Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Utility of DNA barcoding for identification of common Vespa species (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) from Yunnan, China

As traditional Chinese medicine and edible insects, Vespa hornets have high economic value and huge market demand. Hornet breeding has become an important way to increase the income of mountain farmers in China, but the limitation of traditional identification methods has become the bottleneck of the modern development of hornet resources. In this study, a simple and reliable method for the molecular identification of typical hornets from Yunnan was successfully established. In the NCBI database, DNA sequences of hornet samples were aligned as Vespa analis, Vespa basalis, Vespa velutina, Vespa mandarinia, Vespa magnifica, Vespa binghami, Vespa soror by BLAST search. The efficiency of the PCR amplification of mitochondrial cytochrome C oxidase I (COI) gene sequences in all samples was 100% by using the optimized program. Moreover, a reference database for DNA barcodes of Vespa materials in Yunnan was constructed. This study provided a successful example for the identification of local insects of Yunnan and will be helpful to the development of wasp resources.
Artemisinin-Type Drugs in Tumor Cell Death: Mechanisms, Combination Treatment with Biologics and Nanoparticle Delivery

Artemisinin, the most famous anti-malaria drug initially extracted from Artemisia annua L. , also exhibits anti-tumor properties in vivo and in vitro. To improve its solubility and bioavailability, multiple derivatives have been synthesized. However, to reveal the anti-tumor mechanism and improve the efficacy of these artemisinin-type drugs, studies have been conducted in recent years. In this review, we first provide an overview of the effect of artemisinin-type drugs on the regulated cell death pathways, which may uncover novel therapeutic approaches. Then, to overcome the shortcomings of artemisinin-type drugs, we summarize the recent advances in two different therapeutic approaches, namely the combination therapy with biologics influencing regulated cell death, and the use of nanocarriers as drug delivery systems. For the former approach, we discuss the superiority of combination treatments compared to monotherapy in tumor cells based on their effects on regulated cell death. For the latter approach, we give a systematic overview of nanocarrier design principles used to deliver artemisinin-type drugs, including inorganic-based nanoparticles, liposomes, micelles, polymer-based nanoparticles, carbon-based nanoparticles, nanostructured lipid carriers and niosomes. Both approaches have yielded promising findings in vitro and in vivo, providing a strong scientific basis for further study and upcoming clinical trials.
pH-Dependent Compaction of the Intrinsically Disordered Poly-E Motif in Titin

Simple Summary The importance of pH shifts in biological systems is often underappreciated, but they can be a common form of regulation by both activating and inactivating important proteins. Proteins without any regular structure, commonly referred to as intrinsically disordered proteins, are very sensitive to pH changes due to their high number of ionizable amino acids. This study focuses on the role of non-ionizable residues in the negatively charged poly-E motif from the PEVK region of the muscle protein titin. Our results demonstrate that aromatic amino acids and the number of proline residues in the linker regions between charged clusters have the greatest impact on the pH-dependent conformational flexibility of this region. These results provide useful new insights into how the sequence between clusters of charges in proteins can impact the sensitivity of a protein to pH shifts. Abstract The conformational sensitivity of intrinsically disordered proteins to shifts in pH due to their high degree of charged residues has been recognized for well over a decade. However, the role of the non-ionizable residues in this pH sensitivity remains poorly understood. Our lab has been investigating the pH sensitivity of the poly-E motifs of the PEVK region of the muscle protein titin, which provides an ideal model system to explore this question. Using a series of 15-amino acid peptides derived from one of the poly-E motif sequences, we have investigated the role of side-chain chemistry in the conformational flexibility of this region. Our results demonstrate that aromatic side chains and proline content are the two variables that most influence pH sensitivity. The introduction of aromatic side chains resulted in a more collapsed structure, even at pH 7, while the removal of prolines resulted in a higher degree of pH sensitivity. These results highlight the importance of considering the impact of non-ionizable residues on IDP function, especially when considering the impact of pH on conformational flexibility.
Climate Rather Than Vegetation Changes Dominate Changes in Effective Vegetation Available Water Capacity

China has experienced significant vegetation greening over recent decades. Vegetation greening may regulate the effective vegetation available water capacity (EVAWC), which determines the root zone water availability for evapotranspiration. EVAWC is one of the most important factors controlling vegetation growth and ecosystem resilience. Despite its importance, quantifying EVAWC at large scale is challenging due to limited observations of soil properties and insufficient understanding of underlying physical processes. Thus, to what extent changes in EVAWC are driven by vegetation and climate change is still unclear. Here, we establish a physics‐based, data‐driven stochastic approach to examine the spatiotemporal variability of the EVAWC and its potential drivers over China, with the consideration of vegetation and climate dynamics. The major strength of our approach is that it does not require observations related to soil properties as inputs, but only needs a few simple hydrometeorological and remotely sensed vegetation parameters that can be easily obtained. On average, we find that vegetation changes tend to increase EVAWC over 71.0 ± 3.9% of the total land area in China, while climate variabilities tend to reduce EVAWC over 73.7 ± 9.5% of the land area. More importantly, the potential increase in EVAWC resulting from vegetation changes is offset by climate variability. As a result, the changes in EVAWC over recent decades are generally dominated by climate variabilities (relative contribution of 82.7 ± 9.6%) rather than vegetation changes, especially in humid and semihumid areas. Our results suggest that vegetation greening in China has subordinate impacts on EVAWC, and ecosystem resilience is mainly dominated by the local climate.
The Force Analysis of Reciprocating Compressor Valve Using CFD

