Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Region-specific myelin differences define behavioral consequences of chronic social defeat stress in mice

Exposure to stress increases the risk of developing mood disorders. While a subset of individuals displays vulnerability to stress, others remain resilient, but the molecular basis for these behavioral differences is not well understood. Using a model of chronic social defeat stress, we identified region-specific differences in myelination between mice that displayed social avoidance behavior (‘susceptible’) and those who escaped the deleterious effect to stress (‘resilient’). Myelin protein content in the nucleus accumbens was reduced in all mice exposed to stress, whereas decreased myelin thickness and internodal length were detected only in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) of susceptible mice, with fewer mature oligodendrocytes and decreased heterochromatic histone marks. Focal demyelination in the mPFC was sufficient to decrease social preference, which was restored following new myelin formation. Together these data highlight the functional role of mPFC myelination as critical determinant of the avoidance response to traumatic social experiences. Editorial note: This article has been through an editorial process in which the authors decide how to respond to the issues raised during peer review. The Reviewing Editor's assessment is that all the issues have been addressed (see decision letter).
Sex-Specific Differences in Fat Storage, Development of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease and Brain Structure in Juvenile HFD-Induced Obese Ldlr-/-.Leiden Mice

Background: Sex-specific differences play a role in metabolism, fat storage in adipose tissue, and brain structure. At juvenile age, brain function is susceptible to the effects of obesity; little is known about sex-specific differences in juvenile obesity. Therefore, this study examined sex-specific differences in adipose tissue and liver of high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obese mice, and putative alterations between male and female mice in brain structure in relation to behavioral changes during the development of juvenile obesity. Methods: In six-week-old male and female Ldlr-/-. Leiden mice (n = 48), the impact of 18 weeks of HFD-feeding was examined. Fat distribution, liver pathology and brain structure and function were analyzed imunohisto- and biochemically, in cognitive tasks and with MRI. Results: HFD-fed female mice were characterized by an increased perigonadal fat mass, pronounced macrovesicular hepatic steatosis and liver inflammation. Male mice on HFD displayed an increased mesenteric fat mass, pronounced adipose tissue inflammation and microvesicular hepatic steatosis. Only male HFD-fed mice showed decreased cerebral blood flow and reduced white matter integrity. Conclusions: At young age, male mice are more susceptible to the detrimental effects of HFD than female mice. This study emphasizes the importance of sex-specific differences in obesity, liver pathology, and brain function.
Barium chloride dose‐dependently induced heart and lung injury in Wistar rats

Barium (Ba) is one of the environmental pollutant metals that incite deleterious effects on human health. The present study investigated the effects of exposure to different doses of barium chloride (BaCl2) on heart and lung of Wistar rats. Rats were exposed to BaCl2 at 150, 300, and 600 mg/L for seven consecutive days. Results indicated that exposure to Ba caused heart and lung damage evidenced by significant increase in plasma lactate dehydrogenase and creatine kinase activities, total cholesterol, triglyceride, and low‐density lipoprotein‐cholesterol levels, while high‐density lipoprotein‐cholesterol level decreased when compared with control. Moreover, BaCl2 significantly decreased superoxide dismutase, catalase, and acetylcholinesterase activities as well as glutathione level in heart and lung of the treated rats. Furthermore, the dose‐dependent increase in cardiac and lung lipid peroxidation, advanced oxidative protein product and nitric oxide levels were accompanied by marked increase in metallothionein in the BaCl2‐treated rats. Administration of BaCl2 altered hematological parameters and significantly increased concentrations of interleukin‐6 in the treated rats. Histology analysis showed significant alteration in the heart and lung tissues of Ba‐treated rats. In conclusion, BaCl2‐induced heart and lung damages via disruption of antioxidant defense systems, and activation of inflammatory mediators and alteration in hematological parameters in rats.
Use of 65 cm large caliber Dryseal sheaths to facilitate delivery of the Edwards SAPIEN valve to dysfunctional right ventricular outflow tracts

