Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Snakin-1 affects reactive oxygen species and ascorbic acid levels and hormone balance in potato

Snakin-1 is a member of the Solanum tuberosum Snakin/GASA family. We previously demonstrated that Snakin-1 is involved in plant defense to pathogens as well as in plant growth and development, but its mechanism of action has not been completely elucidated yet. Here, we showed that leaves of Snakin-1 silenced potato transgenic plants exhibited increased levels of reactive oxygen species and significantly reduced content of ascorbic acid. Furthermore, Snakin-1 silencing enhanced salicylic acid content in accordance with an increased expression of SA-inducible PRs genes. Interestingly, gibberellic acid levels were also enhanced and transcriptome analysis revealed that a large number of genes related to sterol biosynthesis were downregulated in these silenced lines. Moreover, we demonstrated that Snakin-1 directly interacts with StDIM/DWF1, an enzyme involved in plant sterols biosynthesis. Additionally, the analysis of the expression pattern of PStSN1::GUS in potato showed that Snakin-1 is present mainly in young tissues associated with active growth and cell division zones. Our comprehensive analysis of Snakin-1 silenced lines demonstrated for the first time in potato that Snakin-1 plays a role in redox balance and participates in a complex crosstalk among different hormones.
Perivascular Mesenchymal Progenitors for Bone Regeneration

Mesenchymal progenitor cells reside in all assayed vascularized tissues, and are broadly conceptualized to participate in homeostasis/renewal and repair. The application of mesenchymal progenitor cells has been studied for diverse orthopaedic conditions related to skeletal degeneration, regeneration, and tissue fabrication. One common niche for mesenchymal progenitors is the perivascular space, and in both mouse and human tissues, perivascular progenitor cells have been isolated and characterized. Of these “perivascular stem cells” or PSC, pericytes are the most commonly studied cells. Multiple studies have demonstrated the regenerative properties of PSC when applied to bone, including direct osteochondral differentiation, paracrine‐induced osteogenesis and vasculogenesis, and immunomodulatory functions. The confluence of these effects have resulted in efficacious bone regeneration across several preclinical models. Yet, key topics of research in perivascular progenitors highlight our lack of knowledge regarding these cell populations. These ongoing areas of study include cellular diversity within the perivascular niche, tissue‐specific properties of PSC, and factors that influence PSC‐mediated regenerative potential. © 2019 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 37:1221–1228, 2019.
The Relation Between Functional Anatomy of the Face and Threat Perception Evoked by Facial Expression of Anger in Schizophrenia.

Introduction It is well known that patients with schizophrenia are more sensitive to negative rather than positive feelings. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the degree of explicitly perceived threat against facial expressions of anger. We were also interested in the association between perceived threat, and both the objective intensity of facial expression of anger and the functional anatomy of the perceived faces. Method Forty-eight patients with schizophrenia and 51 healthy controls were enrolled. Participants were presented a total of 21 sequences of anger including six different face images, which were selected from The Cohn-Kanade AU-Coded Facial Expression Database with emotions gradually changing from neutral to peak expression of anger. We measured when [time to threat (TtT)] and to which degree [Total perception of threat (TPoT)] threat was perceived by participants. The relation between perceived threat with the involvement of functional anatomic units among the face stimuli was also investigated. Results TPoT was higher in the index compared to the control group. TtT was comparable in two groups and was associated with the severity of hallucinations among the index group. Total emotion intensity was lower in the sequences that evoked more threat in the index group. Functional contribution of the eyes and the upper lip to expression of anger were associated with TPoT among the index group. Conclusion Schizophrenia subjects may be prone to perceive more threat in response to facial expression of anger. This proneness may be evident in response to less intense expression of anger, particularly via eyes and the upper lip.
Relationship of sleep quality and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms with quality of life in college students

Abstract Objective: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) negatively influences various aspects of life such as social relations, adaptive skills, and occupation. In addition, many university students experience sleep problems, academic failure, and low quality of life (QOL). We investigated the relationship among ADHD symptoms, sleep quality, and QOL of college students, and identified the factors related to their QOL. Participants and Methods: Using a survey questionnaire, data were collected from 195 students from March–May 2017. Results: QOL of students was related to ADHD symptoms and sleep quality. Factors significantly associated with better QOL were fewer ADHD symptoms, good sleep quality, male sex, high academic performance, and high economic status. The explanatory power of these variables on QOL was 32.0%. Conclusion: To improve the QOL of college students, a multifaceted approach that includes assessment of ADHD symptoms and sleep quality is needed.
Variability in the Chemical Composition and In Vitro Ruminal Fermentation of Olive Cake By-Products

