Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cdc13 is predominant over Stn1 and Ten1 in preventing chromosome end fusions

Telomeres define the natural ends of eukaryotic chromosomes and are crucial for chromosomal stability. The budding yeast Cdc13, Stn1 and Ten1 proteins form a heterotrimeric complex, and the inactivation of any of its subunits leads to a uniformly lethal phenotype due to telomere deprotection. Although Cdc13, Stn1 and Ten1 seem to belong to an epistasis group, it remains unclear whether they function differently in telomere protection. Here, we employed the single-linear-chromosome yeast SY14, and surprisingly found that the deletion of CDC13 leads to telomere erosion and intrachromosome end-to-end fusion, which depends on Rad52 but not Yku. Interestingly, the emergence frequency of survivors in the SY14 cdc13Δ mutant was ~29 fold higher than that in either the stn1Δ or ten1Δ mutant, demonstrating a predominant role of Cdc13 in inhibiting telomere fusion. Chromosomal fusion readily occurred in the telomerase-null SY14 strain, further verifying the default role of intact telomeres in inhibiting chromosome fusion.
Speed Enhancement Methods for HEVC Interpolation Filters

Video sequences are largely diffused and have several applications worldwide. As a matter of fact, the necessity for a proficient video coding standard is required, by replacing the HM reference model with the HEVC project. The interpolations filters of this system represent the bottleneck for the CPU time: therefore an hardware implementation is strictly necessary in order to fulfill a short time coding requirement. The purpose of this work of thesis is to find an appropriate internal architecture for the adders that are involved in the filtering operation, in order to further increase the throughput of the system. After a first analysis on input data statistics, several techniques are applied to enhance the efficiency of the entire system. Both exact and approximate adders are introduced, with a further examination on the impact of these choices on the performances of the reference system. In the following, Ch.1 aims to give a general introduction of video coding, HEVC interpolation filters and to present the starting hardware reference structure. In Ch.2 parallel-prefix adders topologies are introduced to solve the time efficiency issue for the Chroma Legacy architecture, while Ch.3 explores the adoption of adaptive approximate computing with Generic Accuracy Configurable adders for the Luma Legacy architecture. Finally in Ch.4 the different adders topologies, presented in the previous sections, are applied to the approximate DCT-IF architectures in order to enhance performances.
The role of species’ ecological traits in climatically driven altitudinal range shifts of central European birds

Climate change is one of the most important recent forces modulating the structure of ecological communities worldwide. Although a number of studies have documented climatically induced altitudinal range shifts, with species move upwards with increasing temperature and tracking their climatic optima, an examination of interspecific variability in such altitudinal shifts remains unexplored. Using a unique dataset on the altitudinal distribution of birds in a central European mountain range, collected with constant effort and methodology over more than 20 years, we examined the effects of particular species’ ecological traits on interspecific variability in altitudinal range shifts. We predicted that shifts would be greater in species with narrower European climatic niches, breeding in open habitats, feeding on insects and originally breeding at lower altitudes. Patterns of the shifts differed within the time period studied. In the first decade, no climate change was observed and species did not show any direction in their altitudinal shifts. In the second decade, local spring temperatures increased and species moved to higher altitudes. These altitudinal shifts were related to species’ habitat preferences, with open habitat species shifting to higher altitudes than forest species. The effect of other predictors was relatively small. The habitat effects imply either stronger self-regulation of the forest microclimate compared to open habitats, with forest species less forced to move upwards, or a delayed shift in the alpine timberline due to the slow growth of trees. In the latter case, forest species would face unfavourable climatic conditions and at the same time be constrained by the limited distribution of their habitat. Our study shows that species’ ecology can considerably alter the actual outcome of the impacts of ongoing climate change in mountain areas.
Dual specific CD19/CD22-targeted chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy for refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma: A case report

