Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Peutz-Jeghers polypectomy in the small bowel using "ligate-and-let-go" technique.

The “ligate-and-let-go” polypectomy technique involves looping a target lesion with a detachable snare and letting it necrose and slough off [1]. This technique is thought to carry less risk for bleeding and perforation than electrocautery. We present a case of a patient with Peutz-Jeghers syndrome in which the “ligate-and-let-go” method was used to successfully treat an obstructing small bowel polyp via anterograde double-balloon enteroscopy (DBE). To our knowledge, this is the first utilization of this technique to successfully remove a jejunal polyp via anterograde DBE. A 46-year-old woman with Peutz-Jeghers syndromewas found to have a large polyp and early intussusception on computed tomography (CT) enterography (▶Fig. 1). Anterograde DBE confirmed a 25-mm pedunculated polyp in the distal jejunum (▶Fig. 2 a). Biopsies were obtained and the region was tattooed with India ink. Pathology revealed a hamartomatous polyp without dysplasia. During repeat anterograde DBE, a ligature was successfully placed at the neck of the polyp via an endoloop device (▶Fig. 2b). Given the high position of the loop, the decision was made to proceed with the “ligateand-let-go” technique to avoid bleeding and incomplete resection (▶Video 1). Repeat anterograde DBE 5 weeks later revealed a well-healed scar in the distal jejunum at the site of the ligated polyp as identified by prior tattoo (▶Fig. 3). E-Videos
A novel pyroptosis-related gene signature to predict outcomes in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma

Pyroptosis, a pro-inflammatory form of programmed cell death, is associated with carcinogenesis and progression. However, there is little information concerning pyroptosis-related genes (PRGs) in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC). Herein, we aim to explore the prognostic value of PRGs in LSCC. The expression and clinical data of 47 PRGs in LSCC patients were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas. A novel prognostic PRG signature was constructed using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator analysis. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were drawn, and Kaplan-Meier survival Cox proportional hazard regression analyses were performed to measure the predictive capacity of the PRG signature. Furthermore, we constructed a six-PRG signature to divide LSCC patients into high- and low-risk groups. Patients in the high-risk group had worse overall survival than the low-risk group. The area under the time-dependent ROC curve was 0.696 for 1 year, 0.784 for 3 years, and 0.738 for 5 years. We proved that the PRGs signature was an independent predictor for LSCC. Functional enrichment analysis indicated that several immune-related pathways were significantly enriched in the low-risk group. Consistent with this, patients with low-risk scores had higher immune scores and better immunotherapeutic responses than the high-risk group. In conclusion, we established a novel PRGs signature that can predict outcome and response to immunotherapy of LSCC, pyroptosis may be a potential target for LSCC.
Navel orange peel hydroethanolic extract as a phytogenic feed supplement: impacts on growth, feed intake, nutrient digestibility, and serum metabolites of heat stressed growing rabbits

Abstract Currently, using agricultural wastes in animal production has gained worldwide interest. Hence, herein, an eight-week trial was performed to explore the effects of supplemental navel orange peel extract (NPE) on the growth, feed utilization, nutrient digestibility, antioxidant, and hematological parameters of heat-stressed rabbits. In total, 75 weaned rabbits were randomly assigned into five groups. The first group was reared in the winter (mild weather) and fed an untreated pelleted diet (W-NPE-0; control). The other four groups were reared in the summer (hot climate) and fed the control diet fortified with 0 (S-NPE-0), 250 (S-NPE-250), 500 (S-NPE-500), or 1000 (S-NPE-1000) mg NPE/kg diet. The results indicated that thermal-stressed rabbits (S-NPE-0) had significantly lower feed intake, growth performance, hematological indices, serum lipid profile, and antioxidative status, but higher lipid peroxidation compared to the W-NPE-0 group. However, the highest final weight and feed intake were recorded in the S-NPE-1000 group compared with the S-NPE-0 group. Also, supplemental NPE in the growing rabbit diet, especially the S-NPE-1000 group, enhanced the hematological and antioxidative indicators. In conclusion, NPE supplementation in growing rabbit diets could be used to efficiently mitigate the detrimental effects of chronic temperature stress on performance, hematobiochemical features, and oxidative stability.
Development of a Home-Based Nursing Intervention Model for Patients With Heart Failure: A Qualitative Feasibility Study

