Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Regulation of the Drosophila Initiator Caspase Dronc through Ubiquitylation

Apoptosis is a programmed cell death mechanism that is evolutionary conserved from worms to humans. Apoptosis is mediated by initiator and effector caspases. The initiator caspases carry long pro-domains for their interaction with scaffolding proteins to form a cell-death platform, which is essential for their activation. Activated initiator caspases then cleave effector caspases that execute cell death through cleaving downstream targets. In addition to their apoptotic function, caspases also participate in events where caspase activity is not required for cell killing, but for regulating other functions, so-called non-apoptotic functions of caspases. The Drosophila initiator caspase Dronc, the ortholog of mammalian caspase-2 and caspase-9 has a CARD domain that is essential for its interaction with the scaffolding protein Dark to form the apoptosome. Apoptosome formation is crucial for activation of Dronc. Activity of both initiator and effector caspases are further kept in control by the ubiquitin system to avoid inappropriate caspase activity. However, mechanistic details of how the ubiquitin system regulates activation of Dronc are not clear. Therefore, I investigated the ubiquitylation status of Dronc and its function in Drosophila. I found that Dronc is mono-ubiquitylated at Lys78 (K78) in its CARD domain, which blocks its interaction with Dark and formation of the apoptosome. Furthermore, I demonstrated that K78 mono-ubiquitylation plays an inhibitory role in Dronc’s non-apoptotic functions, which may not require its catalytic activity but may be important for the survival of the fly. This thesis study unveils the link between the ubiquitin system and caspases through a regulatory
Direct Ink Writing of Polymer Composite Electrolytes with Enhanced Thermal Conductivities

Proper distribution of thermally conductive nanomaterials in polymer batteries offers new opportunities to mitigate performance degradations associated with local hot spots and safety concerns in batteries. Herein, a direct ink writing (DIW) method is utilized to fabricate polyethylene oxide (PEO) composite polymers electrolytes (CPE) embedded with silane‐treated hexagonal boron nitride (S‐hBN) platelets and free of any volatile organic solvents. It is observed that the S‐hBN platelets are well aligned in the printed CPE during the DIW process. The in‐plane thermal conductivity of the printed CPE with the aligned S‐hBN platelets is 1.031 W −1 K−1, which is about 1.7 times that of the pristine CPE with the randomly dispersed S‐hBN platelets (0.612 W −1 K−1). Thermal imaging shows that the peak temperature (°C) of the printed electrolytes is 24.2% lower than that of the CPE without S‐hBN, and 10.6% lower than that of the CPE with the randomly dispersed S‐hBN, indicating a superior thermal transport property. Lithium‐ion half‐cells made with the printed CPE and LiFePO4 cathode displayed high specific discharge capacity of 146.0 mAh g−1 and stable Coulombic efficiency of 91% for 100 cycles at room temperature. This work facilitates the development of printable thermally‐conductive polymers for safer battery operations.
The Physiology and pathophysiology of laparoscopic adjustable gastric bands