A working process of reciprocating compressor,which uses pressing-off inlet valve for whole measuring range stepless gas-regulating,is simulated using CFD.The air pressure filed distribution in cylinder and valve during the working process of reciprocating compressor is obtained,and the largest gas jacking force on valve is calculated.The results provide basis for the design of gas capacity regulation system.
Tracking marine mammals and ships with small and large- aperture hydrophone arrays

Techniques for passive acoustic tracking in all three spatial dimensions of marine mammals and ships were developed for long-term acoustic datasets recorded continuously over months using custom-designed arrays of underwater microphones (hydrophones) with spacing ranging from meters to kilometers. From the three-dimensional tracks, the acoustical properties of toothed whales and ships, such as sound intensity and directionality, were estimated as they are needed for the passive acoustic abundance estimation of toothed whales and for a quantitative description of the contribution of ships to the underwater soundscape. In addition, the tracks of the toothed whales reveal their underwater movements and demonstrate the potential of the developed tracking techniques to investigate their natural behavior and responses to sound generated by human activity, such as from ships or military SONAR. To track the periodically emitted echolocation sounds of toothed whales in an acoustically refractive environment in the upper ocean, a propagation-model based technique was developed for a hydrophone array consisting of one vertical and two L- shaped subarrays deployed from the floating instrument platform R/P FLIP. The technique is illustrated by tracking a group of five shallow-diving killer whales showing coordinated behavior. The challenge of tracking the highly directional echolocation sounds of deep-diving (< 1 km) toothed whales, in particular Cuvier's beaked whales, was addressed by embedding volumetric small- aperture ( 1 m element spacing) arrays into a large- aperture ( 1 km element spacing) seafloor array to reduce the minimum number of required receivers from five to two. The capabilities of this technique are illustrated by tracking several groups of up to three individuals over time periods from 10 min to 33 min within an area of 20 km² in the Southern California Bight. To track and measure the underwater radiated sound of ships, a frequency domain beamformer was implemented for a volumetric hydrophone array (< 2 m element spacing) that was coupled to an autonomous acoustic seafloor recorder. This allows for the tracking and measurement of underwater radiated sound from ships of opportunity with a single instrument deployment and without depending on track information from the automatic information system (AIS)
Developing the Self-Learning Interactive Module using ADDIE Model for Year 5 Primary School Students

Due to a number of circumstances, learning English as a second language can be difficult. One of the reasons is because grammatical components known as tenses do not exist in one's mother tongue, making it difficult to learn. In order to compose sentences in English utilising tenses, people must play with words and times. Previous research has found that Malaysian students struggle with the usage of tenses, despite the fact that they have been learning them for a long time and that they are widely spoken by Malaysians, whether it is due to the learning process, the effect of mother tongue, or the learning materials. The goal of developing a self-learning interactive module using Microsoft PowerPoint Presentation is to assist students in improving their learning efficacy by applying the ADDIE model approach which was the methodology used in the study.The participants are 10 year five primary school students from a Malaysian public school. This study will provide new perspectives in addressing the tenses issues of year 5 students through the module and schools may prepare other modules or programmes to help students’ learning process. The final outcome based on the regression study revealed that all of the participants enjoy learning English tenses in this manner, and that it has increased their knowledge and self-esteem when it comes to applying English tenses. Participants also expressed a desire to be taught via this type of module in the future for other topics which proved that their learning efficacy is boosted. Regardless, future research could continue to explore the learning efficacy in a larger sample size.
Simultaneous therapeutic targeting of inflammation and virus ameliorates influenza pneumonia and protects from morbidity and mortality

