Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Energy costs of salinity tolerance in crop plants: night-time transpiration and growth.

Plants grow and transpire during the night. The aim of the present work was to assess the relative flows of carbon, water and solutes, and the energy involved, in sustaining night-time transpiration and leaf expansive growth under control and salt-stress conditions. Published and unpublished data were used, for barley plants grown in presence of 0.5-1 mM NaCl (control) and 100 mM NaCl. Night-time leaf growth presents a more efficient use of taken-up water compared with day-time growth. This efficiency increases several-fold with salt stress. Night-time transpiration cannot be supported entirely through osmotically driven uptake of water through roots under salt stress. Using a simple three- (root medium/cytosol/vacuole) compartment approach, the energy required to support cell expansion during the night is in the lower percentage region (0.03-5.5%) of the energy available through respiration, under both, control and salt-stress conditions. Use of organic (e.g. hexose equivalents) rather than inorganic (e.g. Na+ , Cl- , K+ ) solutes for generation of osmotic pressure in growing cells, increases the energy demand by orders of magnitude, yet requires only a small portion of carbon assimilated during the day. Night-time transpiration and leaf expansive growth should be considered as a potential acclimation mechanism to salinity.
Positive allosteric modulators of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor.

Priority Application: Priority date: July 8, 2011 Inventors: Eskildsen, J.; Sams, A. G. ; Pueschl, A. Assignee Company: H. Lundbeck A/S, Den. Disease Area: autism, neurodegenerative diseases Biological Target: nicotinic acetylcholine receptor α7 (α7 nAChR) Summary: The patent application claims cyclopropylcarboxamide derivatives as positive allosteric modulators of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor for the treatment of a variety of diseases, including autism and neurodegenerative diseases such Alzheimer’s disease and Pakinson’s disease. Important Compound Classes:
Genome-Wide Analysis of the Zn(II)2Cys6 Zinc Cluster-Encoding Gene Family in Tolypocladium guangdongense and Its Light-Induced Expression

The Zn(II)2Cys6 zinc cluster gene family is a subclass of zinc-finger proteins, which are transcriptional regulators involved in a wide variety of biological processes in fungi. We performed genome-wide identification and characterization of Zn(II)2Cys6 zinc-cluster gene (C6 zinc gene) family in Tolypocladium guangdongense, Cordyceps militaris and Ophiocordyceps sinensis. Based on the structures of the C6 zinc domains, these proteins were observed to be evolutionarily conserved in ascomycete fungi. We focused on T. guangdongense, a medicinal fungus, and identified 139 C6 zinc genes which could be divided into three groups. Among them, 49.6% belonged to the fungal specific transcriptional factors, and 16% had a DUF3468 domain. Homologous and phylogenetic analysis indicated that 29 C6 zinc genes were possibly involved in the metabolic process, while five C6 zinc genes were supposed to be involved in asexual or sexual development. Gene expression analysis revealed that 54 C6 zinc genes were differentially expressed under light, including two genes that possibly influenced the development, and seven genes that possibly influenced the metabolic processes. This indicated that light may affect the development and metabolic processes, at least partially, through the regulation of C6 zinc genes in T. guangdongense. Our results provide comprehensive data for further analyzing the functions of the C6 zinc genes.
A sleep apnoea questionnaire predicts organ damage in hypertensive patients