Simple Summary Olive cake is a by-product of oil production that can be used in ruminant feeding, but its composition can vary with multiple factors. The objective of this study was to determine the variability in the chemical composition and in vitro ruminal fermentation of 42 olive cake samples to evaluate their nutritive value for ruminants. The results showed that the chemical composition of olive cake is highly variable and is markedly affected by processing type and its storage time before processing. Cyclone olive cake had greater nutritive value for ruminants than both crude and extracted olive cake. All olive cake types were poorly degraded in vitro and, therefore, their nutritive value is highly dependent on their ether extract content. Statistical models using olive cake processing type, and either the chemical composition or storage time before processing as covariates, can be used in the practice to predict in vitro ruminal fermentation variables of olive cake samples. The obtained information may contribute to increase the use of olive cake in ruminant feeding. Abstract The objective of this study was to determine the variability in the chemical composition and in vitro ruminal fermentation of olive cake (OC) by-products. Forty-two OC samples with different storage times (1–14 months) and processing (25 crude (COC), 9 exhausted (EOC) and 9 cyclone (CYOC)) were fermented in vitro with sheep ruminal fluid. Exhausted OC samples had a lower ether extract content than COC and CYOC (15.9, 110 and 157 g/kg dry matter (DM), respectively), but greater neutral detergent fiber (NDF; 645, 570 and 441 g/kg DM) and acid insoluble nitrogen (9.76, 8.10 and 8.05 g/kg DM) content. Exhausted OC had the greatest (p < 0.05) average gas production rate (AGPR), whereas the greatest fermented organic matter (FOM) was obtained for EOC and CYOC. The best single predictor of the AGPR was total sugars content (R2 = 0.898), whereas NDF was the best one for FOM (R2 = 0.767; p < 0.001). Statistical models using storage time as a predictor variable had lower accuracy and R2 values than those from the chemical composition. In summary, the nutritive value of OC was highly dependent on its processing, but its ether extract content did not negatively affect ruminal fermentation parameters, which could be estimated from either carbohydrate composition or storage time.
When contextual information meets recommender systems: extended SVD++ models

ABSTRACT Collaborative filtering approach is widely used in the area of recommender systems. In fact, its predictive accuracy is supported by a large amount of additional information available on the internet, especially in social media. Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) is the most used matrix factorization method in the field of collaborative filtering, which is realized by using a latent factor vector of items and another one of users and introduces the users and item bias information. SVD++ is a derivation of the SVD model. It aims at adding implicit feedback information that is why the results of this model are improved. In this paper, different contributions are applied to SVD++ model through three different approaches which apply modification of latent factor vector while taking into account social and environmental information. Moreover, the experimental results showed that these proposed extensions ameliorate the prediction accuracy in terms of MAE and RMSE compared to SVD++ corresponding to four benchmarks, which are CiaoDVD, Food data, Adom data and Movielens-100k. According to the four used data sets, the experimental results showed that our proposed third contribution is effective in improving the prediction accuracy by 3.7%, 8.2%, 46.7% and 4%, respectively. These results also showed a reduction of the Mean Absolute Error by 0.0. 71, 0.125, 0.61 and 0.038. Similar results were also obtained with the first and the second contribution.
Dysregulation of Macropinocytosis Processes in Glioblastomas May Be Exploited to Increase Intracellular Anti-Cancer Drug Levels: The Example of Temozolomide

Macropinocytosis is a clathrin-independent endocytosis of extracellular fluid that may contribute to cancer aggressiveness through nutrient supply, recycling of plasma membrane and receptors, and exosome internalization. Macropinocytosis may be notably triggered by epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and platelet-derived growth factor receptor (PDGFR), two well-known markers for glioblastoma aggressiveness. Therefore, we studied whether the expression of key actors of macropinocytosis is modified in human glioma datasets. Strong deregulation has been evidenced at the mRNA level according to the grade of the tumor, and 38 macropinocytosis-related gene signatures allowed discrimination of the glioblastoma (GBM) samples. Honokiol-induced vacuolization was then compared to vacquinol-1 and MOMIPP, two known macropinocytosis inducers. Despite high phase-contrast morphological similarities, honokiol-induced vacuoles appeared to originate from both endocytosis and ER. Also, acridine orange staining suggested differences in the macropinosomes’ fate: their fusion with lysosomes appeared very limited in 3-(5-methoxy -2-methyl-1H-indol-3-yl)-1-(4-pyridinyl)-2-propen-1-one (MOMIPP)-treated cells. Nevertheless, each of the compounds markedly increased temozolomide uptake by glioma cells, as evidenced by LC-MS. In conclusion, the observed deregulation of macropinocytosis in GBM makes them prone to respond to various compounds affecting their formation and/or intracellular fate. Considering that sustained macropinocytosis may also trigger cell death of both sensitive and resistant GBM cells, we propose to envisage macropinocytosis inducers in combination approaches to obtain dual benefits: increased drug uptake and additive/synergistic effects.
Rigidity as mediator between temperaments and social adjustment: A comparative study of teachers of madaris and schools of Pakistan