The Edwards SAPIEN valve and its delivery system may complicate transit through the right heart during transcatheter pulmonary valve replacement (tPVR). We report our early experience using a large diameter, 65 cm delivery sheath to facilitate delivery of the SAPIEN valve to the right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT).
Associations between connections to parents and friends and non-suicidal self-injury among adolescents: The mediating role of developmental assets

Background: We tested a model that incorporated potential developmental assets through which connections to parents and friends reduce the likelihood of engaging in non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) among adolescents. Method: Data came from the 2016 Minnesota Student Survey, a population-based survey of 8th, 9th, and 11th grade students (N = 119,452). Chi-square test, t-test, and correlations evaluated bivariate relationships between all variables. Indirect effects of three developmental assets (social competency, positive identity, and empowerment) were modeled simultaneously on associations between connections to parents and friends, and past-year NSSI. Results: Bivariate analyses demonstrated protective effects of parent and friend connections on NSSI and that all developmental assets were negatively associated with NSSI. After accounting for demographic variables and associations between developmental assets in a multiple mediator path model, connections to parents showed a stronger, negative direct relationship with NSSI than did connections to friends. Developmental assets, especially positive identity and empowerment, accounted for a greater proportion of the effect of connections to friends on NSSI than the effect of connections to parents. Finally, social competency was no longer significantly related to NSSI in the multiple mediator path model. Conclusion: Clinical efforts to prevent NSSI should focus on enhancing adolescents’ sense of positive identity and empowerment, as well as connections to parents and prosocial friends.
Female Sex and Brain-Selective Estrogen Benefit α-Synuclein Tetramerization and the PD-like Motor Syndrome in 3K Transgenic Mice

Many studies report a higher risk for Parkinson's disease (PD) and younger age of onset in men. This, and the fact that the neuropathological process underlying PD symptoms may begin before menopause, suggests that estrogen-based hormone therapy could modify this higher risk in males. However, the effects of female sex or estrogen on α-synuclein (αS) homeostasis and related PD neuropathology remain unknown. Here, we used an αS tetramer-abrogating mouse model of PD (3K) that amplifies the familial E46K PD mutation to investigate the effects of female sex and brain-selective estrogen treatment on αS tetramerization and solubility, formation of vesicle-rich αS+ aggregates, dopaminergic and cortical fiber integrity, and associated motor deficits. In male 3K mice, the motor phenotype became apparent at ∼10 weeks and increased to age 6 months, paralleled by PD-like neuropathology, whereas 3K females showed a significant delay in onset. At 6 months, this beneficial phenotypic effect in 3K females was associated with a higher αS tetramer-to-monomer ratio and less decrease in dopaminergic and cortical fiber length and quantity. Brain-selective estrogen treatment in symptomatic 3K mice significantly increased the tetramer-to-monomer ratio, turnover by autophagy of aggregate-prone monomers, and neurite complexity of surviving DAergic and cortical neurons, in parallel with benefits in motor performance. Our findings support an upstream role for αS tetramer loss in PD phenotypes and a role for estrogen in mitigating PD-like neuropathology in vivo. Brain-selective estrogen therapy may be useful in delaying or reducing PD symptoms in men and postmenopausal women. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The mechanisms responsible for the male-to-female preponderance in Parkinson's disease (PD) are not well understood yet important for treatment efficacy. We previously showed that abrogating native α-synuclein (αS) tetramers produces a close PD model, including dopaminergic and cortical fiber loss and a progressive motor disorder responsive to l-DOPA. Here, we analyzed sex and use 10b-17β-dihydroxyestra-1,4-dien-3-one treatment of symptomatic 3K males, and demonstrate that the beneficial effects of female sex on PD-like neuropathology can be reinstated by elevating estrogen in the male brain. The study provides evidence that 17β-estradiol restores the tetramer-to-monomer ratio by autophagy turnover of excess αS monomers, vesicle and fiber integrity in brain regions critically involved in motor behavior. These data provide the basis for understanding sex differences in αS homeostasis and the development of therapeutic approaches to treating men and postmenopausal women with PD.
¡vIVA la DivIVA!