Pneumonia is a severe complication caused by inflammation of the lungs following infection with seasonal and pandemic strains of influenza A virus (IAV) that can result in lung pathology, respiratory failure and death. There is currently no treatment available for severe disease and pneumonia caused by IAV. Antivirals are available, but they are far from satisfactory if treatment is not initiated within 48 hours of symptoms onset. Influenza complications and mortality are often associated with high viral load and excessive lung inflammatory cytokine response. Therefore, we simultaneously targeted IAV with the antiviral drug oseltamivir and inflammation with the anti-inflammatory drug etanercept, targeting TNF after the onset of clinical signs to treat IAV pneumonia effectively. The combined treatment effectively reduced lung viral load, lung pathology, morbidity and mortality during respiratory IAV infection in mice, contemporaneous with significant downregulation of the inflammatory cytokines TNF, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-12p40, chemokines CCL2, CCL5 and CXCL10 and dampened STAT3 activation. Consequently, combined therapy with oseltamivir and a STAT3 inhibitor also effectively reduced clinical disease and lung pathology. Combined treatment using either of the anti-inflammatory drugs and oseltamivir dampened an overlapping set of cytokines. Thus, combined therapy targeting a specific cytokine or cytokine signaling pathway plus an antiviral drug provides an effective treatment strategy for ameliorating IAV pneumonia. Effective treatment of IAV pneumonia required multiple doses of etanercept and a high dose of oseltamivir. This approach might apply to the treatment of pneumonia caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Significance Statement Antivirals against influenza A virus (IAV) are ineffective in treating pneumonia if administered 48 h after onset of disease symptoms. The host inflammatory response and tissue damage caused by IAV are responsible for lung pathology. We reasoned that targeting both virus and inflammation would be more effective in reducing lung pathology and pneumonia, morbidity and mortality. The simultaneous treatment with an anti-inflammatory drug targeting TNF or STAT3, combined with the anti-IAV antiviral drug, oseltamivir, significantly improved clinical disease, reduced lung viral load and pathology, and protected mice from severe pneumonia. The combined treatment suppressed multiple pro-inflammatory cytokines and cytokine signaling pathways. Thus, after the onset of disease symptoms, both virus and inflammation must be targeted to treat IAV pneumonia effectively.
A Cross Sectional Study on Prevalence of Postpartum Depression among Recently Delivered Women in a Tertiary Care Hospital, Chennai, India

Background: Postpartum depression is a common type of depression most people are not much aware and the most important causes being poverty, unwanted child/gender, marital disharmony and lack of family support. Aim: The aim of the study was to assess the prevalence of postpartum depression among recently delivered women in a tertiary care hospital in an urban setup. Methodology: It was a cross sectional type of study in urban population in a tertiary care hospital in Chennai. Data on postpartum depression was collected using Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EDPS). Results: A total 165 postpartum women participated in the study. The prevalence of postpartum depression was found to be 19.23% (an EPDS score of 10 and above) and it was noted in our study that none of these women sort to any medical help. Conclusion: The study shows prevalence of postpartum depression is quite high and none of those women seeked appropriate medical help. All health care professionals have to be trained to raise awareness, detect and treat postpartum depression among women promptly.
Theoretical and Experimental Study on Laterally Loaded Nailed Bamboo Connection

The aim of the study was to create and verify a theoretical model for single-shear steel to bamboo nailed con- nections in natural bamboo. To this end, existing timber strength and fracture theories were used to model the brittle and ductile failure strength of the studied bamboo connection. Experimental tests of steel to bamboo nailed connection subjected to short-term loading in single shear parallel to fibre direction in Moso bamboo confirmed the suitability of the timber models to predict the connection behaviour. The findings constitute a basis for development of theory for screws, which is the advocated connector type by the authors. It is anticipated that the predictability of bamboo dowelled connection behaviour, along with the latest developments in bamboo design standardization, will enhance the designers confidence to implement dowelled bamboo connections in practice.
Breaking strong symmetries in dissipative quantum systems: Bosonic atoms coupled to a cavity

In dissipative quantum systems, strong symmetries can lead to the existence of conservation laws and multiple steady states. In this work we investigate a strong symmetry for bosonic atoms coupled to an optical cavity, an experimentally relevant system, generalizing the adiabatic elimination techniques and using numerically exact matrix product state methods. We show that for ideal bosons coupled to the cavity multiple steady states exist and in each symmetry sector a dissipative phase transition occurs at a different critical point. This implies that phases of very different nature can coexist. We find that the introduction of a slight breaking of the strong symmetry by a small interaction term leads to a direct transition from multiple steady states to a unique steady state. We point out the phenomenon of dissipative freezing, the breaking of the conservation law at the level of individual realizations in the presence of the strong symmetry. For a small breaking of the strong symmetry we see that the behavior of the individual trajectories still shows some signs of this dissipative freezing before it fades out for a larger symmetry breaking terms.
State and fault estimation for nonlinear systems subject to censored measurements: A dynamic event‐triggered case

