Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A brief child-friendly reward task reliably activates the ventral striatum in two samples of socioeconomically diverse youth

Adolescence is a period of increased risk-taking behavior, thought to be driven, in part, by heightened reward sensitivity. One challenge of studying reward processing in the field of developmental neuroscience is finding a task that activates reward circuitry, and is short, not too complex, and engaging for youth of a wide variety of ages and socioeconomic backgrounds. In the present study, we tested a brief child-friendly reward task for activating reward circuitry in two independent samples of youth ages 7–19 years old enriched for poverty (study 1: n = 464; study 2: n = 27). The reward task robustly activated the ventral striatum, with activation decreasing from early to mid-adolescence and increasing from mid- to late adolescence in response to reward. This response did not vary by gender, pubertal development, or income-to-needs ratio, making the task applicable for a wide variety of populations. Additionally, ventral striatum activation to the task did not differ between youth who did and did not expect to receive a prize at the end of the task, indicating that an outcome of points alone may be enough to engage reward circuitry. Thus, this reward task is effective for studying reward processing in youth from different socioeconomic backgrounds.
Preventive practices toward sexually transmitted infections and their determinants among young people in Ethiopia: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis

Background Globally, the estimated annual number of new cases of curable sexually transmitted infections occurring among young people aged 15–24 years is approximately 178.5 million. There are fragmented and inconsistent findings on preventive practices for sexually transmitted infections. Thus, this systematic review and meta-analysis protocol aimed to estimate the pooled prevalence of preventive practices of sexually transmitted infections and identify its determinants among young people in Ethiopia. Methods The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) will be used to develop the review protocol. Online databases such as PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus, Google, and Google Scholar will be used to search published and unpublished studies. The Joanna Briggs Institute Meta-Analysis of Statistics Assessment and Review Instrument will be used to assess the quality of the study. Statistical heterogeneity will be checked using the Cochran Q test and I2 statistics. Subgroup analysis and meta-regression will be performed to identify the sources of heterogeneity. The statistical analysis will be performed using STATA version 14 software. A random-effects model will be performed to estimate the pooled prevalence and identify determinants of preventive practices of sexually transmitted infections. Discussion Young people have a high unmet need for sexual and reproductive health services and poor preventive practices toward sexually transmitted infections. Although there are studies on preventive practices for sexually transmitted infections, there is no study finding on the pooled prevalence of preventive practices for sexually transmitted infections and its determinants among young people in Ethiopia. Thus, this systematic review and meta-analysis protocol will help to develop appropriate strategies.
A cortical network processes auditory error signals during human speech production to maintain fluency

Hearing one’s own voice is critical for fluent speech production as it allows for the detection and correction of vocalization errors in real time. This behavior known as the auditory feedback control of speech is impaired in various neurological disorders ranging from stuttering to aphasia; however, the underlying neural mechanisms are still poorly understood. Computational models of speech motor control suggest that, during speech production, the brain uses an efference copy of the motor command to generate an internal estimate of the speech output. When actual feedback differs from this internal estimate, an error signal is generated to correct the internal estimate and update necessary motor commands to produce intended speech. We were able to localize the auditory error signal using electrocorticographic recordings from neurosurgical participants during a delayed auditory feedback (DAF) paradigm. In this task, participants hear their voice with a time delay as they produced words and sentences (similar to an echo on a conference call), which is well known to disrupt fluency by causing slow and stutter-like speech in humans. We observed a significant response enhancement in auditory cortex that scaled with the duration of feedback delay, indicating an auditory speech error signal. Immediately following auditory cortex, dorsal precentral gyrus (dPreCG), a region that has not been implicated in auditory feedback processing before, exhibited a markedly similar response enhancement, suggesting a tight coupling between the 2 regions. Critically, response enhancement in dPreCG occurred only during articulation of long utterances due to a continuous mismatch between produced speech and reafferent feedback. These results suggest that dPreCG plays an essential role in processing auditory error signals during speech production to maintain fluency.
Adaptive spatial multiplexing for millimeter-wave communication links

