha (EF1), glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), ribosomal protein L10 (RPL10), ribosomal protein S3 (RPS3), beta actin (ACTB), beta FTZ-F1 (FTZF1), ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase (UCCR), and arginine kinase (AK), were evaluated for their suitability as normalization genes under different experimental conditions using the statistical software programs, BestKeeper, geNorm and Normfinder, and the comparative ΔCt method. We determined the expression levels of the candidate reference genes for three biotic factors (developmental stage, tissue and population), and four abiotic treatments (temperature, insecticide, food and starvation). The results indicated that the best sets of candidates as reference genes were as follows: GAPDH and UCCR for developmental stages; RPL10, AK and EF1 for different tissues; RPL10 and EF1 for different populations in China; GAPDH and EF1 for temperature-stressed larvae; AK and ACTB for larvae treated with different insecticides; RPL10, GAPDH and UCCR for larvae fed different diets; RPS3 and ACTB for starved larvae. We believe that these results make an important contribution to gene analysis studies in S. litura and form the basis of further research on stable reference genes in S. litura and other organisms.
Propulsion of blood through the right heart circulatory system

Abstract Venous return, the right heart function and the pulmonary circulation is an integrated functional unit. The right ventricle is particularly load sensitive, and will be influenced directly by the venous and pulmonary physiology. In this paper we present important physiological principles that govern the diagnosis and treatment of dysfunctions affecting the return of blood to the heart and the transfer of the cardiac output from the right to the left side. We do evaluate both basic science and the clinical literature pointing to practical aspects of physiological knowledge.
Morphological and Proteomic Responses of Eruca sativa Exposed to Silver Nanoparticles or Silver Nitrate

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are widely used in commercial products, and there are growing concerns about their impact on the environment. Information about the molecular interaction of AgNPs with plants is lacking. To increase our understanding of the mechanisms involved in plant responses to AgNPs and to differentiate between particle specific and ionic silver effects we determined the morphological and proteomic changes induced in Eruca sativa (commonly called rocket) in response to AgNPs or AgNO3. Seedlings were treated for 5 days with different concentrations of AgNPs or AgNO3. A similar increase in root elongation was observed when seedlings were exposed to 10 mg Ag L1 of either PVP-AgNPs or AgNO3. At this concentration we performed electron microscopy investigations and 2-dimensional electrophoresis (2DE) proteomic profiling. The low level of overlap of differentially expressed proteins indicates that AgNPs and AgNO3 cause different plant responses. Both Ag treatments cause changes in proteins involved in the redox regulation and in the sulfur metabolism. These responses could play an important role to maintain cellular homeostasis. Only the AgNP exposure cause the alteration of some proteins related to the endoplasmic reticulum and vacuole indicating these two organelles as targets of the AgNPs action. These data add further evidences that the effects of AgNPs are not simply due to the release of Ag ions.
δ13Corg chemostratigraphy of the Permian‐Triassic boundary in the Maitai Group, New Zealand: Evidence for high‐latitudinal methane release

Abstract Carbon isotopic studies from marine organic matter of the Permian‐Triassic Maitai Group, New Zealand, reveal a significant δ13Corg shift toward more negative values within the Little Ben Sandstone Formation. These isotopic data chemostratigraphically define the previously debated position of the Permian‐Triassic boundary in the Maitai Group. The Permian‐Triassic record of the Maitai Group is also important because of its high paleolatitudinal setting and the deposition at intermediate depths in the ocean (c. 400 m) within a volcanic arc‐related basin. Marine Permian‐Triassic strata deposited at water depths deeper than shelf areas are rare. High latitude Permian‐Triassic boundary sections document a significantly larger isotopic offset across the boundary compared with lower latitude settings. Carbon isotopic values decrease rapidly by an average of 7%0 from homogeneous values (x ‐25%0) in the Tramway and lower Little Ben Sandstone Formation to highly fluctuating and very depleted values (x ‐32%0) within the Little Ben Sandstone Formation. The lowermost Big Ben and Tramway Formations are considered to be Permian in age, based on their homogeneous and comparably heavier carbon isotopic values and supported by fossil atomo‐desmatinid bivalves. Based on the distinct δ13Corg excursion toward negative values and the concurrent onset of strong isotopic fluctuations, the Permian‐Triassic boundary is placed in the lower half of the Little Ben Sandstone Formation. Very depleted δ13C values in the Little Ben Sandstone Formation of‐38%0 indicate a contribution from isotopically light methane. A possible methane source is clathrates, released by large submarine slides or warming‐induced melting of permafrost. The Little Ben Sandstone Formation has been interpreted as a massive event deposit from a submarine slide (Landis 1980). This hypothesised methane release could have been in part responsible for the larger Permian‐Triassic isotopic shift in high latitudes compared with low latitudes because large volumes of clathrates are trapped in continental shelves and high‐latitude permafrost.
Mental Health in Domesticated Immigrant Population - a Systematic Review.