In this article, the state and fault estimation (SFE) issue is studied for nonlinear systems with parameter uncertainties subject to censored measurement under the dynamic event‐triggering protocol. The well‐known Tobit measurement model is introduced to characterize the censored measurement and the nonlinearity satisfies specific constraints. For the energy‐saving purposes, a dynamic event‐triggering protocol is employed to govern the measurement transmissions between the sensor and its corresponding estimator. The primary objective of the addressed problem is to design a dynamic event‐triggering estimator to estimate the system state and fault signal simultaneously such that, the upper bound (UB) of the estimation error covariance is guaranteed at each iteration, then such UB is minimized by properly choosing the estimator gain. Moreover, the boundedness analysis of the designed SFE approach is conducted firstly and then a sufficient condition is presented to validate the estimation error is stable in mean‐squared sense. Lastly, two experimental results are employed to validate the feasibility of the proposed estimation algorithm.
Simulation of Natural Convection by Multirelaxation Time Lattice Boltzmann Method in a Triangular Enclosure

The natural convection of incompressible flow confined within an enclosed right-angled triangular and isosceles cavity was investigated numerically using the multirelaxation time lattice Boltzmann method (MRT-LBM). According to the left and inclined walls thermal boundary conditions, two cases were considered in this study. In the first case, the inclined side of the enclosure was adiabatic, and the horizontal wall was heated, while the left one was kept at a cold temperature. However, the states of the left and inclined walls were interchanged in the second case. As the flow is only transported under the convection force, this study was carried out for the Rayleigh number ranging from Ra=103 to 106. The effects of the Rayleigh number on velocity and temperature profiles, streamlines, isotherms, and average Nusselt number were investigated. The position of cold and adiabatic walls had a great effect on the results. The results obtained are in good agreement with those of the literature and show the robustness of the MRT-LBM approach. In both cases, the heat-transfer rate increases with the increase in the Rayleigh number.
Endovascular Intervention in Acute Ischemic Stroke: History and Evolution

Stroke is a leading cause of serious long-term disability in the US. Endovascular therapy (EVT), in the form of mechanical thrombectomy, is now a standard of care for patients with acute ischemic stroke with a large vessel occlusion. This article reviews the evolution of EVT in the management of acute ischemic stroke and how it has led to the concept of tissue window over the widely publicized time window.
Effects of Increasing Levels of Palm Kernel Oil in the Feed of Finishing Lambs

Simple Summary Palm kernel oil (PKO) is extracted from an oleaginous seed fruit (Elaeis guineenses Jacq.) commonly cultivated in Brazil and can be used strategically as a ruminal fermentation modulator to improve animal performance. We conducted three experimental trials by increasing PKO levels in the diets of lambs. Although we observed low consumption of most nutrients, we also observed that feed conversion improved as the PKO inclusion level increased, indicating that the animals needed to consume less food to gain 1.0 kg of body weight. In addition, we observed that nutrient digestibility was not affected by the inclusion levels of PKO. We also did not observe differences in ruminal fermentation parameters but noted a reduction in the protozoan population. Therefore, we conclude that the inclusion of palm kernel oil may be beneficial to lambs and can lower the cost of feed in regions that contain an abundance of this byproduct. Abstract The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of the inclusion of palm kernel oil (PKO) in a lamb diet on nutrient intake, digestibility, ingestive behavior, nitrogen balance, blood metabolites, rumen fermentation parameters, and animal performance. Three experimental trials were conducted. The treatments consisted of varying levels of PKO included in the diet, with PKOzero = no PKO inclusion, PKO1.3 = 1.3% addition, PKO2.6 = 2.6% addition, PKO3.9 = 3.9% addition, and PKO5.2 = 5.2% addition, based on the total dry matter (DM) of the diet. With the inclusion of PKO in the diet, linear decreases in DM (p < 0.001), crude ash (p < 0.001), crude protein (CP) (p < 0.001), neutral detergent fiber (NDF) (p < 0.001), nonfibrous carbohydrate (NFC) (p < 0.001), and total digestible nutrient (TDN) (p = 0.021) intake were observed, as was an increase in ether extract (EE) intake (p < 0.001). The digestibility coefficients of NDF and NFC were not affected by PKO addition to the diet. However, the digestibility of DM (p = 0.035), EE (p < 0.001), CP (p < 0.001), and TDNs (p < 0.001) increased when PKO was added to the lambs’ diet. Reductions in N intake (p < 0.001), fecal nitrogen excretion (p < 0.001), and microbial protein production (p < 0.001) were noted with increasing PKO levels. Serum cholesterol increased (p < 0.001) while serum GGT enzyme concentrations in the blood decreased (p = 0.048) with increasing PKO levels. PKO addition had no effect on total weight gain and average daily gain; however, feed conversion improved (p = 0.001) with increasing PKO levels. The intake, digestibility, ingestive behavior, and growth performance of lambs with PKO1.3 added to their diet were similar to animals that did not receive PKO, meaning that PKO could be an alternative energy source for growing lambs because it does not harm animal performance and can lower the cost of feed.