Aim: To develop and verify the feasibility of a personalized home-based heart failure (HF) nursing intervention model to support HF patients, promote self-management, and avoid HF exacerbation and re-hospitalization. Methods: Based on processes established in previous studies, literature reviews, and evidence-based guidelines and theories, we developed the nursing intervention model for patients with HF. The goal of this model is to harmonize symptom deterioration prevention behavior and individual lifestyle. After intervention, we conducted semi-structured interviews with participants, and data were transcribed verbatim, after which qualitative content analysis was employed. The contents of visiting nursing practice, opinions on this nursing model, and self-management in patients with HF were analyzed qualitatively and inductively from the viewpoint of practicality and acceptability. Results: Five nurses who provided interventions, as well as five patients with HF, participated in this study. Accordingly, our findings showed that the framework, assessment, and nursing intervention contents of this model can be practical for everyday home nursing visitations. Conclusions: The content has been revised so that more visiting nurses can use them, including those who have less cardiovascular nursing experience.
Age‐related patterns of cytomegalovirus antibodies accompanying Epstein‐Barr virus co‐infection

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is associated with age‐related chronic disease, and co‐infection with Epstein‐Barr virus (EBV) may compound disease risk. We aimed to assess the frequency of CMV infection and its relationship with age among EBV seropositive individuals in an Indigenous Amazonian population.
DNA methylation of ARHGAP30 is negatively associated with ARHGAP30 expression in lung adenocarcinoma, which reduces tumor immunity and is detrimental to patient survival

Rho-GTPase activating protein 30 (ARHGAP30) can enhance the intrinsic hydrolysis of GTP and regulates Rho-GTPase negatively. The relationship between ARHGAP30 expression and lung adenocarcinoma is unclear. Therefore, the present study aimed to assess the differences in expression of ARHGAP30 between lung adenocarcinoma tissues and normal tissues and the relationship between DNA methylation and ARHGAP30 expression in lung adenocarcinoma. To determine the role of ARHGAP30 expression in the prognosis and survival of patients with lung adenocarcinoma, gene set enrichment analysis of ARHGAP30 was performed, comprising analyses of Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathways, Panther pathways, Reactome pathways, Wikipathways, Gene Ontology, Kinase Target Network, Transcription Factor Network, and a protein-protein interaction network. The association of ARHGAP30 expression with tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes, immunostimulators, major histocompatibility complex molecules, chemokines, and chemokine receptors in lung adenocarcinoma tissues was also analyzed. DNA methylation of ARHGAP30 correlated negatively with ARHGAP30 expression. Patients with lung adenocarcinoma with high DNA methylation of ARHGAP30 had poor prognosis. The prognosis of patients with lung adenocarcinoma with low ARHGAP30 expression was also poor. ARHGAP30 expression in lung adenocarcinoma correlated positively, whereas methylation of ARHGAP30 correlated negatively, with levels of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes. Gene set enrichment analysis revealed that many pathways associated with ARHGAP30 should be studied to improve the diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of lung adenocarcinoma. We speculated that DNA methylation of ARHGAP30 suppresses ARHGAP30 expression, which reduces tumor immunity, leading to poor prognosis for patients with lung adenocarcinoma.
Statistical tests for intra-tumour clonal co-occurrence and exclusivity

Tumour progression is an evolutionary process in which different clones evolve over time, leading to intra-tumour heterogeneity. Interactions between clones can affect tumour evolution and hence disease progression and treatment outcome. Intra-tumoural pairs of mutations that are overrepresented in a co-occurring or clonally exclusive fashion over a cohort of patient samples may be suggestive of a synergistic effect between the different clones carrying these mutations. We therefore developed a novel statistical testing framework, called GeneAccord, to identify such gene pairs that are altered in distinct subclones of the same tumour. We analysed our framework for calibration and power. By comparing its performance to baseline methods, we demonstrate that to control type I errors, it is essential to account for the evolutionary dependencies among clones. In applying GeneAccord to the single-cell sequencing of a cohort of 123 acute myeloid leukaemia patients, we find 1 clonally co-occurring and 8 clonally exclusive gene pairs. The clonally exclusive pairs mostly involve genes of the key signalling pathways.
Performance Analysis of Memristor Models for RRAM Cell Array Design using SILVACO EDA