Adaptive Spatial Multiplexing for Millimeter-Wave Communication Links Colin Sheldon Spatial multiplexing for wireless communication systems is typically used at low GHz carrier frequencies in non Line-of-Sight environments. This dissertation considers adaptive spatial multiplexing for Line-of-Sight wireless links at millimeter-wave carrier frequencies. This architecture provides increased data capacity without increasing the channel bandwidth. The aggregate system data rate scales linearly with the number of transmitter and receiver antenna pairs. System theory and link sensitivity to non ideal installations, multipath signal propagation, and atmospheric refraction are considered. Channel separation hardware implementation considerations are analyzed. Initial work with a two-element prototype using IF channel separation is presented. This prototype achieved 1.2 Gb/s operation over a 6 m indoor link and similar performance for an outdoor link with a 41 m link range. A scalable baseband system architecture is proposed and demonstrated for an indoor link operating over a 5 m link range. The spatially multiplexed channels were separated at the receiver using broadband adaptive analog I/Q vector signal vii processing. A control loop continuously tuned the channel separation electronics to correct for changes with time in either the propagation environment or the system components. The four-channel 60 GHz hardware prototype achieved an aggregate system data rate of 2.4 Gb/s.
Optical Imaging in the Diagnosis of OPMDs Malignant Transformation

Oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMDs) are a heterogeneous group of oral lesions with a variable risk of malignant transformation to oral squamous cell carcinoma. The current OPMDs malignant transformation screening depends on conventional oral examination (COE) and is confirmed by biopsy and histologic examination. However, early malignant lesions with subtle mucosal changes are easily unnoticed by COE based on visual inspection and palpation. Optical techniques have been used to determine the biological structure, composition, and function of cells and tissues noninvasively by analyzing the changes in their optical properties. The oral epithelium and stroma undergo persistent structural, functional, and biochemical alterations during malignant transformation, leading to variations in optical tissue properties; optical techniques are thus powerful tools for detecting OPMDs malignant transformation. The optical imaging methods already used to detect OPMDs malignant transformation in vivo include autofluorescence imaging, narrowband imaging, confocal reflectance microscopy, and optical coherence tomography. They exhibit advantages over COE in detecting biochemical or morphologic changes at the molecular or cellular level in vivo; however, limitations also exist. This article comprehensively reviews the various real-time in vivo optical imaging methods used in the adjunctive diagnosis of OPMDs malignant transformation. We focus on the principles of these techniques, review their clinical application, and compare and summarize their advantages and disadvantages. Finally, we conclude with a discussion of current challenges and future directions of this field.
Population-based normative data for the Scoliosis Research Society 22r, EQ-5D, and VAS questionnaires among individuals aged 20 to 69 years

Aims To provide normative data that can assess spinal-related disability and the prevalence of back or leg pain among adults with no spinal conditions in the UK using validated questionnaires. Methods A total of 1,000 participants with equal sex distribution were included and categorized in five age groups: 20 to 29, 30 to 39, 40 to 49, 50 to 59, and 60 to 69 years. Individuals with spinal pathologies were excluded. Participants completed the Scoliosis Research Society-22 (SRS-22r), visual analogue scale (VAS) for back/leg pain, and the EuroQol five-dimension index (EQ-5D/VAS) questionnaires, and disclosed their age, sex, and occupation. They were also categorized in five professional groups: doctors, nurses, allied health professionals, office workers, and manual workers. Results The mean age of all participants was 43.8 years (20 to 69). There was no difference in the SRS-22r, EQ-5D, or VAS scores among male and female participants (p > 0.05). There was incremental decrease in SRS-22r total scores as the age increased. The mean EQ-5D index score (0.84) ranged little across the age groups (0.72 to 0.91) but reduced gradually with increasing age. There was difference between the SRS-22r total score (4.51), the individual domain scores, and the EQ-5D score (index: 0.94 and VAS: 89) for the doctors’ group compared to all other occupational categories (p < 0.001). Doctors had a younger mean age of participants, which may explain their improved spinal health. There was no difference in the total or sub-domain SRS-22r and EQ-5D scores between the other four occupational groups. Conclusion This study provides the first normative data for the SRS-22r, EQ-5D, and VAS for back/leg pain questionnaires among adults in the UK. We recorded an excellent correlation between the three assessment tools with individuals who reported less back and leg pain having better quality of life and greater function. The participants’ age, rather than their sex or profession, appears to be the major determinant for spinal health and quality of life. Cite this article: Bone Jt Open 2022;3(2):130–134.
An offshore safety assessment framework using fuzzy reasoning and evidential synthesis approaches

The operation of tandem loading/offloading is associated with a high level of uncertainty because it usually operates in a dynamic environment in which both technical, and human and organisational, malfunctions may cause possible accidents. There is a lack of approaches for dealing with uncertainty and vagueness in expert judgements in assessment of safety of the operations. This paper proposes a framework for modelling the safety of offshore and marine engineering systems using fuzzy reasoning and evidential synthesis approaches. The proposed method is capable of dealing with uncertainties, including ignorance and vagueness, which traditional methods or frameworks for multiple criteria decision analysis, such as expected utility theory, cannot handle. A case study of the collision risk between a floating production, storage and offloading unit (FPSO) and a shuttle tanker due to technical failure during a tandem offloading operation is used to illustrate the application of the proposed model.
Metronidazole treatment rapidly reduces genital inflammation through effects on bacterial vaginosis–associated bacteria rather than lactobacilli