Abstract Background: Arterial hypertension is associated with obstructive sleep apnoea, poor quality and duration of sleep, which might contribute to hypertension-mediated organ damage. Methods: We investigated the presence of insomnia, restless legs syndrome, and obstructive sleep apnoea using validated questionnaires (Insomnia Severity Index, Restless Legs Syndrome Rating Scale, and STOP-Bang), and their relationship with hypertension-mediated organ damage, in hypertensive patients. Results: In 159 consecutive consenting hypertensive patients [age 47(11) years, median and (interquartile range), body mass index 25.5(5.9) kg/m2, office systolic and diastolic blood pressure 144(23)/92(12) mmHg], the STOP-Bang, but not the other scores, predicted cardiac remodelling: compared to patients with a STOP-Bang score < 3, those at high risk of obstructive sleep apnoea showed higher left ventricular mass index [49.8(11.9) vs. 43.3(11.9) g/m2.7, p < 0.0001], left atrium volume [25.7(2.5) vs. 25.0(2.8) ml/m2, p = 0.003], and aortic root diameter [33.6(3.0) vs. 33.0(3.7) mm, p < 0.0001]. They did not differ for microalbuminuria and estimated glomerular filtration rate. At multivariate analysis, after adjustment for office systolic blood pressure values, the STOP-Bang score remained a predictor of left ventricular mass index; while the Insomnia Severity Index and restless legs syndrome risk score had no predictive value. However, a significant interaction between STOP-Bang and Restless Legs Syndrome Rating Scale scores in determining left ventricular remodelling was found. Conclusions: In consecutive hypertensive stage I patients the STOP-Bang questionnaire allowed identification of a high-risk cohort featuring a more prominent cardiac damage. Hence, this inexpensive tool can be useful for risk stratification purposes in municipalities with limited access to health care resources.
Actigraphic motor activity in mild cognitive impairment patients carrying out short functional activity tasks: comparison between mild cognitive impairment with and without depressive symptoms.

BACKGROUND Individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) may exhibit changes in motor activity in conducting their activities of daily living. Depression, one of the most frequent neuropsychiatric symptoms, might affect motor activity in MCI. OBJECTIVE To assess motor activity in MCI subjects carrying out short functional activity tasks using ambulatory actigraphy. Secondly, we sought to investigate the influence of depressive symptoms on motor activity. METHODS 20 MCI and 14 healthy subjects carried out a 30-minute standardized scenario while wearing a chest actigraph. The protocol consisted of directed activities (execution of motor tasks), semi-directed activities (execution of Instrumental Activities of Daily Living, IADL), and undirected 'free' activities. Several common assessment scales (GDS, MADRS, and NPI) were used to diagnose depression. RESULTS MCI subjects had significantly reduced mean motor activity while carrying out directed and semi-directed activities, compared to healthy control subjects. No difference was found in motor activity between MCI subjects with or without depression. CONCLUSION Actigraphic measurement of motor activity during the evaluation of IADLs and motor tasks is a potential objective tool in detecting early changes in MCI. Depressive symptoms seem not to be associated with motor activity in MCI subjects.
Real-World Experience With 100 Consecutive Patients Undergoing Neck Contouring With ATX-101 (Deoxycholic Acid): An Updated Report With A 2-Year Analysis

BACKGROUND Deoxycholic acid (DCA; ATX-101) injection was approved for the treatment of mild-to-moderate convexity associated with submental fat in 2015. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the experience with DCA injections in a clinical practice setting. MATERIALS AND METHODS This ongoing, prospective, single-center, single-arm, observational study evaluated 100 consecutive patients treated with subcutaneous DCA (2 mg/cm2) injections (maximum 6 sessions at ≥1-month intervals). Treatment response was assessed using the clinician-reported submental fat rating scale (CR-SMFRS) and confirmed by independent physician review of photographs at 1 and 5 to 7 weeks after treatment. RESULTS Since the previous published report, 17 patients have undergone additional treatment sessions, with a total of 100 patients having undergone 195 treatment sessions: 41, 36, 14, 6, 2, and 1 patient underwent 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 sessions, respectively. Overall, 91.7% of patients in the single treatment session group and 100% in the multiple treatment session group had an improvement of ≥1 point on the CR-SMFRS. The mean (SD) duration of local edema, numbness, and tenderness after treatment was 7.1 (5.1), 27.9 (11.3), and 3.5 (3.5) days, respectively. CONCLUSION Deoxycholic acid injections were generally well tolerated, and ≥2 treatment sessions were required to achieve the desired aesthetic goal in a private practice setting.
Prevalence and clinical characteristics of overactive bladder in systemic sclerosis