Resistive Random Access Memory (RRAM) is gaining attention as one of the prominent contenders to replace the conventional memory technologies such as SRAM, DRAM and Flash. This emerging memory uses scaled CMOS devices (22 nm or less) to form the peripheral circuits such as decoder and sense amplifier; while a non-CMOS device known as memristor is used to form the cell array. Although potentially becoming the main future memory, RRAM is anticipated to be impacted by the high manufacturing defect density that in turn might lead to quality and reliability problems. This paper presents the initial work towards producing a high quality and reliable RRAM devices. A design and simulation of three memristor SPICE models published in prominent literatures were performed using Silvaco EDA simulation tool. The aim is to identify the optimal model to be used in our RRAM design, which is based on 22 nm CMOS technology. Performance analysis shows that the model proposed by D. Biolek is suitable to be used in our RRAM design.
Mining Marine Metagenomes Revealed a Quorum-Quenching Lactonase with Improved Biochemical Properties That Inhibits the Food Spoilage Bacterium Pseudomonas fluorescens

Our results emphasize the potential of sequence and structure-based identification of new QQ enzymes from environmental metagenomes, such as from the ocean, with improved stability or activity. The findings also suggest that purified QQ enzymes can present new strategies against food spoilage, in addition to their recognized involvement in inhibiting bacterial pathogen virulence factors. ABSTRACT The marine environment presents great potential as a source of microorganisms that possess novel enzymes with unique activities and biochemical properties. Examples of such are the quorum-quenching (QQ) enzymes that hydrolyze bacterial quorum-sensing (QS) signaling molecules, such as N-acyl-homoserine lactones (AHLs). QS is a form of cell-to-cell communication that enables bacteria to synchronize gene expression in correlation with population density. Searching marine metagenomes for sequences homologous to an AHL lactonase from the phosphotriesterase-like lactonase (PLL) family, we identified new putative AHL lactonases (sharing 30 to 40% amino acid identity to a thermostable PLL member). Phylogenetic analysis indicated that these putative AHL lactonases comprise a new clade of marine enzymes in the PLL family. Following recombinant expression and purification, we verified the AHL lactonase activity for one of these proteins, named moLRP (marine-originated lactonase-related protein). This enzyme presented greater activity and stability at a broad range of temperatures and pH, tolerance to high salinity levels (up to 5 M NaCl), and higher durability in bacterial culture, compared to another PLL member, parathion hydrolase (PPH). The addition of purified moLRP to cultures of Pseudomonas fluorescens inhibited its extracellular protease activity, expression of the protease encoding gene, biofilm formation, and the sedimentation process in milk-based medium. These findings suggest that moLRP is adapted to the marine environment and can potentially serve as an effective QQ enzyme, inhibiting the QS process in Gram-negative bacteria involved in food spoilage. IMPORTANCE Our results emphasize the potential of sequence and structure-based identification of new QQ enzymes from environmental metagenomes, such as from the ocean, with improved stability or activity. The findings also suggest that purified QQ enzymes can present new strategies against food spoilage, in addition to their recognized involvement in inhibiting bacterial pathogen virulence factors. Future studies on the delivery and safety of enzymatic QQ strategy against bacterial food spoilage should be performed.
Invisible and at-risk: older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic

ABSTRACT During the COVID-19 pandemic the risks to older adults of systemic abuse and neglect have become amplified, alongside increasing abuse and neglect in the community. Novel risks have also evolved involving cybercrime and the use of remote technologies in health and social care related to the pandemic. This commentary brings together lessons to be learned from these developments and initial ideas for actions to mitigate future risks.
Salmonella enterica Serovar Diversity, Distribution, and Prevalence in Public-Access Waters from a Central California Coastal Leafy Green-Growing Region from 2011 to 2016