Reproduction in the bacterial kingdom predominantly occurs through binary fission—a process in which one parental cell is divided into two similarly sized daughter cells. How cell division, in conjunction with cell elongation and chromosome segregation, is orchestrated by a multitude of proteins has been an active area of research spanning the past few decades. ABSTRACT Reproduction in the bacterial kingdom predominantly occurs through binary fission—a process in which one parental cell is divided into two similarly sized daughter cells. How cell division, in conjunction with cell elongation and chromosome segregation, is orchestrated by a multitude of proteins has been an active area of research spanning the past few decades. Together, the monumental endeavors of multiple laboratories have identified several cell division and cell shape regulators as well as their underlying regulatory mechanisms in rod-shaped Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis, which serve as model organisms for Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, respectively. Yet our understanding of bacterial cell division and morphology regulation is far from complete, especially in noncanonical and non-rod-shaped organisms. In this review, we focus on two proteins that are highly conserved in Gram-positive organisms, DivIVA and its homolog GpsB, and attempt to summarize the recent advances in this area of research and discuss their various roles in cell division, cell growth, and chromosome segregation in addition to their interactome and posttranslational regulation.
Intraoperative Mechanical Ventilation and Postoperative Pulmonary Complications after Cardiac Surgery.

WHAT WE ALREADY KNOW ABOUT THIS TOPIC Modern ventilation approaches use a bundle of lower tidal volumes, lower driving pressures, and positive end-expiratory pressureThe contributions of each component to reducing postoperative pulmonary complications in an adult cardiac surgical population is not known WHAT THIS ARTICLE TELLS US THAT IS NEW: In this retrospective analysis, the intraoperative ventilation bundle was associated with a lower rate of postoperative pulmonary complicationsLower modified driving pressure was independently associated with fewer pulmonary complications BACKGROUND:: Compared with historic ventilation strategies, modern lung-protective ventilation includes lower tidal volumes (VT), lower driving pressures, and application of positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP). The contributions of each component to an overall intraoperative protective ventilation strategy aimed at reducing postoperative pulmonary complications have neither been adequately resolved, nor comprehensively evaluated within an adult cardiac surgical population. The authors hypothesized that a bundled intraoperative protective ventilation strategy was independently associated with decreased odds of pulmonary complications after cardiac surgery. METHODS In this observational cohort study, the authors reviewed nonemergent cardiac surgical procedures using cardiopulmonary bypass at a tertiary care academic medical center from 2006 to 2017. The authors tested associations between bundled or component intraoperative protective ventilation strategies (VT below 8 ml/kg ideal body weight, modified driving pressure [peak inspiratory pressure - PEEP] below 16 cm H2O, and PEEP greater than or equal to 5 cm H2O) and postoperative outcomes, adjusting for previously identified risk factors. The primary outcome was a composite pulmonary complication; secondary outcomes included individual pulmonary complications, postoperative mortality, as well as durations of mechanical ventilation, intensive care unit stay, and hospital stay. RESULTS Among 4,694 cases reviewed, 513 (10.9%) experienced pulmonary complications. After adjustment, an intraoperative lung-protective ventilation bundle was associated with decreased pulmonary complications (adjusted odds ratio, 0.56; 95% CI, 0.42-0.75). Via a sensitivity analysis, modified driving pressure below 16 cm H2O was independently associated with decreased pulmonary complications (adjusted odds ratio, 0.51; 95% CI, 0.39-0.66), but VT below 8 ml/kg and PEEP greater than or equal to 5 cm H2O were not. CONCLUSIONS The authors identified an intraoperative lung-protective ventilation bundle as independently associated with pulmonary complications after cardiac surgery. The findings offer insight into components of protective ventilation associated with adverse outcomes and may serve as targets for future prospective interventional studies investigating the impact of specific protective ventilation strategies on postoperative outcomes after cardiac surgery.
A Robust Indoor Positioning Method based on Bluetooth Low Energy with Separate Channel Information