Background Bacterial vaginosis (BV) causes genital inflammation and increases HIV risk, whereas a vaginal microbiota dominated by Lactobacillus species is associated with immune quiescence and relative HIV protection. BV treatment reduces genital inflammation, but it is unclear whether this reduction is driven by a decrease in BV-associated bacteria or an increase in Lactobacillus species. METHODS To evaluate the short-term effect of standard BV treatment on genital immunology and the vaginal microbiota, vaginal swabs were collected immediately before and after metronidazole treatment for BV and analyzed with multiplex ELISA, metagenomic sequencing, and quantitative PCR. RESULTS Topical metronidazole treatment rapidly reduced vaginal levels of proinflammatory cytokines, chemokines, and soluble immune markers of epithelial barrier disruption. Although the vaginal microbiota shifted to dominance by L. iners or L. jensenii, this proportional shift was primarily driven by a 2 to 4 log10–fold reduction in BV-associated bacteria absolute abundance. BV treatment induced no change in the absolute abundance of L. crispatus or L. iners and only minor (<1 log10–fold) increases in L. gasseri and L. jensenii that were not independently associated with reduced inflammation in multivariable models. CONCLUSION The genital immune benefits that are associated with Lactobacillus dominance after BV treatment were not directly attributable to an absolute increase in lactobacilli, but rather to the loss of BV-associated bacteria. Trial REGISTRATION Participants were recruited as part of a randomized controlled trial (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02766023) from 2016 to 2019. FUNDING Canadian Institutes of Health Research (PJT-156123) and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (HHSN2722013000141 and HHSN27200007).
Pre-COVID-19 fear conditioning responses predict COVID-19-related anxiety: evidence from an exploratory study

ABSTRACT Background and Objectives Fear conditioning represents the prevailing model by which organisms acquire novel threat contingencies. However, little work has been devoted to linking laboratory measures of fear conditioning to the development of real-world threat responses. To fill this gap, the present study explored whether individual differences in a laboratory-based fear conditioning measure could predict levels of COVID-19-related anxiety and avoidance assessed during the first month of the pandemic. Design and Method Forty-eight undergraduate students who had previously participated in two fear conditioning experiments prior to COVID-19 completed a survey assessing COVID-19 anxiety and avoidance. The fear conditioning experiment involved learning to discriminate between a shape contingently associated with mild electric shock (CS+) and two other shapes that were not (CS-). Results Increased subjective anxiety to our laboratory CS+ prior to the pandemic predicted heightened COVID-19 anxiety. Follow-up analyses revealed that participants with high COVID-19 anxiety exhibited increased anxiety to CS+ during the final experimental block relative to participants with low COVID-19 anxiety. Conclusions Findings from this exploratory study tentatively implicate fear conditioning in the development of real-world fear responses and underscore the importance of investigating laboratory fear conditioning as a predictor of anxiety responses to real-world threats.
Daidzin inhibits hepatocellular carcinoma survival by interfering with the glycolytic/gluconeogenic pathway through downregulation of TPI1

Daidzin (DDZ) is a natural brassin‐like compound extracted from the soybean, and has been found to have therapeutic potential against tumors in recent years. This study investigates the therapeutic effect of DDZ on hepatocellular carcinoma cells and elucidates the possible mechanisms of action. The viability of HCCLM3 and Hep3B cells was detected by MTT assay. Western blots and qPCR were used to detect the protein and mRNA levels of proliferation and apoptosis related genes. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) was used for metabolome analysis. In vivo antitumor effects were assessed in nude mice engrafted with HCC cell lines. Our results show that DDZ treatment dose‐dependently inhibited cell viability, migration, and survival. The expressions of CDK1, BCL2, MYC, and survivin were reduced, while the expressions of BAX and PARP were increased in DDZ treated cells. The differentially expressed metabolites detected in DDZ treated cultures are associated with glycolysis/gluconeogenesis pathways. Bioinformatic analysis identified TPI1, a gene in the glycolysis pathway with prognostic value for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and DDZ treatment downregulated this gene. In vivo experiments show that DDZ significantly reduced the tumor volume and weight, and inhibited Ki67 expression within tumors. This study shows that DDZ interfered with the survival and migration of hepatocellular carcinoma cells, likely via TPI1 and the gluconeogenesis pathway.
Identification of treatment‐induced vulnerabilities in pancreatic cancer patients using functional model systems