Nontyphoidal Salmonella is among the leading causes of bacterial foodborne illness, and increasing numbers of outbreaks and recalls are due to contaminated produce. High prevalence and 91 different serovars were detected in this leafy green growing region. ABSTRACT Prevalence and serovar diversity of Salmonella enterica were measured during a 5-year survey of surface waters in a 500-mi2 agricultural region of the Central California Coast. Rivers, streams, lakes, and ponds were sampled bimonthly resulting in 2,979 samples. Overall prevalence was 56.4% with higher levels detected in spring than in fall. Small, but significant, differences in prevalence were detected based on sample locations. Detection of Salmonella was correlated positively with both significant rain events and, in some environments, levels of generic Escherichia coli. Analysis of 1,936 isolates revealed significant serovar diversity, with 91 different serovars detected. The most common isolated serovars were S. enterica subsp. enterica serovars I 6,8:d:- (406 isolates, 21.0%, and potentially monophasic Salmonella Muenchen), Give (334 isolates, 17.3%), Muenchen (158 isolates, 8.2%), Typhimurium (227 isolates, 11.7%), Oranienburg (106 isolates, 5.5%), and Montevideo (78 isolates, 4%). Sixteen of the 24 most common serovars detected in the region are among the serovars reported to cause the most human salmonellosis in the United States. Some of the serovars were associated with location and seasonal bias. Analysis of XbaI pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) patterns of strains of serovars Typhimurium, Oranienburg, and Montevideo showed significant intraserovar diversity. PFGE pulsotypes were identified in the region for multiple years of the survey, indicating persistence or regular reintroduction to the region. IMPORTANCE Nontyphoidal Salmonella is among the leading causes of bacterial foodborne illness, and increasing numbers of outbreaks and recalls are due to contaminated produce. High prevalence and 91 different serovars were detected in this leafy green growing region. Seventeen serovars that cause most of the human salmonellosis in the United States were detected, with 16 of those serovars detected in multiple locations and multiple years of the 5-year survey. Understanding the widespread prevalence and diversity of Salmonella in the region will assist in promoting food safety practices and intervention methods for growers and regulators.
Development of a multivariate model with desirability-based optimization for determination of atenolol and hydrochlorothiazide by eco-friendly HPLC method with fluorescence detection.

Determination of a widely used antihypertensive combination of Atenolol and Hydrochlorothiazide was achieved by rapid and eco-friendly HPLC method combined with fluorescence detection. The response surface methodology (RSM) is conducive to the complete separation of the two drugs in a shorter analysis time. The separation of the mixture was achieved using an Inertsil C18 analytical column (150 × 4.6 mm, 5 μ). The mobile phase used was ethanol: potassium dihydrogen phosphate pH 3 (65:35 v/v), and the flow rate was 0.7 mL/min. The fluorescence detector operated at excitation and emission wavelengths of 230 and 310 nm (Atenolol) and 270 and 375 nm (Hydrochlorothiazide). The linearity of the developed method covered a concentration of Atenolol of 0.05-5 μg/mL and a concentration of Hydrochlorothiazide of 0.02-1 μg/mL. The greenness of the developed method was evaluated by analytical eco-scale and the recently reported evaluation method GAPI, and it was found to be an excellent, sensitive, and green alternative to the reported methods. The developed method was validated according to the ICH guidelines and compared with the reference method. No significant difference was found in terms of accuracy. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Identification of uncharacterized proteins potentially localized to mitochondria (UPMs) in Saccharomyces cerevisiae using a fluorescent protein unstable in the cytoplasm