Among the current indoor positioning technologies, Bluetooth low energy (BLE) has gained increasing attention. In particular, the traditional distance estimation derived from aggregate RSS and signal-attenuation models is generally unstable because of the complicated interference in indoor environments. To improve the adaptability and robustness of the BLE positioning system, we propose making full use of the three separate channels of BLE instead of their combination, which has generally been used before. In the first step, three signal-attenuation models are separately established for each BLE advertising channel in the offline phase, and a more stable distance in the online phase can be acquired by assembling measurements from all three channels with the distance decision strategy. Subsequently, a weighted trilateration method with uncertainties related to the distances derived in the first step is proposed to determine the user’s optimal position. The test results demonstrate that our proposed algorithm for determining the distance error achieves a value of less than 2.2 m at 90%, while for the positioning error, it achieves a value of less than 2.4 m at 90%. Compared with the traditional methods, the positioning error of our method is reduced by 33% to 38% for different smartphones and scenarios.
The Brazilian Earth System Model version 2.5: Evaluation of its CMIP5 historical simulation

Abstract. The performance of the coupled ocean-atmosphere component of the Brazilian Earth System Model version 2.5 (BESM-OA2.5) simulating the historical period 1850–2005 is evaluated. Following climate model validation procedure, in which the atmospheric and oceanic main variabilities are validated against observation and Reanalysis datasets, the evaluation particularly focuses the mean climate state and the most important large-scale climate variability patterns simulated in the historical run, which is forced by observed greenhouse gas concentration. The most significant upgrades in the model’s components are also presented briefly. BESM-OA2.5 is able to reproduce the most important large-scale variabilities, particularly over the Atlantic (e.g. the North Atlantic Oscillation, the Atlantic Meridional Mode and the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation) and the extratropical modes that occur in both hemispheres. The model's ability in simulating large-scale variabilities indicates its usefulness for seasonal climate prediction and climate change studies.
A Novel Framework for Human Activity Recognition with Time Labelled Real Time Sensor Data

ABSTRACT Human activity recognition is an effective approach for identifying the characteristics of historical data. In the past decades, different shallow classifiers and handcrafted features were used to identify the activities from the sensor data. These approaches are configured for offline processing and are not suitable for sequential data. This article proposes an adaptive framework for human activity recognition using a deep learning mechanism. This deep learning approach forms the deep belief network (DBN), which contains a visible layer and hidden layers. The processing of raw sensor data is performed by these layers and the activity is identified at the top most layers. The DBN is tested using the real time environment with the help of mobile devices that contain an accelerometer, a magnetometer, and a gyroscope. The results are analyzed with the metrics of precision, recall, and the F1-score. The results proved that the proposed method has a higher F1_score when compared to the existing approach.
Integration of Radiomic and Multi-omic Analyses Predicts Survival of Newly Diagnosed IDH1 Wild-Type Glioblastoma

Predictors of patient outcome derived from gene methylation, mutation, or expression are severely limited in IDH1 wild-type glioblastoma (GBM). Radiomics offers an alternative insight into tumor characteristics which can provide complementary information for predictive models. The study aimed to evaluate whether predictive models which integrate radiomic, gene, and clinical (multi-omic) features together offer an increased capacity to predict patient outcome. A dataset comprising 200 IDH1 wild-type GBM patients, derived from The Cancer Imaging Archive (TCIA) (n = 71) and the McGill University Health Centre (n = 129), was used in this study. Radiomic features (n = 45) were extracted from tumor volumes then correlated to biological variables and clinical outcomes. By performing 10-fold cross-validation (n = 200) and utilizing independent training/testing datasets (n = 100/100), an integrative model was derived from multi-omic features and evaluated for predictive strength. Integrative models using a limited panel of radiomic (sum of squares variance, large zone/low gray emphasis, autocorrelation), clinical (therapy type, age), genetic (CIC, PIK3R1, FUBP1) and protein expression (p53, vimentin) yielded a maximal AUC of 78.24% (p = 2.9 × 10−5). We posit that multi-omic models using the limited set of ‘omic’ features outlined above can improve capacity to predict the outcome for IDH1 wild-type GBM patients.
Development and evaluation of reverse transcription-insulated isothermal PCR assay to detect duck hepatitis A virus type A in liver samples using the POCKITTM system