BACKGROUND Migration is a process during which a person moves from one cultural setting to another in order to settle for a longer period of time or permanently. The number of immigrants in the world has more than doubled since 1975, with majority of migrants living in Europe today. Migration is now being increasingly recognized as a risk factor for multiple mental-health related issues, such as schizophrenia, psychosis, anxiety disorders and others. AIM The aim of this study was to collect, systematically review and analyze relevant articles pertaining to the mental health of second-or-higher generations of domesticated immigrant population, as well as to determine common socio-cultural predisposition factors leading to the development of mental illness among the mentioned population. METHODS Systematic search of relevant and peer-reviewed electronic database ScienceDirect was performed to identify studies related to mental health and healthcare in before-mentioned immigrant population. Study selection was performed by two independent reviewers, following the agreed specific inclusion and exclusion criteria. RESULTS 2 036 records were identified through initial database search, out of which 5 studies were included in this review, after the selection process. CONCLUSION The most consistent clinical finding is an increase in the rate of diagnosis of schizophrenia and related psychoses among migrants when compared to the host population, however the relationship between migration and psychotic disorders remains unexplained. So far, biological factors, such as cannabis use or obstetric complications, have failed to account for the risk of schizophrenia among migrant groups. Socio-environmental factors are now being looked upon as potential contributing factors for psychotic disorders in migrants.
Micronutrients: dietary intake v. supplement use

Whilst clinical deficiency of micronutrients is uncommon in the developed world, a suboptimal intake of certain micronutrients has been linked with an increased risk of chronic diseases such as CVD and cancer. Attention has therefore focused on increasing micronutrient status in order to theoretically reduce chronic disease risk. Increasing micronutrient status can involve a number of approaches: increasing dietary intake of micronutrient-rich foods; food fortification; use of supplements. Observational cohort studies have demonstrated an association between high intakes of micronutrients such as vitamin E, vitamin C, folic acid and β-carotene, and lower risk of CHD, stroke and cancer at various sites. However, randomised intervention trials of micronutrient supplements have, to date, largely failed to show an improvement in clinical end points. The discordance between data from cohort studies and the results so far available from clinical trials remains to be explained. One reason may be that the complex mixture of micronutrients found, for example, in a diet high in fruit and vegetables may be more effective than large doses of a small number of micronutrients, and therefore that intervention studies that use single micronutrient supplements are unlikely to produce a lowering of disease risk. Studies concentrating on whole foods (e.g. fruit and vegetables) or diet pattern (e.g. Mediterranean diet pattern) may be more effective in demonstrating an effect on clinical end points. The present review will consider the clinical trial evidence for a beneficial effect of micronutrient supplements on health, and review the alternative approaches to the study of dietary intake of micronutrients.
Effects of laser-induced oxidation on the corrosion resistance of AISI 304 stainless steel

The paper presents an analysis of the impact of oxide layers, manufactured by means of laser radiation (with varying energy densities), on the resistance of AISI 304 stainless steel to corrosion. Corrosion resistance tests have been carried out in a weakly acidic environment (H2SO4, pH = 3.5) and a neutral environment (NaCl, pH = 7). The experiment was performed with the use of a laser system equipped with the Ytterbium Yb3+ fiber laser with a pulse duration of 230 ns. It has been shown that the thermal-oriented laser process significantly affects the course and nature of cathode-anode processes occurring on the surface of irradiated materials. Compared to the unstructured reference samples, there has been a significant increase in corrosion resistance of AISI 304 steel in the range of laser fluence between 50 and 70 J/cm2. The Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analyses of the chemical composition of the surface of the samples as well as the change of their morpholo.
Repeated Evaluative Pairings and Evaluative Statements: How Effectively Do They Shift Implicit Attitudes?

Six experiments, involving a total of 6,492 participants, were conducted to investigate the relative effectiveness of repeated evaluative pairings (REP; exposure to category members paired with pleasant or unpleasant images), evaluative statements (ES; verbally signaling upcoming pairings without actual exposure), and their combination (ES + REP) in shifting implicit social and nonsocial attitudes. Learning modality (REP, ES, and ES + REP) was varied between participants and implicit attitudes were assessed using an Implicit Association Test (IAT). Study 1 (N = 675) used fictitious social groups (NIFFs and LAAPs), Study 2 (N = 1,034) used novel social groups (humans with long vs. square faces), Study 3 (N = 1,072) used nonsocial stimuli (squares vs. rectangles), and Study 4 (N = 848) and Study 5 (N = 958) used known social groups (young vs. elderly; American vs. foreign). ES were more effective than REP and no less superior than ES + REP in producing implicit attitude change. Results were robust across social and nonsocial domains and for known and novel groups. Study 6 (N = 1,905) eliminated time on intervention, levels of construal, and expectancy effects as possible explanations for these findings. Associative theories of implicit evaluation posit that implicit attitudes should shift piecemeal over time; yet, in these experiments, one-shot language-based learning led to larger shifts in implicit attitude than exposure to stimulus pairings. Moreover, the redundancy observed in REP + ES suggests that attitude acquisition from repeated pairings and evaluative instructions may rely on shared mental representations.
Image Dataset for Visual Objects Classification in 3D Printing