This study assessed the mediating role of cognitive rigidity between temperament and social adjustment in teachers of schools and religious madaris of Pakistan while controlling for the influence of teaching experience. A purposive sample of 300 teachers (150 from public schools and 150 from religious madaris with equal representation of both the genders) was recruited from Sargodha and Lahore. Teachers of schools and madaris were matched in terms of their gender, age, and educational qualification. Urdu translated versions of the Approach–Avoidance Temperament Questionnaire (ATQ), Cognitive Flexibility Scale (CFS), and Social Adjustment Scale were used to operationalize the focal constructs of this study. Path analysis revealed that approach temperament negatively and avoidance temperament positively predicted cognitive rigidity, which in turn led to lowered levels of social adjustment. Approach temperament positively and avoidance temperament negatively predicted social adjustment. The negative association between approach temperament and cognitive rigidity was stronger in the group of school teachers, whereas the positive association between avoidance temperament and cognitive rigidity was stronger among teachers of religious madaris. The positive indirect effect of approach temperament on social adjustment through rigidity was stronger for school teachers. Significant differences were observed in the mean scores of teachers of madaris and schools on avoidance temperament, social adjustment, and cognitive rigidity. Implications of the study and suggestions for future research have been reflected upon.
Role of protic ionic liquid concentration in proton conducting polymer electrolytes for improved electrical and thermal properties

Protic ionic liquids (PILs) in the acidic medium are known to show higher ionic conductivity than neat PIL or PIL in alkaline media. Hence, polymer electrolyte membranes (PEM) containing both PIL and acids are considered ideal for non-humidified intermediate temperature PEM fuel cells. Herein, we report non-aqueous proton conducting PEM made up of diethylmethylammonium trifluoromethanesulfonate; [dema][TfO] and neat phosphoric acid (H3PO4) with poly (vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene); PVDF-HFP as the host matrix. The presence of PIL significantly modified the structure and microstructure of the electrolyte films with the emergence of micropores in the PIL containing membranes. SEM images suggest leaching of PIL and phosphoric acid above 80 wt% of PIL in the electrolyte membranes. Thermogravimetric studies show that the dehydration in the PEM films due to phosphoric acid condensation at 100 °C–200 °C region is arrested by the presence of PIL. The maximum ionic conductivity at room temperature is ∼6.3 × 10−4 S cm−1 at 40 wt% of [dema][TfO] addition, which is two orders higher than that of the primary electrolyte (PE) containing only phosphoric acid in PVDF-HFP. This high conductivity in PEM films can be correlated to the increase in polar β and γ phases as well as a drop in the total crystallinity fraction in the film. The study using dielectric spectroscopy reveals a strong coupling of ionic conductivity with the structural or segmental relaxation of the PVDF-HFP due to the presence of [dema][TfO] in the PEMs.
Genome Editing-Based Engineering of CESA3 Dual Cellulose-Inhibitor-Resistant Plants1[OPEN]

Functional analysis of a previously identified C17 cellulose-inhibitor-revealed that it operates differently from other known inhibitors, enabling the development of a dual herbicide-resistant line. The rapid appearance of herbicide-resistant weeds combined with a lack of novel herbicides being brought to market reduces crop production, thereby threatening food security worldwide. Here, we report on the use of the previously identified cellulose biosynthesis-inhibiting chemical compound C17 as a potential herbicide. Toxicity tests showed that C17 efficiently inhibits the growth of various weeds and widely cultivated dicotyledonous crops, whereas only slight or no growth inhibition was observed for monocotyledonous crops. Surprisingly, when exposed to a mixture of C17 and one of two well-known cellulose biosynthesis inhibitors (CBIs), isoxaben and indaziflam, an additive growth inhibition was observed, demonstrating that C17 has a different mode of action that can be used to sensitize plants toward known CBIs. Moreover, we demonstrate that a C17-resistant CESA3 allele can be used as a positive transformation selection marker and that C17 resistance can be obtained through genome engineering of the wild-type CESA3 allele using clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats-mediated base editing. This editing system allowed us to engineer C17 tolerance in an isoxaben-resistant line, resulting in double herbicide-resistant plants.
Acceptability and challenges of introducing an educational audio-drama about gender violence and HIV prevention into schools in Botswana: an implementation review