Eukaryotic cells are composed of organelles, and each organelle contains proteins that play a role in its function. Therefore, the localization of a protein, especially to organelles, is a clue to infer the function of that protein. In this study, we attempted to identify novel mitochondrially localized proteins in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae using a fluorescent protein (GFPdeg) that is rapidly degraded in the cytoplasm. Of the budding yeast proteins predicted to localize to mitochondria by the prediction tool Deeploc‐1.0, those with known mitochondrial localization or functional relevance were eliminated, and 95 proteins of unknown function were selected as candidates for analysis. By forced expression of GFPdeg fusion proteins with these proteins and observation of their localization, we identified 35 uncharacterized proteins potentially localized to mitochondria (UPMs) including 8 previously identified proteins that localize to mitochondria. Most of these had no N‐terminal mitochondrial localization signal and were evolutionarily young “emerging genes” that exist only in S. cerevisiae. Some of these genes were found to be upregulated during the postdiauxic shift phase when mitochondria are being developed, suggesting that they are actually involved in some mitochondrial function.
A Distributed Graph Database System to Query Unstructured Data in Big Graph

Unstructured data, such as images and videos, have grown significantly. The interconnected unstructured data can be viewed as the properties of nodes in graphs. End users usually query graph data and unstructured data together in different real-world applications. Some systems and techniques are proposed to meet such demands. However, most of the previous work executes various tasks in different systems and loses the possibility to optimize such queries in one engine. In this work, we build a native graph database, namely Pan-daDB, to support querying unstructured data in the graph. We first introduce CypherPlus, a query language to enable users to express complex graph queries to understand the semantic of unstructured data. Next, we develop a cost model and related query optimization techniques to speed up the unstructured data processing as well as the graph query processing. In addition, we optimize the data storage and index to speed up the query processing in a distributed setting. The PandaDB extends the graph database Neo4j implementation and provides the open-source version for commercial use in the cloud. The results show PandaDB can support a large scale of unstructured data query processing in a graph, e.g., more than a billion unstructured data items. We also like to share the best practices while deploying the system into real applications.
Power transmission of a desk with a cord-free power supply

The battery is an indispensable component of portable electronic equipment, but charging is often inconvenient. A contactless electric power supply, such as the desk-type contactless power station (CLPS) we propose, significantly improves the ease of charging such equipment. In this system, primary coils are embedded into the desk surface to efficiently supply electrical power to portable equipment placed on the desk. Only the primary and the secondary coils facing each other work as a power transmitter. We have confirmed that electric power transmission with efficiency of 85 /spl plusmn/ 5% can be attained anywhere on the desk. This examination reveals the effectiveness of using several primary coils.
Pictorial and apictorial polygonal jigsaw puzzles: The lazy caterer model, properties, and solvers

Jigsaw puzzle solving, the problem of constructing a coherent whole from a set of non-overlapping unordered visual fragments, is fundamental to numerous applications and yet most of the literature of the last two decades has focused thus far on less realistic puzzles whose pieces are identical squares. Here we formalize a new type of jigsaw puzzle where the pieces are general convex polygons generated by cutting through a global polygonal shape/image with an arbitrary number of straight cuts, a generation model inspired by the celebrated Lazy caterer's sequence. We analyze the theoretical properties of such puzzles, including the inherent challenges in solving them once pieces are contaminated with geometrical noise. To cope with such difficulties and obtain tractable solutions, we abstract the problem as a multi-body spring-mass dynamical system endowed with hierarchical loop constraints and a layered reconstruction process. We define evaluation metrics and present experimental results on both apictorial and pictorial puzzles to show that they are solvable completely automatically.
A Bayesian decision support system for counteracting activities of terrorist groups

Activities of terrorist groups present a serious threat to the security and well-being of the general public. Counterterrorism authorities aim to identify and frustrate the plans of terrorist groups before they are put into action. Whilst the activities of terrorist groups are likely to be hidden and disguised, the members of such groups need to communicate and coordinate to organise their activities. Such observable behaviour and communications data can be utilised by the authorities to estimate the threat posed by a terrorist group. However, to be credible, any such statistical model needs to fold in the level of threat posed by each member of the group. Unlike in other benign forms of social networks, considering the members of terrorist groups as exchangeable gives an incomplete picture of the combined capacity of the group to do harm. Here we develop a Bayesian integrating decision support system that can bring together information relating to each of the members of a terrorist group as well as the combined activities of the group.