Abstract Objectives: Overactive bladder (OAB) is a clinical diagnosis defined with the presence of urinary urgency, usually accompanied by frequency and nocturia, with or without urgency urinary incontinence. Objective was to evaluate the demographic and clinical characteristics of Japanese systemic sclerosis (SSc) patients with OAB. Methods: OAB was diagnosed by OAB symptom score (OABSS) in 104 Japanese SSc patients (93 women and 11 men). Differential diseases of OAB were conducted by urologists. Results: The prevalence of OAB in SSc patients was 27.9% (29/104). SSc patients with OAB were characterized by old age, a long history of morbidity (15.4 vs. 11.2 years, p < .01), high anti-centromere antibody positive rate (75.9 vs. 44%, p < .05), high incidence of gastroesophageal reflux disease (93.1 vs. 73.3%, p < .05), low anti-SS-A antibody positive rate (6.9 vs. 26.8%, p < .05), and low incidence of internal lung disease (17.9 vs. 45.7%, p < .05) compared to SSc patients without OAB. Conclusion: This is the first study that evaluated the prevalence and clinical features of OAB in Japanese SSc patients. Since SSc patients might be prone to develop OAB, it was thought that OAB should be noted as one of the complications of SSc patients.
Inversion Free Algorithms for Computing the Principal Square Root of a Matrix

New algorithms are presented about the principal square root of an matrix . In particular, all the classical iterative algorithms require matrix inversion at every iteration. The proposed inversion free iterative algorithms are based on the Schulz iteration or the Bernoulli substitution as a special case of the continuous time Riccati equation. It is certified that the proposed algorithms are equivalent to the classical Newton method. An inversion free algebraic method, which is based on applying the Bernoulli substitution to a special case of the continuous time Riccati equation, is also proposed.
Angiotensin‐(1‐7) inhibits sodium transport via Mas receptor by increasing nitric oxide production in thick ascending limb

Sodium transport in the thick ascending loop of Henle (TAL) is tightly regulated by numerous factors, especially angiotensin II (Ang II), a key end‐product of the renin‐angiotensin system (RAS). However, an alternative end‐product of the RAS, angiotensin‐(1‐7) [Ang‐(1‐7)], may counter some of the Ang II actions. Indeed, it causes vasodilation and promotes natriuresis through its effects in the proximal and distal tubule. However, its effects on the TAL are unknown. Because the TAL expresses the Mas receptor, an Ang‐(1‐7) ligand, which in turn may increase NO and inhibit Na+ transport, we hypothesized that Ang‐(1‐7) inhibits Na transport in the TAL, via a Mas receptor/NO‐dependent mechanism. We tested this by measuring transport‐dependent oxygen consumption (VO2) in TAL suspensions. Administering Ang‐(1‐7) decreased VO2; an effect prevented by dimethyl amiloride and furosemide, signifying that Ang‐(1‐7) inhibits transport‐dependent VO2 in TAL. Ang‐(1‐7) also increased NO levels, known inhibitors of Na+ transport in the TAL. The effects of Ang‐(1‐7) on VO2, as well as on NO levels, were ameliorated by the Mas receptor antagonist, D‐Ala, in effect suggesting that Ang‐(1‐7) may inhibit transport‐dependent VO2 in TAL via Mas receptor‐dependent activation of the NO pathway. Indeed, blocking NO synthesis with L‐NAME prevented the inhibitory actions of Ang‐(1‐7) on VO2. Our data suggest that Ang‐(1‐7) may modulate TAL Na+ transport via Mas receptor‐dependent increases in NO leading to the inhibition of transport activity.
Facile Access to Fe(III)-Complexing Cyclic Hydroxamic Acids in a Three-Component Format

Cyclic hydroxamic acids can be viewed as effective binders of soluble iron and can therefore be useful moieties for employing in compounds to treat iron overload disease. Alternatively, they are analogs of bacterial siderophores (iron-scavenging metabolites) and can find utility in designing antibiotic constructs for targeted delivery. An earlier described three-component variant of the Castagnoli—Cushman reaction of homophthalic acid (via in situ cyclodehydration to the respective anhydride) was extended to involve hydroxylamine in lieu of the amine component of the reaction. Using hydroxylamine acetate and O-benzylhydroxylamine was key to the success of this transformation due to greater solubility of the reagents in refluxing toluene (compared to hydrochloride salt). The developed protocol was found suitable for multigram-scale syntheses of N-hydroxy- and N-(benzyloxy)tetrahydroisoquinolonic acids. The cyclic hydroxamic acids synthesized in the newly developed format have been tested and shown to be efficient ligands for Fe3+, which makes them suitable candidates for the above-mentioned applications.
Fatty Acid, Lipid Classes and Phospholipid Molecular Species Composition of the Marine Clam Meretrix lyrata (Sowerby 1851) from Cua Lo Beach, Nghe An Province, Vietnam