116 Introduction . 118 Methods . 120 Subjects . 120 Manometry Technique . 121 Video Manometry Protocol . 122 Measurement of Lower Oesophageal Sphincter Pressure . 123 Oesophageal Motility . 126 Pressure Profile in the Region of the Oesophago-gastric Junction . 126 Oesophageal and Pouch Bolus Transit . 127 Statistical analysis . 127 Results . 128 Lower Oesophageal Sphincter . 129 Pressure Profile in the Region of the Oesophago-gastric Junction . 131 Oesophageal Motility . 134 Transit in the Region of the LAGB. 135 Discussion . 137 CHAPTER 14: EFFECTS OF GASTRIC BAND ADJUSTMENTS ON INTRALUMINAL PRESSURE . 145 Abstract . 145 Introduction . 147 Methods . 148 Participants . 148 Mapping of Changes in Intraluminal Pressure at the Level of the LAGB . 149 Removal and Replacement of LAGB Volume . 150 Statistical analysis . 151 Results . 152 Changes in intraluminal pressure at the level of the LAGB . 152 Effect of Removing and Replacing Saline into the LAGB: Changes in Pressure Topography . 156 Oesophageal Motility . 159 Adverse Symptoms . 159 Discussion . 159 Conclusions . 164. 145 Introduction . 147 Methods . 148 Participants . 148 Mapping of Changes in Intraluminal Pressure at the Level of the LAGB . 149 Removal and Replacement of LAGB Volume . 150 Statistical analysis . 151 Results . 152 Changes in intraluminal pressure at the level of the LAGB . 152 Effect of Removing and Replacing Saline into the LAGB: Changes in Pressure Topography . 156 Oesophageal Motility . 159 Adverse Symptoms . 159 Discussion . 159 Conclusions . 164 CHAPTER 15: PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF LAPAROSCOPIC ADJUSTABLE GASTRIC BANDS: ANALYSIS AND CLASSIFICATION USING HIGH RESOLUTION VIDEO MANOMETRY AND A STRESS BARIUM PROTOCOL . 167 Abstract . 167 Introduction . 169 Methods . 171. 167 Introduction . 169 Methods . 171 Participants . 171 Manometry Protocol . 171 Stress barium protocol . 172 Lower Oesophageal Sphincter Assessment . 173 Oesophageal Motility . 175 Analysis of OGJ Pressure and Distal Oesophageal Pressure Topography . 175 Statistical analysis . 176 Results . 176 Discussion . 189 Conclusions . 195 CHAPTER 16: MECHANISMS OF BOLUS CLEARANCE IN PATIENTS WITH LAPAROSCOPIC ADJUSTABLE GASTRIC BANDS . 198 Introduction . 200 Methods . 202 Subjects . 202 Study Protocol . 202 Interpretation and Analysis of Video Manometry . 203 Detailed Pressure Topography and Video Manometry Analysis . 203 The Lower Oesophageal Contractile Segment .
Multivariate statistical analysis of the quality of apple juice to integrate and simplify juice industrial production technologies

ABSTRACT Apple juices produced from nine different industrial production technologies were obtained in pilot scale, for simplifying and integrating the production technologies according to the quality comparison of juices. Juice quality characterized by total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), total soluble solid (TSS), stability, turbidity, titratable acidity and pH was investigated. The TPCs of traditional pulping combined with belt-style pressing (TP+BSP)-based juices were higher than that of cold pulping combined with horizontal spiral centrifuge separation (CP+HSCS)-based juices, while the CP+HSCS juices showed higher turbidity than the TP+BSP juices. Principal component analysis, liner discriminant analysis and cluster analysis were applied for analyzing juice quality. Nine production technologies were well separated into three categories and that pulping, juicing and sterilizing methods were the main factors affecting the overall juice quality. Our study provided a method to simplify and integrate the current industrial production technologies of juices. Abbreviations: TPC: total phenolic content; TFC: total flavonoid content; TSS: total soluble solid; TA: titratable acidity; TP+BSP: traditional pulping combined with belt-style pressing; CP+HSCS: cold pulping combined with horizontal spiral centrifuge separation; NFC: not from concentrate; PCA: principal component analysis; LDA: liner discriminant analysis; HCA: hierarchical cluster analysis.
Possible impact of COVID-19 on senior secondary school students performance in science education in Nigeria

The recent outbreak of Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has led to the total lockdown of major cities globally which resulted in the early closure of schools in the cities affected, Nigeria inclusive. It is hypothesized that COVID-19 may have a negative outcome on the performance of senior secondary school students in class 3 (SS3) who are yet to write their 2020 external examination (West Africa Senior Secondary Certificate Examination as well as National Examination Council) especially in the science subjects namely Biology, Physics and Chemistry. This study collected data from three teachers who are science experts and head of their respective departments in three government secondary schools in Ado-Ekiti local government area of Ekiti State, Nigeria. A semi-structured interview was used to collect data from the teachers through phone calls and WhatsApp chats. This qualitative study employed a case study research approach. Findings from this study revealed that there is the possibility of a further drop in the pass rate (%) of senior secondary school students’ in this year’s external examinations if this pandemic is not contained soon knowing fully well that the school academic calendar has already been disrupted due to early closure of schools in Nigeria. As part of COVID-19 relief package, recommendations are made to the Federal government of Nigeria and policymakers to distribute iPads and electronic tablets preloaded with e-textbooks in these subject areas to SS3 students and their teachers to facilitate online learning as this will enhance their performance in Science subjects in this year’s national examination.
Flexible Pile Group Interaction Factors under Arbitrary Lateral Loading in Sand

