Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Establishment of a stable hepatic metastasis mouse model of murine colorectal cancer by microsurgical orthotopic implantation

Background Liver metastasis is a common cause of death from colorectal cancer (CRC). In this paper we developed a liver metastasis mouse model by microsurgical orthotopic implantation (MSOI) to illuminate the CRC progression with an eye toward developing effective drug treatment. Methods Murine colon carcinoma CT-26 cells were cultured and then injected to male BALB/c athymic nude mice right flank to generate subcutaneous implantation tumor with 2×107 CT-26 cell suspension in DMEM. Tumor tissue at an average size of 1 cm3 was injected into another nude mice right flank with 20-gauge inoculating needle. Between fourth and sixth generations, tumor tissue sewn into the cecal surface establishes orthotopic transplanted CRC model by MSOI. Then on the 7th, 14th, 21st and 35th day, body weight, abdomen circumference, volume of ascites and local tumor weight were observed and weighed. On the 21st day and 35th day, local tumor rate was calculated, and metastatic tumors of other organs were observed. Tumor tissue was stained by HE for pathologic analysis. Results On the 35th day, body weight and abdomen circumference of the model group were significantly higher than the control group (P<0.01). Local tumor weight increased rapidly from the 21st d to the 35th d (P<0.01), and take rate was high (100%). Metastatic tumor appeared only in liver on the 21st day and then invaded to liver, stomach, retroperitoneal lymph node and abdominal wall on the 35th day. The metastatic rate of liver tumor respectively was 83.3% and 100% on the 21st day and 35th day, but liver function remained normal. Pathologic analysis showed that colorectal tumor invaded the normal tissue of liver, abdominal wall and stomach. Conclusions A stable hepatic metastasis mouse model of murine CRC was established by MSOI.
Maize planting time and arthropod abundance in southern Mindanao, Philippines. I. Population dynamics of insect pests

Abstract Monthly plantings conducted over 4 years in a rainfed triple maize cropping system in southern Mindanao, Philippines, revealed the Asian corn borer (ACB) Ostrinia furnacalis (Guenée) as the most important insect pest. Of minor importance and being restricted to one crop stage were rice seedling maggot Atherigona oryzae Malloch, thrips Thrips palmi Karny and Megalurothrips usitatus (Bagnall), corn leafhopper Cicadulina bimaculata (Evans), corn earworm Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner), and corn leaf aphid Rhopalosiphum maidis (Fitch). Farmers escape damage from ACB, seedling maggot, and thrips by planting the first crop in April. Planting of the second crop should be shifted from August to September to avoid ACB damage. Pest damage was low during the third crop, thus planting time is not an important consideration. Additional information on ACB bionomics was revealed in the study. Mean egg mass size was 36 eggs (range 1 – 169). Oviposition was found to be positively correlated with cumulative rainfall over the previous 3 – 8 weeks indicating that females seek healthy crops. Most (70%) oviposition occurred over a 4-week period in the 39 crops studied as a single peak between late-whorl through mid-tasseling stages when developing larvae would be more assured of feeding on the more nutritious pollen. The strong attraction of maize at early tasseling along with heavy parasitism in older maize become population synchronizing agents in the year round cropping study area, although less perfect than winters in temperate regions. Yield loss in southern Mindanao ranged from 20 to 49% which was more closely correlated with larval tunnels than moth exit holes. Correlations were significant only when damage was related to yield loss but not yield.
Financial integration and macroeconomic volatility in Zimbabwe