Clinical trials of chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) targeting CD19 have produced impressive results in hematological malignancies, including diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). However, a notable number of patients with DLBCL fail to achieve remission after CD19 CAR T-cell therapy and may therefore require a dual targeted CAR T-cell therapy. A 31-year-old man with refractory DLBCL was assessed in the present case report. The patient was treated with sequential infusion of single CD19 CAR T cells followed by dual CD19/CD22-targeted CAR T cells. The outcome was that the patient achieved partial remission after the first single CD19 CAR T-cell infusion and complete remission after the dual CD19/CD22-targeted CAR T-cell infusion. Grade 1 cytokine release syndrome (CRS) was observed after the single CD19 CAR T-cell infusion, while grade 3 CRS and hemophagocytic syndrome were observed after the dual targeted CAR T-cell infusion, but these adverse effects alleviated after the treatments. To the best of our knowledge, the present case report is the first to describe the successful application of dual CD19/CD22-targeted CAR T-cell therapy for the treatment of refractory DLBCL. The report suggests that dual CD19/CD22-targeted CAR T-cell therapy may represent a promising option for the treatment of refractory DLBCL; however, caution should be taken due to potential CRS development.
Effects of environmental heterogeneity on species diversity and composition of terrestrial bryophyte assemblages in tropical montane forests of southern Ecuador

Background: Most studies on tropical bryophytes deal with epiphytic species. This is the first ecological study of tropical forests that focuses specifically on terrestrial bryophytes. Aim: To investigate the differences between slope and ridge environments in upper montane forests of southern Ecuador in terms of species diversity (richness, abundance), species composition and life forms of terrestrial bryophytes. Methods: We used Non-metric Multidimensional Scaling (NMDS) to group bryophyte relevés by study location, habitat type and exposure class. Species indicator values were calculated and compared for different habitats. Results: In total, 140 species were recorded, the majority being liverworts. NMDS analyses and Mantel correlations clearly separated between slope and ridge relevés, and between sunny and shaded microhabitats on ridges. Bryophyte life forms also showed different distribution patterns in slope and in ridge habitats. Mosses were more prominent in sunny than in shaded microhabitats. Conclusions: Environmental differentiation between ridges and slopes, and small-scale variation in microclimatic conditions caused by differences in exposure, were stronger predictors of species richness and composition than geographical distance between study sites.
Semi-dilute solutions of hydroxypropyl guar gum: Viscosity behaviour and thixotropic properties

Semi-dilute solutions of hydroxypropyl guar gum (HPGG), the most widely used derivative of naturally occurring guar galactomannan, were investigated with respect to their viscosity, yield stress and thixotropy. It was found that the shear-dependent viscosity behaviour under various HPGG concentrations, added salts and temperature could be well described by the Cross viscosity model. The zero-shear-rate viscosity was observed to change with HPGG concentration according to a power-law function, and decease with the increase of temperature according to an Arrhenius-type equation. The addition of salts (KCl and CaCl2) lowered the zero-shear-rate viscosity. The HPGG solutions of high concentration showed a higher degree of thixotropy while the addition of salt lowered the thixotropic property. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry
Small Molecules, Non-Covalent Interactions, and Confinement

This review gives an overview of current trends in the investigation of small guest molecules, confined in neat and functionalized mesoporous silica materials by a combination of solid-state NMR and relaxometry with other physico-chemical techniques. The reported guest molecules are water, small alcohols, and carbonic acids, small aromatic and heteroaromatic molecules, ionic liquids, and surfactants. They are taken as characteristic role-models, which are representatives for the typical classes of organic molecules. It is shown that this combination delivers unique insights into the structure, arrangement, dynamics, guest-host interactions, and the binding sites in these confined systems, and is probably the most powerful analytical technique to probe these systems.
Proposal of a New Standardized Freeze-Thawing Technical Protocol for Leucocyte-Poor Platelet-Rich Plasma Preparation and Cryopreservation