Marine and harbor structures, wind turbines, bridges, offshore platforms, industrial chimneys, retaining structures etc. can be subjected to significant lateral loads from various sources. Appropriate assessment of the foundations capacity of these structures is thus necessary, especially when these structures are supported by pile groups. The pile group interaction effects under lateral loading have been investigated intensively in past decades, and the most of the conducted studies have considered lateral loading that acts along one of the two orthogonal directions, parallel to the edge of pile group. However, because of the stochastic nature of its source, the horizontal loading on the pile group may have arbitrary direction. The number of studies dealing with the pile groups under arbitrary loading is very limited. The aim of this paper is to investigate the influence of the arbitrary lateral loading on the pile group response, in order to improve (extend) the current design approach for laterally loaded pile groups. Free head, flexible bored piles in sand were analyzed through the extensive numerical study. The main hypothesis of the research is that some critical pile group configurations, loading directions, and soil conditions exist, which can lead to the unsafe structural design. Critical pile positions inside the commonly used pile group configurations are identified with respect to loading directions. The influence of different soil conditions was discussed.
“Queer as hell media”: Affirming LGBTQ+ youth identity and building community in Metro Atlanta, Georgia

Abstract Within the United States, the American South holds the largest number of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and queer (LGBTQ+) people, which totals to 3.8 million (LGBTQ in 2016). Metro Atlanta is uniquely situated within the South’s geography; the City of Atlanta is hailed as a queer mecca while the suburbs and surrounding rural areas are assumed to reproduce and reinforce racist, conservative, and religious ideologies. A total of 12 qualitative interviews with LGBTQ+ youth (ages 18–26) at Kennesaw State University offer a more nuanced understanding of being LGBTQ+ in the South by shedding light on the ways they thrive, form relationships, and seek out knowledge regarding LGBTQ+ identity and experience. Findings highlight that LGBTQ+ youth utilize all forms of media to affirm their identities, create like-minded communities, and take up space as a “fuck you” to the imagined cisheteronormativity in Georgia. The article centers the voices and critiques of LGBTQ+ young people as they negotiate competing discourses of queer acceptability and inclusivity, turning to new media platforms as spaces where they can find safety, as well as curate themselves and their experiences.
The Assessment of MAb Quality and Quantity

The Assessment of MAb Quality and Quantity Gerald Clement Drouillard Advisors: University of Guelph, February 2015 Dr. Roshni Dutton Dr. Gord Hayward Dr. Julie Vale Monoclonal Antibodies (MAbs) make up a large portion of the therapeutic protein industry. A major component of MAb biosynthesis is the post-translational process whereby glycan chains are enzymatically attached to the protein side chain. The specific configuration of the glycan chains, which have been shown to have an effect on MAb efficacy and safety, are a measure of MAb quality. This work develops and explores a newly defined metric, titer quality (TQ), which is capable of quantifying both product quantity and product quality with respect to glycosylation. Optimization studies based on manipulating the culture environment were undertaken. Product quantity was improved by transitioning from 37 °C to hypothermic conditions (33 °C) between 24 and 48 hours post-inoculation. As compared with the proprietary medium BIOGRO CHO, product quality was improved with a medium formulation, named Mixture 6 (M6), which contained high levels of SITE and the soy hydrolysate HYPEPTM 1510, and low levels of the lipid mixture LM1 and a uridine, manganese, and galactose cocktail UMG supplements. M6 simultaneously promoted glycosylation, population growth and productivity. When a temperature shift strategy was employed, while both BIOGRO CHO and M6 were capable of achieving high final protein concentrations, the TQ was best in M6 due to the improved glycan profile.
Circulating Folate and Folic Acid Concentrations: Associations With Colorectal Cancer Recurrence and Survival