Many developing countries are pursuing policies that foster international financial integration after decades of financial repression. Greater access to foreign financial markets may have both positive and negative impact on the performance of the economy. One of the concerns of international financial integration is macroeconomic volatility which may affect both monetary and real sectors. Zimbabwe has chosen to pursue a financial liberalization strategy in the form of imperfect financial integration following periods of excessive domestic shocks. An upsurge of capital flows since the epic of economic crisis in the 2000s has been observed with varying macroeconomic impacts. This study empirically examines the impact of partial international financial integration on the volatility of macroeconomic variables. ,The study utilized an ARDL Model suggested by Pesaran et al., (2003) which is appropriate for short time periods. ,The results show that financial integration has a negative effect on output volatility while insignificant on consumption volatility. ,The study recommends that the country should gradually liberalize the capital account and properly sequence financial development reforms in order to minimize losses from global financial integration. ,The study used time series for Zimbabwe during a period of external imbalance, repeated economic cycles, sudden stops in capital flows and limited scope of imperfect financial integration. Findings in such an economy will be a referral for policymakers in other economies that would want to pursue international financial integration.
Effect of Bead-Beating on DNA Extraction from Trichuris trichiura Positive Stool Samples: A Meta-Analysis

Polymerase chain reactions are helpful diagnostic methods to accurately quantitate the intensities of infections of various soil-transmitted helminths, especially in the low-intensity infection samples. Method of DNA extraction hugely impacts the outcomes of the diagnostic method. Trichuris trichiura is one of the three major helminths prevalent world-wide and accurate estimation of their loads in stool is affected by the method of DNA extraction. We meta-analyze two studies by dividing them into all together 6 sub-studies. The objectives of the meta-analysis required the two studies to be divided into sub-studies as the different methods of DNA extractions could not be combined. We found that the inclusion of the beadbeating step during DNA extraction significantly increases the sensitivity of the test.
Large seasonal changes in Q10 of soil respiration in a beech forest

We analyzed one year of continuous soil respiration measurements to assess variations in the temperature sensitivity of soil respiration at a Danish beech forest. A single temperature function derived from all measurements across the year (Q10 = 4.2) was adequate for estimating the total annual soil respiration and its seasonal evolution. However, Q10's derived from weekly datasets ranged between three in summer (at a mean soil temperature of 14 °C) and 23 in winter (at 2 °C), indicating that the annual temperature function underestimated the synoptic variations in soil respiration during winter. These results highlight that empirical models should be parameterized at a time resolution similar to that required by the output of the model. If the objective of the model is to simulate the total annual soil respiration rate, annual parameterization suffices. If however, soil respiration needs to be simulated over time periods from days to weeks, as is the case when soil respiration is compared to total ecosystem respiration during synoptic weather patterns, more short-term parameterization is required. Despite the higher wintertime Q10's, the absolute response of soil respiration to temperature was smaller in winter than in summer. This is mainly because in absolute numbers, the temperature sensitivity of soil respiration depends not only on Q10, but also on the rate of soil respiration, which is highly reduced in winter. Nonetheless, the Q10 of soil respiration in winter was larger than can be explained by the decreasing respiration rate only. Because the seasonal changes in Q10 were negatively correlated with temperature and positively correlated with soil moisture, they could also be related to changing temperature and/or soil moisture conditions.
Using crowdsourcing for a safer society: When the crowd rules

Neighbours sharing information about robberies in their district through social networking platforms, citizens and volunteers posting about the irregularities of political elections on the Internet, and internauts trying to identify a suspect of a crime: in all these situations, people who share different degrees of relationship collaborate through the Internet and other technologies to try to help with or solve an offence. The crowd, which is sometimes seen as a threat, in these cases becomes an invaluable resource that can complement law enforcement through collective intelligence. Owing to the increasing growth of such initiatives, this article conducts a systematic review of the literature to identify the elements that characterize them and to find the conditions that make them work successfully.
Ultrasound Derived Muscle Cross-Sectional Area and Echo Intensity is Unable to Detect Differences Among Acute Aerobic Exercise Bouts with Varying Duration and Intensity