Duck hepatitis A virus (DHAV) infection is characterized by severe hepatitis. In recent years, DHAV-A has become widespread in Asia and has led to economic losses. Conventional methods of DHAV-A detection must often be performed in the laboratory with inconvenience equipment. We have developed a rapid reverse transcription insulated isothermal (RT-iiPCR) technique for the on-site detection of DHAV-A based on the POCKITTM system in a convenient minitype device. We optimized the PCR primers and probes for the amplification of the DHAV-A 3C/3D genes, and successfully amplified a specific fragment of DHAV-A, but no fragment from 18 other duck pathogens. The limit of detection for viral RNA was 49 copies per reaction, and the sensitivity and specificity were each 100% in the analysis of 60 liver samples. By comparison, the sensitivities of RT-iiPCR was comparable in sensitivity to existing rRT-PCR. Furthermore, the RT-iiPCR results were 98.3% in agreement with those of the rRT-PCR, with a kappa value of 0.938. In conclusion, this new method not only offers a higher sensitivity and specificity than existing techniques, but also time-saving and better suited to field diagnoses because device is portable.
Time to Adjuvant Systemic Therapy Following Pancreatic Cancer Resection and Effect on Outcome.

OBJECTIVES The appropriate timing of chemotherapy following surgery for resectable pancreatic adenocarcinoma is controversial. Using the National Cancer Database we evaluated time to initiation of chemotherapy postresection and correlated with outcome. METHODS We identified stage I-III pancreatic adenocarcinoma treated surgically with adjuvant chemoradiotherapy. Receiver operator curve analysis identified an interval of 66 days as the a priori value for largest discrepancy in outcome. Multivariable logistic regression analysis identified variables associated with increased time to chemotherapy postoperatively (>66 days). Propensity matching was performed to account for indication bias. RESULTS In total, 6873 and 3348 patients received chemotherapy before and after the 66-day cutoff, respectively. Predictors of expedited chemotherapy included lower comorbidity, treatment outside a community program in an urban location, having insurance, white race, and treatment after 2009. Propensity-matched median survival was 21.8 months for all patients, and of these, 6462 were stage 1. Five-year survival was 20% in patients receiving chemotherapy within 66 days and 18% in those not (P = 0.0266). In stage 1 patients, 5-year survival was 23% versus 21% (P = 0.0116) in favor of expedited chemotherapy. CONCLUSIONS The present propensity-matched analysis showed a significant association with survival for earlier delivery of chemotherapy in the adjuvant setting.
Proteomic Analysis of Lipid Rafts from RBL-2H3 Mast Cells

Lipid rafts are highly ordered membrane microdomains enriched in cholesterol, glycosphingolipids, and certain proteins. They are involved in the regulation of cellular processes in diverse cell types, including mast cells (MCs). The MC lipid raft protein composition was assessed using qualitative mass spectrometric characterization of the proteome from detergent-resistant membrane fractions from RBL-2H3 MCs. Using two different post-isolation treatment methods, a total of 949 lipid raft associated proteins were identified. The majority of these MC lipid raft proteins had already been described in the RaftProtV2 database and are among highest cited/experimentally validated lipid raft proteins. Additionally, more than half of the identified proteins had lipid modifications and/or transmembrane domains. Classification of identified proteins into functional categories showed that the proteins were associated with cellular membrane compartments, and with some biological and molecular functions, such as regulation, localization, binding, catalytic activity, and response to stimulus. Furthermore, functional enrichment analysis demonstrated an intimate involvement of identified proteins with various aspects of MC biological processes, especially those related to regulated secretion, organization/stabilization of macromolecules complexes, and signal transduction. This study represents the first comprehensive proteomic profile of MC lipid rafts and provides additional information to elucidate immunoregulatory functions coordinated by raft proteins in MCs.