Despite the advance and success of precision oncology in gastrointestinal cancers, the frequency of molecular‐informed therapy decisions in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is currently neglectable. We present a longitudinal precision oncology platform based on functional model systems, including patient‐derived organoids, to identify chemotherapy‐induced vulnerabilities. We demonstrate that treatment‐induced tumor cell plasticity in vivo distinctly changes responsiveness to targeted therapies, without the presence of a selectable genetic marker, indicating that tumor cell plasticity can be functionalized. By adding a mechanistic layer to precision oncology, adaptive processes of tumors under therapy can be exploited, particularly in highly plastic tumors, such as pancreatic cancer.
Survival and clinical outcomes of kidney transplant recipients with coronavirus disease infection: An updated systematic review and meta-analysis

ABSTRACT The recent outbreak of the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has raised a tremendous global concern among people, especially those with pre-existing comorbidities. Kidney transplant (KT) recipients represent a susceptible category of patients due to the long-term administration of immunosuppressive therapy. However, data on how COVID-19 is affecting these patients are scarce. We aim to systematically review the current findings regarding survival and clinical outcomes of KT recipients with COVID-19 infection. A comprehensive literature search was conducted from PubMed and Embase published up to May 2021. Studies reporting data on the incidence of COVID-19 infection among KT recipients were included. The primary outcomes analyzed in this study, including mortality rate, mechanical ventilation requirement, intensive care unit (ICU) admission, and acute kidney injury (AKI) occurrence, were measured as a pooled prevalence rate (PR) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). All analyses were performed using STATA® 16. A total of 30 studies comprising 3,146 KT recipients with COVID-19 infections were included. The pooled PR of mortality among KT recipients with COVID-19 infection was 21% (95% CI, 18% to 25%), ICU admission, 24% (95% CI, 20% to 28%), mechanical ventilation, 18% (95% CI, 15% to 21%), and AKI, 48% (95% CI, 42% to 53%). Meta-regression analysis showed that age was significantly associated with a higher mortality rate (P < .01). Mortality rate associated with age and relatively poor clinical outcomes were high among KT recipients with COVID-19 infection. Further studies addressing preventive measures for this at-risk population should be encouraged.
Human Hepatocytes Isolated from Explanted Livers: A Powerful Tool to Understand End-stage Liver Disease and Drug Screening

ABSTRACT The use of primary human hepatocytes has been hampered by limited availability of adequate numbers of fresh and viable cells due to the ongoing shortage of liver donors. Thus, there is no surplus of healthy organs from which freshly isolated cells can be prepared when needed. However, primary hepatocytes can be successfully isolated from explanted liver specimens obtained from patients receiving orthotopic liver transplantation for decompensated liver cirrhosis or for metabolic liver disease without end-stage liver disease and are a valuable resource for the pharmaceutical industry research. This review focuses on the isolation, characterization and cryopreservation of hepatocytes derived from therapeutically resected livers with various hepatic diseases.
“Precovery” versus recovery: Understanding the role of cherry juice in exercise recovery

Cherry juice has become a standard component of athlete recovery strategies. This review covers the history of cherry juice as a recovery drink to give context to its current use. Fifteen studies were identified that included a measure of muscle function, soreness, or inflammation on the days following exercise and had an exercise insult sufficient to assess the effectiveness of the tart cherry intervention. Eight studies used a concentrated juice, three used a juice from fresh‐frozen cherries, two used a tart cherry concentrate gel, and two used a tart cherry powder. The effective juice dose was specific to the type of drink (fresh‐frozen versus concentrate) but dose‐response studies are lacking, and thus, the optimal dose for any specific type of cherry juice is not known. Timing of the dosing regimen is a critical factor. Studies have uniformly shown that muscle function will recover faster on the days after exercise if juice is provided for several days prior to exercise. Effects on soreness or systemic inflammation are more equivocal. The available evidence does not support a regimen that begins on the day of exercise or post‐exercise. Tart cherry powder did not enhance any metric of recovery on the days after exercise. In conclusion, the term recovery implies an intervention that is introduced after an exercise insult. The term “precovery” may be preferable to describe interventions that should be introduced on the days prior to exercise to facilitate recovery on the days after exercise. The evidence supports cherry juice as a precovery intervention across a range of athletic activities.