This study aims to analyze compositions of fatty acids and phospholipid molecular species in the hard clams Meretrix lyrata (Sowerby, 1851) harvested from Cua Lo beach, Nghe An province, Viet Nam. Total lipid of hard clams Meretrix lyrata occupied 1.7 ± 0.2% of wet weight and contained six classes: hydrocarbon and wax (HW), triacylglycerol (TAG), free fatty acids (FFA), sterol (ST), polar lipid (PoL), and monoalkyl diacylglycerol (MADAG). Among the constituents, the proportion of PoL accounted was highest, at 45.7%. In contrast, the figures for MADAG were lowest, at 1.3%. Twenty-six fatty acids were identified with the ratios of USAFA/SAFA was 2. The percentage of n-3 PUFA (ω-3) and n-6 PUFA (ω-6) was high, occupying 38.4% of total FA. Among PUFAs, arachidonic acid (AA, 20:4n-6), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5n-3), docosapentaenoic acid (DPA, 22:5n-3), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n-3) accounted for 3.8%, 7.8%, 2.2% and 12.0% of total lipid of the clam respectively. Phospholipid molecular species were identified in polar lipids of the clams consisting six types: phosphatidylethalnolamine (PE, with 28 molecular species), phosphatidylcholine (PC, with 26 molecular species), phosphatidylserine (PS, with 18 molecular species), phosphatidylinositol (PI, with 10 molecular species), phosphatidylglycerol (PG, with only one molecular species), and ceramide aminoethylphosphonate (CAEP, with 15 molecular species). This is the first time that the molecular species of sphingophospholipid were determined, in Meretrix lyrata in particular, and for clams in general. Phospholipid formula species of PE and PS were revealed to comprise two kinds: Alkenyl acyl glycerophosphoethanolamine and Alkenyl acyl glycerophosphoserine occupy 80.3% and 81.0% of total PE and PS species, respectively. In contrast, the percentage of diacyl glycero phosphatidylcholine was twice as high as that of PakCho in total PC, at 69.3, in comparison with 30.7%. In addition, phospholipid formula species of PI and PG comprised only diacyl glycoro phospholipids. PE 36:1 (p18:0/18:1), PC 38:6 (16:0/22:6), PS 38:1 (p18:0/20:1), PI 40:5 (20:1/20:4), PG 32:0 (16:0/16:0) and CAEP 34:2 (16:2/d18:0) were the major molecular species.
Accuracy of Molecular Dating with the Rho Statistic: Deviations from Coalescent Expectations Under a Range of Demographic Models

Abstract The ρ statistic is commonly used to infer chronological dates for molecular lineages, especially from mitochondrial DNA sequences obtained in anthropological contexts. Since this approach was described 12 years ago, it has been applied to estimate molecular dates in more than 200 studies, including some published in top-tier journals. However, this method has not been well evaluated, and the accuracy of dates obtained from the ρ statistic remains unknown, especially for genetic data collected from populations with complex demographic histories. Here, molecular dates inferred from ρ are compared against coalescent expectations from a range of demographic models. This exercise reveals considerable inaccuracy. Molecular dates based on ρ have a slight downward bias with large asymmetric variance and commonly exhibit substantial type I error rates, where the true age of a lineage falls outside the 95% confidence bounds derived from the variance of ρ. Furthermore, demography proves to be a strong confounding factor in estimating molecular dates accurately, especially for populations in which bottlenecks, founder events, and size changes have played important historical roles. Therefore considerable caution should be applied to inferences made from molecular dates based on the ρ statistic, many of which may be misleading and warrant considerable skepticism.
Staphylococcal Enterotoxin C Is an Important Virulence Factor for Mastitis