Research is currently utilizing ultrasound (US) imaging to evaluate acute muscle damage from exercise. Common derived US measurements to evaluate muscle damage are: image grey scale, commonly known as echo intensity (EI), and cross sectional area (CSA). Due to limited literature, it is unclear how and to what degree extended aerobic exercise effects EI and CSA. This study evaluated if CSA and EI could differentiate between duration and intensity of exercise. Twenty aerobically trained (12+ hrs per week) subjects, sixteen males and four females (age: 23 ± 8.3, height 181 ± 9.1 cm, mass 76 ± 12.5 kg) voluntarily underwent the following four bouts: a VO2 max test, 20, 40 and 60 minutes of cycling. Prior to and following exercise US images where taken of the right rectus femoris and vastus lateralis muscles, subsequent analyses of EI and CSA were performed. Significant (P<0.01) increase overall muscle EI was found between pre and post for all exercise conditions, but CSA only increase in the max and 20 minute conditions. Further EI and CSA could not differentiate between exercise conditions. Ultrasound imaging is not sensitive enough to determine different levels of exercise or fatigue, and any acute changes can be attributed to acute muscle swelling.
An evaluation of flooding risks associated with giant reed (Arundo donax)

The presence of vegetation in a channel may influence water movement in the channel and the surrounding land in several ways. One hypothesis is that increased abundance of the invasive plant Arundo donax in a watercourse contributes to increased flooding risk. To test this hypothesis, we determined Manning's coefficient for A. donax and subsequently used it in the HEC-RAS model to estimate the impact that A. donax has on flooding risks at three sites within two moderately sized northern California rivers. The mean value for Manning's coefficient for A. donax was 0.066, and it varied from 0.019 to 0.121 (n = 37). Model simulations showed that A. donax within a stream channel had a direct effect on flooded area, causing increases up to 10% above baseline conditions, which represent cross sections with no A. donax present. Storm size also affected A. donax's impact on the size of the flooded area. Using the maximum value for Manning's n for A. donax in the simulations resulted in an increase in the flooded area from 10% to 19% compared to simulations in which there was no A. donax present. Impacts of A. donax on other stream systems could differ, but they can be estimated using the value for Manning's n for A. donax provided in this study. This information can be used in conjunction with natural resource conditions, such as soil type, to prioritize areas for A. donax management.
Accumulated Evidence Substantiates a Role for Three Classes of Wheat Xylanase Inhibitors in Plant Defense

Since their discovery in 1997, work on proteinaceous wheat xylanase inhibitors (XIs) led to the identification and thorough biochemical and structural characterization of three classes of XIs, namely TAXI-type (Triticum aestivum xylanase inhibitor), XIP-type (xylanase inhibiting protein), and TLXI-type (thaumatin-like xylanase inhibitor) XIs. Already early on, a role in plant defense has been put forward for these proteins, mainly based on the observation that these XIs are only active against xylanases of microbial origin and can not inhibit the plant endogenous xylanases known so far. Considerable effort has been devoted to substantiate this plant defense hypothesis. Data at the genomic, transcriptomic and proteomic levels increasingly provide evidence that XIs, occurring as large polymorphic families, do indeed participate in plant defense. This review summarizes the current knowledge on XIs and the accumulated evidence on their role in plant defense. TLXI and XIP can be classified as pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins of classes PR-5 and PR-8, respectively, based on their homology with thaumatin-like proteins and chitinases. For TAXI, more evidence on the induction of TAXI proteins by a pathogen in tissues that normally do not express TAXI is required before it can be categorized as a new class of PR proteins. At the moment, TAXI proteins should be referred to as inducible defense-related proteins.
Limited plasticity of low temperature tolerance in an Australian cantharid beetle Chauliognathus lugubris