The rapid development in additive manufacturing (AM), also known as 3D printing, has brought about potential risk and security issues along with significant benefits. In order to enhance the security level of the 3D printing process, the present research aims to detect and recognize illegal components using deep learning. In this work, we collected a dataset of 61,340 2D images (28x28 for each image) of 10 classes including guns and other non-gun objects, corresponding to the projection results of the original 3D models. To validate the dataset, we train a convolutional neural network (CNN) model for gun classification which can achieve 98.16% classification accuracy.
Capacitor Voltage Balance Control of Five-Level Modular Composited Converter With Hybrid Space Vector Modulation

Multilevel converters are widely employed in the 30–50 kW medium-voltage grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) generation systems due to their higher power quality and lower switching losses compared with the two-level converters. Dual T-type three-level converters and one three-level diode neutral point clamped circuit can be integrated to derive a simplified five-level modular composited converter (5L-MCC) for the medium-voltage PV grid-connected systems. However, realizing the capacitor voltage balance is a challenge to enhance its reliability. First, the model of dc capacitor voltage variation of the 5L-MCC is discussed to expose a limitation once the nearest three-vector synthesis method is employed with conventional space vector modulation (SVM). In order to extend the operational range, a hybrid space vector modulation (HSVM) strategy is proposed, which integrates the optimized SVM switching sequence for the low-modulation (<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$M\,< \,0.5$</tex-math> </inline-formula>) and a simplified vector synthesis method for the high-modulation region (<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$M\geq 0.5$</tex-math></inline-formula>). The proposed hybrid modulation maintains the dc capacitor voltage balance over the full modulation range and power factor. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed HSVM strategy is verified with the simulation and experimental results.
Dietary Vitamin D3 Supplements Reduce Demyelination in the Cuprizone Model

Vitamin D is emerging as a probably important environmental risk factor in multiple sclerosis, affecting both susceptibility and disease progression. It is not known to what extent this effect is due to a modulation of peripheral lymphocyte function, or to intrathecal effects of vitamin D. We investigated the effect of dietary vitamin D3 content on de/remyelination in the cuprizone model, which is a well established toxic model of demyelination, with no associated lymphocyte infiltration. The mice received diets either deficient of (<50 IU/kg), or supplemented with low (500 IU/kg), high (6200 IU/kg) or very high (12500 IU/kg) amounts of vit D3. Cuprizone (0.2%) was added to the diet for six weeks, starting two weeks after onset of the experimental diets. Mouse brain tissue was histopathologically evaluated for myelin and oligodendrocyte loss, microglia/macrophage activation, and lymphocyte infiltration after six weeks of cuprizone exposure, and two weeks after discontinuation of cuprizone exposure. High and very high doses of vitamin D3 significantly reduced the extent of white matter demyelination (p = 0.004) and attenuated microglia activation (p = 0.001). No differences in the density of oligodendrocytes were observed between the diet groups. Two weeks after discontinuation of cuprizone exposure, remyelination was only detectable in the white matter of mice receiving diets deficient of or with low vitamin D3 content. In conclusion, high dietary doses of vitamin D3 reduce the extent of demyelination, and attenuate microglia activation and macrophage infiltration in a toxic model of demyelination, independent of lymphocyte infiltration.
Effect of Fuel Cetane Number on Multi-Cylinders Direct Injection Diesel Engine Performance and Exhaust Emissions

Due to the energy crisis and the stringent environmental regulations, diesel engines are offering good hope for automotive vehicles. However, a lot of work is needed to reduce the diesel exhaust emissions and give the way for full utilization of the diesel fuel’s excellent characteristics. A kind of cetane number improver has been proposed and tested to be used with diesel fuel as ameans of reducing exhaust emissions. The addition of (2-ethylhexyl nitrate) was designed to raise fuel cetane number to three stages, 50, 52 and 55 compared to the used conventional diesel fuel whose CN was 48.5. The addition of CN improver results in the decrease brake specific fuel consumption by about 12.55%, and raise brake thermal efficiency to about 9%. Simultaneously, the emission characteristics of four fuels are determined in a diesel engine. At high loads, a little penalty on CO and HC emissions compared to baseline diesel fuel. NOx emissions of the higher CN fuels are decreased 6%, and CO of these fuels is reduced to about 30.7%. Engine noise reduced with increasing CN to about 10.95%. The results indicate the potential of diesel reformation for clean combustion in diesel engines.
A facile method to prepare CdO-Mn3O4 nanocomposite