A human platelet-rich plasma (PRP) concentrate can be defined as a preparation of autologous human plasma with increased platelet concentration produced by centrifugation of a larger volume of a patient’s own blood. Platelets contain a plethora of growth factors in their α-granules that are concentrated through the centrifugation process in order to then be injected in supraphysiologic amounts to an injury site with the final aim of augmenting the natural healing process. Preparations of PRP concentrates can be further classified as leucocyte-rich (LR-PRP), defined as having a leucocyte concentration above baseline, and leucocyte-poor (LP-PRP), defined as having a leucocyte concentration below baseline. Although many preclinical and clinical trials have shown the ability of leucocyte-poor PRP concentrates to significantly improve symptomatic mild to moderate hip and/or knee osteoarthritis, to date there is no consensus on the optimal way of obtaining PRP preparations, specifically with respect to the concentration of blood components. In this technical report, we describe a new standardized freeze-thawing technique for leucocyte-poor PRP preparation and cryopreservation, which has been shown to be superior to currently available techniques based solely on centrifugation. By describing this technical protocol, which we have been using on a daily basis in the setting of a Regenerative Medicine Outpatient Clinic in a European tertiary university hospital center, we aim to contribute to a future consensus on the optimal way of obtaining and preserving leucocyte-poor PRP concentrates.
Choosing the best first-line therapy: NSCLC with no actionable oncogenic driver

Combination platinum-based therapy has been the standard of care for the treatment of advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Immunotherapy has emerged and demonstrated to show benefit in the treatment of patients with advanced NSCLC. In this review, we discuss the pivotal trials that led to the US FDA approval of specific immunotherapy regimens in particular patient populations. We discuss the optimal use of immunotherapy as monotherapy based on the KEYNOTE-024, KEYNOTE-042 and IMpower110 trials, chemo-immunotherapy based on KEYNOTE-189, KEYNOTE-407, IMpower150 and IMpower130 trials, and as doublet immunotherapy based on CheckMate-227. We also discuss the role and limitations of PD-L1 expression and tumor mutational burden as predictive biomarkers in response to single-agent immunotherapy and combination chemoimmunotherapy. Furthermore, we discuss emerging resistance markers such as STK11 and KEAP1 mutations in immunotherapy response and briefly discuss the role of immunotherapy in elderly patients and in patients with actionable mutations.
Fuke Qianjin Combined with Antibiotic Therapy for Pelvic Inflammatory Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) without timely and proper treatment can cause long-term sequelae; meanwhile, patients will be confronted with the antimicrobial resistance and side effects. Chinese patent medicine as a supplement is used to treat PID with satisfactory clinical efficacy. This study evaluated the efficacy and safety of Fuke Qianjin (FKQJ) combined with antibiotics in the treatment of PID. Methods Eight electronic databases and other resources were searched to make a collection of the randomized controlled trials (RCTs) from 1990 to 2019. The RCTs contrasting the effect of FKQJ combined with antibiotics regimens and antibiotics alone in reproductive women with PID were included. The antibiotics regimens are all recommended by the guidelines. Two reviewers independently screened the studies, extracted the data, and assessed the methodological quality of the included studies. Then, the meta-analyses were performed by RevMan 5. 3 software if appropriate. Results Twenty-three RCTs (2527 women) were included in this review. The evidence showed that FKQJ combined with antibiotics improved the markedly effective rate compared to antibiotics alone group (RR = 1.38, 95% CI 1.27 to 1.49, I2 = 42%), shortened the improvement time of low abdominal pain (MD = −1.11, 95% CI −1.39 to −0.84, I2 = 38%), and increased the rate of lower abdominal pain improvement (RR = 1.35, 95% CI 1.19 to 1.55, I2 = 0). The implementation of adjuvant reduced the recurrent rate compared with antibiotics alone (RR = 0.27, 95% CI 0.13 to 0.56, I2 = 0%). Conclusions Based on available evidence, FKQJ combined with antibiotics therapy have certain outcomes on increasing the markedly effective rate, decreasing the recurrent rate compared with antibiotics alone group. This therapy appears to improve lower abdominal pain and curtail the relief time. Due to the low quality and the risk of bias, any high-quality evidence or longer follow-up period should be advisable and necessary in the future.
Retinoic acid induces differentiation in neuroblastoma via ROR1 by modulating retinoic acid response elements