Spatial and/or taxonomic bias in thermal tolerance and plasticity data can severely impact projections of climate change responses and limit the understanding of the evolution of thermal performance curves. Thus, further data from under‐represented groups and geographical locations are important for synthesizing and predicting the physiological responses of insects to climate variability. For example, the magnitude of rapid cold‐hardening (RCH) and seasonal acclimatization of low temperature tolerance are typically poorly documented for nondipteran species from the southern Hemisphere. Moreover, few studies assess RCH responses under different acclimation regimes. To address this paucity of data, the low temperature survival, RCH and acclimation ability of Chauliognathus lugubris (F.) are assessed from an adult aggregation collected in Armidale, New South Wales, Australia. Beetles are acclimated to either 27 or 20 °C for 1 week and then tested for their ability to survive cold shock or rapidly cold‐harden. There is no effect of acclimation on low temperature survival (mean survival range at −5.4 °C for 2 h: 4–52% in 27 and 20 °C acclimation groups). In addition, beetles show no significant improvement in survival after acute thermal pretreatments. In conclusion, these data suggest a generally poor acclimation potential of low temperature survival and no RCH responses in adult Australian cantharid beetles, which is accordance with what might be expected given the microclimate experienced, their ability for behavioural regulation and the life history of the species.
Global Warming and Soil Microclimate: Results from a Meadow‐Warming Experiment

We used overhead infrared radiators to add a constant increment of -15 W/m2, over 2 yr, to the downward heat flux on five 30-M2 montane meadow plots in Gunnison County, Colorado, USA. Heating advanced snowmelt by -1 wk, increased summer soil temperatures by up to 3? C, and reduced summer soil moisture levels by up to 25% compared to control plots. Soil microclimate response to heating varied with season, time of day, weather conditions, and location along the microclimate and vegetation gradient within each plot, with the largest temperature increase observed in daytime and in the drier, more sparsely vegetated zone of each plot. Day-to-day variation in the daily-averaged temperature response to heating in the drier zone was negatively correlated with that in the wetter zone. Our experimental manipulation provides a novel and effective method for investigating feedback processes linking climate, soil, and vegetation.
International comparison of K-12 STEM teaching practices

PurposeThis study analyzed articles from India, Italy and Singapore regarding how science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education is conceptualized in the K-12 setting. The research questions that guided our study were as follows: (1) How is K-12 STEM education conceptualized in literature in other countries? (2) Which STEM subject areas are more documented in K-12 STEM literature? (3) How are K-12 STEM teaching practices implemented? Design/methodology/approachThis study utilized a systematic literature review methodology by (1) creating search terms based on the research questions, (2) choosing databases in which to conduct the search, (3) conducting the search and gathering articles and (4) selecting articles based on inclusion criteria. We chose search terms according to three domains relevant to our study as follows: countries of interest, content of interest and teaching practices. Articles researched were (1) an empirical journal article or literature review; (2) primarily focused on the concept of K-12 STEM teaching practices in one of the countries of interest and (3) written in English.FindingsFindings from the study revealed few articles addressed a conceptualization of STEM; however, the majority of articles agreed upon the importance of STEM teaching methods in the K-12 classroom setting. Science was documented as the top documented area in K-12 STEM literature for India and Italy, whereas technology and mathematics were the top documented areas in Singapore. Comparing K-12 STEM teaching practices, Italy and Singapore were found to focus more on student-centered STEM teaching practices whereas schools in India mostly utilized student-centered teaching approaches.Research limitations/implicationsThe parameters of the systematic literature review, such as key terms used in the search and limited scope of countries investigated, were identified as limitations of the study. By expanding search parameters to include other countries or search terms, STEM education can be viewed on a more global scale.Practical implicationsThis study will improve the global perspective of STEM education practices.Originality/valueThis study is unique in that it compared the conceptualization and K-12 STEM teaching practices implemented in India, Italy and Singapore.
Influence of rock dust-based soil re-mineralisation on root-knot disease of organic watermelon plants

Deplorable soil fertility characterising resource-poor agrarian communities remain a major constraint for sustainable global food security. Re-mineralisation through application of rock dust encourages maintainable productivity of degraded soils. This study was planned to appraise the effect of rock dust on root-knot disease of Citrullus lanatus caused by Meloidogyne incognita (Mi). The experiment was laid out in Randomised Complete Block Design with three replications. Soil and root populations of the nematode were estimated and galling damage of the crop was diagnosed and censured at 60 days after inoculation. Additional data were collected on vine length, number of leaves, days to 50% flowering and dry matter content. Data collected were subjected to analysis of variance and the means were separated using least significant difference. The treated watermelon plants were low in root-knot disease, significantly reduced Mi nematode populations and flowered far much earlier (p = 0.05) than the untreated organic watermelon plants.
Auditors’ Responses to Workload Imbalance and the Impact on Audit Quality