CdO-Mn3O4 nanocomposite has been prepared by a simple solvothermal method using a domestic microwave oven. Cadmium acetate, manganese acetate and urea were used as the precursors and ethylene glycol as the solvent. The as-prepared sample was annealed for 1 hour in each case at different temperatures, viz. 100, 200 and 300°C. The as-prepared and annealed samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopic analyses. Results indicate that annealing at 300°C is required to get the sample with high phase purity and homogeneity. The present study indicates that the method adopted can be considered as an economical and scalable one to prepare the proposed nanocomposite with reduced size, phase purity and homogeneity.
Host-Parasite Incongruences in Rodent Eimeria Suggest Significant Role of Adaptation Rather than Cophylogeny in Maintenance of Host Specificity

The degree of host specificity, its phylogenetic conservativeness and origin are virtually unknown in Eimeria. This situation is largely due to the inadequate sample of eimerian molecular data available for reliable phylogenetic analyses. In this study, we extend the data set by adding 71 new sequences of coccidia infecting 16 small-mammal genera, mostly rodents. According to the respective feasibility of PCR gene amplification, the new samples are represented by one or more of the following genes: nuclear 18S rRNA, plastid ORF 470, and mitochondrial COI. Phylogenetic analyses of these sequences confirm the previous hypothesis that Eimeria, in its current morphology-based delimitation, is not a monophyletic group. Several samples of coccidia corresponding morphologically to other genera are scattered among the Eimeria lineages. More importantly, the distribution of eimerians from different hosts indicates that the clustering of eimerian species is influenced by their host specificity, but does not arise from a cophylogenetic/cospeciation process; while several clusters are specific to a particular host group, inner topologies within these clusters do not reflect host phylogeny. This observation suggests that the host specificity of Eimeria is caused by adaptive rather than cophylogenetic processes.
Speaker Clustering With Neural Networks And Audio Processing

Speaker clustering is the task of differentiating speakers in a recording. In a way, the aim is to answer "who spoke when" in audio recordings. A common method used in industry is feature extraction directly from the recording thanks to MFCC features, and by using well-known techniques such as Gaussian Mixture Models (GMM) and Hidden Markov Models (HMM). In this paper, we studied neural networks (especially CNN) followed by clustering and audio processing in the quest to reach similar accuracy to state-of-the-art methods.
Social Media as a Catalyst for Policy Action and Social Change for Health and Well-Being: Viewpoint

This viewpoint paper argues that policy interventions can benefit from the continued use of social media analytics, which can serve as an important complement to traditional social science data collection and analysis. Efforts to improve well-being should provide an opportunity to explore these areas more deeply, and encourage the efforts of those conducting national and local data collection on health to incorporate more of these emerging data sources. Social media remains a relatively untapped source of information to catalyze policy action and social change. However, the diversity of social media platforms and available analysis techniques provides multiple ways to offer insight for policy making and decision making. For instance, social media content can provide timely information about the impact of policy interventions. Social media location information can inform where to deploy resources or disseminate public messaging. Network analysis of social media connections can reveal underserved populations who may be disconnected from public services. Machine learning can help recognize important patterns for disease surveillance or to model population sentiment. To fully realize these potential policy uses, limitations to social media data will need to be overcome, including data reliability and validity, and potential privacy risks. Traditional data collection may not fully capture the upstream factors and systemic relationships that influence health and well-being. Policy actions and social change efforts, such as the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s effort to advance a culture of health, which are intended to drive change in a network of upstream health drivers, will need to incorporate a broad range of behavioral information, such as health attitudes or physical activity levels. Applying innovative techniques to emerging data has the potential to extract insight from unstructured data or fuse disparate sources of data, such as linking health attitudes that are expressed to health behaviors or broader health and well-being outcomes.
Semantic Searchable Encryption Scheme Based on Lattice in Quantum-Era

When data is outsourced to a remote storage server, search-able encryption plays an important role to protect data privacy while allowing users to retrieve data in the massive ciphertext. As far as we know, most of the existing searchable encryption schemes work based on the bilinear map. These schemes may not be secure in the quantum age. Both discrete logarithms and factorization can be solved by quantum computer in a polynomial time. There is very few searchable encryption scheme that can be proved secure in post quantum age. In this paper, in order to construct a post-quantum secure scheme for future cloud storage, we suggest a public key encryption with semantic keyword search using the lattice based mechanism. The suggested scheme is proved secure against indistinguishable chosen-keyword attacks (IND-CKA) based on learning with errors (LWE) problem. This scheme is believed to be secure in quantum-era due to the quantum intractability of the LWE problem.