Neuroblastoma is the most common inheritable, solid neoplasm in children found under the age of 7 and accounts for approximately 7% of childhood cancers. A common treatment that has been prescribed for over a decade is retinoid therapy [using all-trans retinoic acid (RA)]. Treatment with this differentiating agent has been revealed to progress the cells from their stem-cell state to a mature neuronal state gaining classical neuronal characteristics, including the suppression of proliferation. However, the molecular mechanism underlying the action of RA treatment remains to be elucidated. In the present study, a novel mechanism of RA-induced differentiation via regulation of receptor tyrosine kinase-like orphan receptor 1 (ROR1) is reported. ROR1 is overexpressed in neuroblastoma but significantly downregulated in mature differentiated neurons. Hence, it was hypothesized that RA may modulate ROR1 leading to differentiation and termination of cancerous properties. Immunoblotting revealed that following RA treatment, ROR1 levels initially increased then sharply decreased by 96 h. This was paired with synaptophysin, a mature neuron marker, sharply increasing concurrently, providing evidence of differentiation by 96 h. Investigation of the ROR1 pathway confirmed ROR1-dependent downstream activation of the PI3K/AKT signaling axis, a growth pathway previously demonstrated to promote differentiation. Chromatin immunoprecipitation revealed an increase in RAR binding to the promoters of ROR1 and its endogenous ligand, Wnt5a. This research provided compelling evidence that RA is able to modulate the expression of ROR1 and Wnt5a to promote differentiation through the expression of synaptophysin. This data combined with the overarching data from the scientific community regarding proliferation and other proliferative factors in early-stage neurons provides a more in-depth model of the process of differentiation in neurons.
Predictive Value of Red Blood Cell Distribution Width in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Patients with Pulmonary Embolism

Purpose This study is aimed at investigating the relationship between red cell distribution width (RDW) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients with pulmonary embolism (PE). Methods We conducted a retrospective study enrolling a total of 125 patients from January 2013 to December 2019. The study group consisted of 40 COPD patients with PE, and the control group had 85 COPD patients without PE. Clinical data including demographic characteristics, comorbidities, and results of imaging examinations and laboratory tests were recorded. Blood biomarkers, including red blood cell distribution width standard deviation (RDW-SD), red blood cell distribution width coefficient of variation (RDW-CV), and D-Dimer, were included. Results RDW-SD and RDW-CV were higher in the COPD patients with the PE group (p < 0.001). A higher RDW-SD led to a significantly increased risk of PE than a lower RDW-SD (adjusted odds ratio (OR): 1.188; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.048-1.348). The area under the curve (AUC) of RDW-SD used for predicting PE was 0.737. Using 44.55 as the cutoff value of RDW-SD, the sensitivity was 80% and the specificity was 64.7%. The prediction accuracy of RDW-SD combined with D-Dimer (AUC = 0.897) was higher than that of RDW-SD or D-Dimer alone. The optimal cutoff value of RDW-SD+D-Dimer for predicting PE was 0.266, which generated a sensitivity of 87.5% and specificity of 83.5%. Conclusion RDW is significantly increased in COPD patients with PE and may thus be useful in predicting the occurrence of PE in patients with COPD.
Gluon contribution to hadronic J/ψ production

Using the recent CERN and Fermilab measurements for J/ψ production by π±, K±, p and p beams we show, within the framework of QCD, that only a combined version of light quark qq→cc fusion and gluon gg→cc fusion mechanisms can account for the various total cross section beam ratios as well as for the observed xF‐distributions.
A bis­(benzene­dithiol­ate)-bridged dinuclear RhIII complex with capping triphenyl­phosphine ligands and an Rh2S2 core