Abstract Background Folates, including folic acid, may play a dual role in colorectal cancer development. Folate is suggested to be protective in early carcinogenesis but could accelerate growth of premalignant lesions or micrometastases. Whether circulating concentrations of folate and folic acid, measured around time of diagnosis, are associated with recurrence and survival in colorectal cancer patients is largely unknown. Methods Circulating concentrations of folate, folic acid, and folate catabolites p-aminobenzoylglutamate and p-acetamidobenzoylglutamate were measured by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry at diagnosis in 2024 stage I-III colorectal cancer patients from European and US patient cohort studies. Multivariable-adjusted Cox proportional hazard models were used to assess associations between folate, folic acid, and folate catabolites concentrations with recurrence, overall survival, and disease-free survival. Results No statistically significant associations were observed between folate, p-aminobenzoylglutamate, and p-acetamidobenzoylglutamate concentrations and recurrence, overall survival, and disease-free survival, with hazard ratios ranging from 0.92 to 1.16. The detection of folic acid in the circulation (yes or no) was not associated with any outcome. However, among patients with detectable folic acid concentrations (n = 296), a higher risk of recurrence was observed for each twofold increase in folic acid (hazard ratio = 1.31, 95% confidence interval = 1.02 to 1.58). No statistically significant associations were found between folic acid concentrations and overall and disease-free survival. Conclusions Circulating folate and folate catabolite concentrations at colorectal cancer diagnosis were not associated with recurrence and survival. However, caution is warranted for high blood concentrations of folic acid because they may increase the risk of colorectal cancer recurrence.
Study of thin bismuth-based films using terahertz time-domain polarimetry

Recent years, polarimetry in the terahertz frequency range has gained popularity. Polarimetry is a technique used to measure the polarization state of electromagnetic waves transmitted through samples. The ellipticity angle, the azimuth rotation angle, complex optical properties of materials can be obtained by terahertz timedomain polarimetry. This allows for obtaining more comprehensive information about the object. In this paper, we study diagonal and off-diagonal components of the permittivity tensor of thin bismuth-based films using terahertz time-domain polarimetry
Obstructive Jaundice Due to Duodenal Ulcer Induced by Lenvatinib Therapy for Hepatocellular Carcinoma

An 82-year-old man with hepatocellular carcinoma presented with upper abdominal pain, vomiting, and jaundice. He had been taking a standard lenvatinib dose for three months. Although acute cholangitis was suggested, imaging studies failed to detect the biliary obstruction site. An endoscopic examination following discontinuation of lenvatinib and aspirin revealed multiple duodenal ulcers, one of which was formed on the ampulla of Vater and causing cholestasis. Endoscopic biliary drainage and antibiotics improved concomitant Enterobacter cloacae bacteremia. Ulcer healing was confirmed after rabeprazole was replaced with vonoprazan and misoprostol. Our case shows that lenvatinib can induce duodenal ulcers resulting in obstructive jaundice.
L-measure evaluation metric for fake information detection models with binary class imbalance

ABSTRACT Fake information in social media frequently causes social issues. The amount of fake information is smaller than that of real information, this leads to class imbalance. Some improved classification methods and metrics to resolve the imbalance and evaluate model performance have been proposed, respectively. However, the existing metrics for classification methods have many limitations. This paper proposes the robust metric, L-measure, that can reasonably evaluate all models with binary class imbalance with different IRs. L-measure also require less computation than the Matthews correlation coefficient. Finally, this paper demonstrates the validity of the proposed metric under different IRs with examples from UCI and Kaggle.
Dynamic Upwelling Beneath the Salton Trough Imaged With Teleseismic Attenuation Tomography

The Salton Trough is one of the few regions on Earth where rifting is subaerial instead of submarine. We use the relative attenuation of teleseismic P phases recorded by the Salton Trough Seismic Imaging Project to investigate lithospheric and asthenospheric structures that form during extension. Map‐view analysis reveals stronger attenuation within the Salton Trough than in the adjacent provinces. We then construct tomographic models for variations in seismic attenuation with depth to discriminate between crustal and mantle signals with a damped least squares approach and a Bayesian approach. Synthetic tests show that models from damped least squares significantly underestimate the strength of attenuation and cannot separate crustal and mantle signals even if the tomographic models are allowed to be discontinuous at the lithosphere‐asthenosphere boundary (LAB). We show that a Bayesian approach overcomes these problems when inverting the same synthetic data sets and that shallow and deep signals are more clearly separated when imposing a discontinuity. With greater than 95% confidence, the results reveal first, that attenuation occurs primarily beneath the LAB; second, that the width of the attenuative region is narrower than the rift at 120 km depth; and third, that the strength of attenuation requires that the attenuative feature represents a melting‐column similar to those beneath mid‐ocean ridges. The narrow width of the melting column below the volatile‐free solidus is inconsistent with models for passive upwelling, where flow is driven only by rifting. Instead, we attribute the generation of incipient oceanic crust to mantle upwelling focused by buoyancy into a narrow diapir.
An Early Warning System of Apple Scab in Turkey