Using detailed data for fieldwork hours and audit hours by rank from audit engagements in Korea, we examine whether audits conducted under workload imbalance, proxied by busy‐season audits, impair audit quality, and how auditors adjust staff assignments for busy‐season audits. We generally find that busy‐season audits are associated with lower audit quality, and that audit firms reduce the involvement of senior auditors during busy‐season audits. In addition, the greater the involvement of senior auditors and junior auditors, the lesser the deterioration in audit quality. Finally, although there is no increase in interim audits in response to workload imbalance during busy seasons, increasing interim audits can mitigate the negative impact of busy‐season audits on audit quality. Our results are relevant to auditors and regulators, who have expressed concerns about the adverse effects of workload imbalance on audit quality. Desequilibre de la charge de travail : reactions des auditeurs et incidence sur la qualite de l'audit Les auteurs analysent des donnees exhaustives concernant les heures de travail sur le terrain et les heures d'audit selon le rang, tirees de missions d'audit realisees en Coree, afin de determiner, d'une part, si la realisation d'audits en situation de desequilibre de la charge de travail — selon la variable substitutive des audits de la periode de pointe — est prejudiciable a la qualite de l'audit et, d'autre part, comment les auditeurs ajustent les affectations de personnel aux audits de la periode de pointe. De facon generale, les auteurs constatent que les audits de la periode de pointe sont associes a une qualite inferieure de l'audit et que les cabinets d'audit reduisent la participation des responsables de mission aux audits de la periode de pointe. En outre, plus la participation des responsables de mission et des assistants d'audit est grande, moins la deterioration de la qualite de l'audit est marquee. Enfin, meme si aucune augmentation des audits intermediaires n'est observee en reaction au desequilibre de la charge de travail au cours des periodes de pointe, la multiplication des audits intermediaires peut attenuer l'incidence negative des audits de la periode de pointe sur la qualite de l'audit. Les resultats de l’etude interesseront les auditeurs et les autorites de reglementation, qui se sont dits preoccupes par les repercussions nefastes du desequilibre de la charge de travail sur la qualite de l'audit.
Future-proof cities through governance experiments? Insights from the Resilient Melbourne Strategy (RMS)

ABSTRACT Established urban policy and planning approaches are ill-equipped to deal with the wicked nature of urban resilience problems and challenges. To break down bureaucratic silos and foster transformative change, ‘governance experiments’ are heralded as promising platforms for testing new ways of collaboration and urban innovation. This paper introduces an analytical framework to unpack the organizational principles and institutional structures of governance experimentation. It applies this framework on urban resilience actions in Melbourne as part of the Rockefeller 100 Resilient Cities Network. The case studies illustrate that governance experimentation requires active stakeholder and boundary management and acceptance to learn from failure.
Single-photon superradiance in waveguide-quantum-electrodynamical systems with whispering-gallery-mode resonators

As a manifestation of cooperative interactions between a single photon and a cluster of atoms, single-photon superradiance has attracted considerable attention recently but has been studied insofar as that only quantum emitters are involved in the superradiance process. Here we expand the scope of investigation to study single-photon superradiance in a waveguide-QED system containing whispering-gallery-mode (WGM) resonators which are essential for many nano-photonic devices. It is shown analytically and numerically that single-photon superradiance can also occur when WGM resonators are present. The criteria for the emergence of the superradiant emission peak and the enhanced atom-light coupling strength are derived. Finally, the general case of a cascade of WGM resonators is investigated by a renormalization approach. Single-photon frequency comb generation is demonstrated via a frequency-modulated superradiant effective atom in chiral waveguide-QED systems with WGM resonators.