ABSTRACT Structural interventions for HIV prevention are typically complex and evaluation should include measurement of implementation. In a trial of a structural intervention for HIV prevention in Botswana we trained teachers to use an audio-drama about gender violence and HIV (BVV). We measured the use of BVV by the trained teachers, and the factors related. In three-day workshops we trained guidance teachers in primary and secondary schools to use the 8-episode BVV audio-drama, that covers gender, gender violence and HIV. One to two years later, two interviewers visited schools and administered an electronic questionnaire to the head teacher and to the BVV-trained teacher. Most teachers (70%, 72/103) had used the BVV materials and reported a positive response from students. Primary school teachers were less likely to have used BVV (adjusted odds ratio (ORa) 0.24, 95% cluster adjusted confidence interval (CIca) 0.07-0.88). Teachers in schools with a working MP3 player were more likely to have used BVV (ORa 3.75, 95% CIca 1.11-12.70). Implementation was much lower in one district (ORa 0.12, 95% CIca 0.04-0.36), related to language constraints. The main difficulty was lack of time, especially in primary schools. These findings could inform rollout of the BVV programme in schools. Abbreviations: BVV: Beyond Victims and Villains audio-drama; CI: Confidence interval; OR: Odds ratio
Extraction and Recognition of Components from Point Clouds of Industrial Plants

Point clouds of industrial plants are very useful for supporting renovation planning, production and product design, asset management, and so on. However, point clouds of an industrial plant contain a large number of components. In order to utilize point clouds, it is necessary to extract each component from point clouds and identify its type. In this paper, we discuss methods for identifying component types in industrial plants using machine learning. In our method, cylinders and planes are detected from point-clouds and candidate component regions are extracted. Since point clouds captured using the terrestrial laser scanner can be mapped on the 2D grid, convolutional neural network (CNN) designed for images can be applied. Three types of 2D images are generated from point clouds, and they are used for classification. To increase the numbers of training data, depth images are augmented using CAD models. In evaluation, nine classifiers were trained and evaluated. By comparing the nine CNN models, we discuss classifiers suitable for recognizing components in industrial plants.
Best linear inverse probability weighted estimation for two‐phase designs and missing covariate regression

The inverse probability weighted estimator is often applied to two‐phase designs and regression with missing covariates. Inverse probability weighted estimators typically are less efficient than likelihood‐based estimators but, in general, are more robust against model misspecification. In this paper, we propose a best linear inverse probability weighted estimator for two‐phase designs and missing covariate regression. Our proposed estimator is the projection of the SIPW onto the orthogonal complement of the score space based on a working regression model of the observed covariate data. The efficiency gain is from the use of the association between the outcome variable and the available covariates, which is the working regression model. One advantage of the proposed estimator is that there is no need to calculate the augmented term of the augmented weighted estimator. The estimator can be applied to general missing data problems or two‐phase design studies in which the second phase data are obtained in a subcohort. The method can also be applied to secondary trait case‐control genetic association studies. The asymptotic distribution is derived, and the finite sample performance of the proposed estimator is examined via extensive simulation studies. The methods are applied to a bladder cancer case‐control study.
Counteracting Electrode Shifts in Upper-Limb Prosthesis Control via Transfer Learning

Research on machine learning approaches for upper-limb prosthesis control has shown impressive progress. However, translating these results from the lab to patient’s everyday lives remains a challenge because advanced control schemes tend to break down under everyday disturbances, such as electrode shifts. Recently, it has been suggested to apply adaptive transfer learning to counteract electrode shifts using as little newly recorded training data as possible. In this paper, we present a novel, simple version of transfer learning and provide the first user study demonstrating the effectiveness of transfer learning to counteract electrode shifts. For this purpose, we introduce the novel Box and Beans test to evaluate prosthesis proficiency and compare user performance with an initial simple pattern recognition system, the system under electrode shifts, and the system after transfer learning. Our results show that transfer learning could significantly alleviate the impact of electrode shifts on user performance in the Box and Beans test.
Applying the Challenge-Hindrance Stressor Framework to Doctoral Education

Doctoral education is inherently stressful for students. While the implications of stress on employees has been heavily investigated within the management literature, what we know about stress has not yet been applied to doctoral education. We take initial steps toward using the stress literature to examine stress in doctoral education by applying the challenge-hindrance stressor framework to the doctoral education context. We briefly define both challenge and hindrance stressors and list common stressors for both related to prototypical learning experiences in doctoral education. Next, we point out that student responses to stress vary because of individual differences, influencing the extent to which students appraise stressors as more hindrance or challenge focused. We also provide rich examples of learning experiences within doctoral education that demonstrate how these experiences incorporate hindrance and challenge stressors. Through these examples, we illustrate how educators can design major learning experiences in doctoral education to address (or at least minimize) hindrance stressors and integrate more challenge stressors. Last, we provide theory-driven recommendations for doctoral educators to capitalize on the positive effects of challenge stressors, and we discuss ways to establish a future research agenda to empirically test the challenge-hindrance framework in the doctoral education context.