Apple scab caused by Venturia inaequalis (Cooke) G. Wint. is the most important disease affecting apples. If uncontrolled, the disease reduces quality and quantity of fruits during the vegetative period and can continue to develop in storage as pinpoint scab or storage scab resulting from late-season infections. Apple scab is controlled mainly by spraying fungicides and sanitation depending on the orchard size. Various varieties of apple are grown in Turkey and the susceptibility level to apple scab varies among the apple cultivars. Therefore, forecasting the disease with weather monitoring equipment is very important for determining a control strategy. This review is focused on a disease warning system of apple scab and its implementation in Turkey.
Biofunctionality of Sourdough Metabolites in Healthy and Inflamed Gastrointestinal Tract

The aim of this study was to identify bioactive compounds in sourdough with respect to their anti-inflammatory or functional effect in the gut. The sourdough bread feeding increased inflammatory activity in the animal model of inflammation in colon (colitis) but had no effect in the small intestine (ileitis). Lactic acid bacteria isolated from sourdough produced compounds with inflammation-mitigating effect in the cell culture and neurotransmitter acetylcholine with bioactive effect in the intestinal tissue. The relevance of the in vitro effects remains unclear with regard to animal models.
Successful Catheter Ablation for Multiple Atrial Arrhythmias in a Patient with Situs Inversus Totalis

A 70-year-old woman with situs inversus totalis underwent catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation and atrial flutter. Although her morphologic left atrium (LA) was enlarged, we performed cryoballoon ablation and liner radiofrequency ablation of the cava-tricuspid isthmus without mapping atrial arrhythmias. However, a different form of atrial tachycardia (AT) recurred. We performed catheter ablation a second time using a three-dimensional electroanatomic mapping system. AT was not terminated by the liner ablation at the roof of morphologic LA and mitral isthmus but sustained by changing the atrial activation sequence and cycle length. Multipolar mapping catheter revealed that fractionated low-amplitude potentials were densely located in a limited area of the anterior morphologic LA, and an activation map demonstrated the presence of small-circuit reentry with an extremely slow conduction at the anterior morphologic LA. A single energy application targeting the fragmented potentials successfully terminated the AT. We successfully treated multiple ATs with a complex anatomy using a three-dimensional electroanatomic mapping system.
Growth parameters of whiteleg shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei and red seaweed Gracilaria corticata in integrated culturing method under zero water exchange system

Growth parameters of whiteleg shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei and red seaweed Gracilaria corticata were measured using integrated culturing method under zero-water exchange system in a 45-day period. A 2 × 3 factorial design was used with two levels of shrimp stocking densities and three levels of seaweed weight densities. G. corticata was cultured on a net tied to a round polyethylene frame. Culture tanks were filled with 750-L filtered seawater. A 40-W compact fluorescent lamp was hung over each tank to provide adequate and sufficient light for seaweed growth. Growth parameters of shrimp and seaweed such as specific growth rate (SGR), weight gained (WG) and average daily growth (ADG) were computed based on the initial and final weight of shrimp and seaweed. The maximum and minimum SGR of L. vannamei (1.97 and 1.69%/day) were observed in treatment S1A3 (25 shrimp/m2 and 400 g seaweed/m2) and S2A1 (50 shrimp/m2 without seaweed) respectively. The best survival rate (94.67 ± 1.33%), WG (129.9 ± 2.9%) and feed conversion ratio (1.67 ± 0.04) were also observed in treatment S1A3. The SGR of G.corticata in the treatment S1A3 (1.97 ± 0.00%/day) was significantly higher, compared to others. Strong positive correlations were obtained between the density of G. corticata and the growth parameters of L. vannamei. The red seaweed G. corticata could boost the growth parameters, survival rate and total production of L. vannamei under zero-water exchange system.