Staphylococcus aureus is an important bacterial pathogen causing bovine mastitis, but little is known about the virulence factor and the inflammatory responses in the mammary infection. Staphylococcal enterotoxin C (SEC) is the most frequent toxin produced by S. aureus, isolated from bovine mastitis. To investigate the pathogenic activity of SEC in the inflammation of the mammary gland and the immune responses in an animal model, mouse mammary glands were injected with SEC, and the clinical signs, inflammatory cell infiltration, and proinflammatory cytokine production in the mammary glands were assessed. SEC induced significant inflammatory reactions in the mammary gland, in a dose-dependent manner. SEC-injected mammary glands showed a severe inflammation with inflammatory cell infiltration and tissue damage. In addition, interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-6 production in the SEC-injected mammary glands were significantly higher than those in the PBS control glands. Furthermore, the SEC-induced inflammation and tissue damage in the mammary gland were specifically inhibited by anti-SEC antibody. These results indicated, for the first time, that SEC can directly cause inflammation, proinflammatory cytokine production, and tissue damage in mammary glands, suggesting that SEC might play an important role in the development of mastitis associated with S. aureus infection. This finding offers an opportunity to develop novel treatment strategies for reduction of mammary tissue damage in mastitis.
rAAV-based brain slice culture models of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease inclusion pathologies

It has been challenging to produce ex vivo models of the inclusion pathologies that are hallmark pathologies of many neurodegenerative diseases. Using three-dimensional mouse brain slice cultures (BSCs), we have developed a paradigm that rapidly and robustly recapitulates mature neurofibrillary inclusion and Lewy body formation found in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, respectively. This was achieved by transducing the BSCs with recombinant adeno-associated viruses (rAAVs) that express &agr;-synuclein or variants of tau. Notably, the tauopathy BSC model enables screening of small molecule therapeutics and tracking of neurodegeneration. More generally, the rAAV BSC “toolkit” enables efficient transduction and transgene expression from neurons, microglia, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes, alone or in combination, with transgene expression lasting for many months. These rAAV-based BSC models provide a cost-effective and facile alternative to in vivo studies, and in the future can become a widely adopted methodology to explore physiological and pathological mechanisms related to brain function and dysfunction.
Does Health Promotion Program Affect Local Resident’ Emotions?

Healthy cities continuously attempt to improve residents’ health. Health is affected by psychological factors, such as happiness and emotions. Therefore, this study investigates the effects of healthy city program performance on individuals’ emotions, as well as the correlation between healthy city program performance and emotions using personal happiness index as a parameter. We conducted a questionnaire survey of residents in areas implementing healthy city projects. A total of 596 responses were obtained. We used structural equations to analyze the relationship of structural influences. Results showed that healthy city program performance had significant static effects on emotion. This observation shows that healthy city programs decrease local residents’ negative emotions, such as stress and depression. Therefore, healthy city programs stabilize residents’ emotions by increasing health friendliness. To improve the performance of healthy city programs, it is necessary to mitigate health risk factors and positively affect individuals’ emotions.
Feedforward Neural Network Construction Using Cross Validation

This article presents an algorithm that constructs feedforward neural networks with a single hidden layer for pattern classification. The algorithm starts with a small number of hidden units in the network and adds more hidden units as needed to improve the network's predictive accuracy. To determine when to stop adding new hidden units, the algorithm makes use of a subset of the available training samples for cross validation. New hidden units are added to the network only if they improve the classification accuracy of the network on the training samples and on the cross-validation samples. Extensive experimental results show that the algorithm is effective in obtaining networks with predictive accuracy rates that are better than those obtained by state-of-the-art decision tree methods.
Mechanisms of cellular adaptation to quantum dots – the role of glutathione and transcription factor EB

Abstract Cellular adaptation is the dynamic response of a cell to adverse changes in its intra/extra cellular environment. The aims of this study were to investigate the role of: (i) the glutathione antioxidant system, and (ii) the transcription factor EB (TFEB), a newly revealed master regulator of lysosome biogenesis, in cellular adaptation to nanoparticle-induced oxidative stress. Intracellular concentrations of glutathione species and activation of TFEB were assessed in rat pheochromocytoma (PC12) cells following treatment with uncapped CdTe quantum dots (QDs), using biochemical, live cell fluorescence and immunocytochemical techniques. Exposure to toxic concentrations of QDs resulted in a significant enhancement of intracellular glutathione concentrations, redistribution of glutathione species and a progressive translocation and activation of TFEB. These changes were associated with an enlargement of the cellular lysosomal compartment. Together, these processes appear to have an adaptive character, and thereby participate in the adaptive cellular response to toxic nanoparticles.