The title compound, bis­(μ-benzene-1,2-dithiol­ato)bis­[(2-mercaptobenzene­thiol­ato)triphenyl­phosphine)rhodium(III)] dichloro­methane tetra­solvate, [Rh2(C6H4S2)2(C6H5S2)2(C18H15)2]·4CH2Cl2, isolated from the reaction of Wilkinson's catalyst RhCl(PPh3)3 and benzo[1,3,2]dithia­borole, is a neutral dinuclear species with two bridging benzene­dithiol­ate ligands and two 2-mercaptobenzene­thiol­ate ligands chelating each RhIII ion. This compound is derived from decomposition of the borole derivative after its oxidative addition to RhI. The compound crystallizes as the dichloro­methane tetra­solvate. The molecule is centrosymmetric. The Rh—S distances in the Rh2S2 core are inequivalent, measuring 2.383 (1) and 2.409 (1) A.
3D Reconstruction of Images Based on Embedded Processors

3D image reconstruction has very important value in reality. In this paper, based on embedded system, we use Marching Cubes algorithm to realize 3D image reconstruction and furthermore, display the result in web page. By introducing principle and whole process of reconstruction, we can prove that comparing with personal computer, this method has advantage of lower price, small volume, and has good prospect in future.
Leftovers : Tales of the Latin American Left

I. REVISITING THE UTOPIA 1. The current state of the Utopia, Jorge G. Castaneda & Marco A. Morales (NYU) 2. Have Latin Americans turned Left? , Marco A. Morales (NYU) II. WHAT HAS THE LEFT DONE RIGHT (OR WRONG)? 3. Ecumenism and Diversity: A Tale of economic and Trade Policies of the New Left, Diana Tussie & Pablo Heidrich (FLACSO-Argentina) 4. Social Policy, Jose Merino (NYU) 5. Nationalism, Jorge G. Castaneda, Marco A Morales & Patricio Navia (NYU) III. CASE STUDIES 6. The New and the Old in Brazil's PT, Gianpaolo Baiocchi & Sofia Checa (University of Massachusetts-Amherst) 7. The Successful Chilean Left: Neo-Liberal and Socialist, Patricio Navia (NYU) 8. Uruguay, a role model for the Left? , David Altman & Juan Pablo Luna (Universidad Catolica de Chile) Rosana Castiglioni (Universidad Diego Portales) 9. Venezuela: the left turning further left? , Raul Sanchez-Urribarri (University of South Carolina) 10. The left in Peru: Wagons that Lack an Engine, Martin Tanaka (Instituto de Estudios Peruanos, Peru) 11. The Evolution of the Mexican Left, Kathleen Bruhn (University of California -Santa Barbara) IV. PROGNOSIS 12. Where do we go now? , Jorge G. Castaneda (NYU)
Allium sativum: four step approach to efficient micropropagation

The present study discusses an efficient and improved regeneration protocol for garlic ( Allium sativum L.). Callus was induced from stem disc explants on B-5 Gamborg’s medium supplemented with different concentrations of 2, 4-D either alone or in combination with cytokinins (BAP, Kin, 2-iP) or auxins (NAA and IAA). Medium supplemented with 13.60 µM or 22.66 µM 2, 4-D was found optimal for callus induction. Improved regeneration of shoots and bulblets was observed after passing the callus sequentially through callus induction medium (CIM), callus proliferation medium (CPM) and regeneration medium (B-5 basal medium augmented with 2.45 µM 2iP and 0.537 µM NAA). Proper maturation of bulblets occurred on medium containing 6% sucrose. Mature and air-dried bulblets were sown directly into soil without any acclimatization step with 80-90% success rate. This improved micropropagation protocol for garlic could be utilized for propagation of elite genotype at commercial-scale as one single bulb can give rise to approx. 1200 bulblets.
In vitro assessment of natural plant extracts Withania somnifera, Cassia fistula, Saraca asoca, and Eucalyptus tereticornis using primary chicken embryo fibroblast cell culture treated with urea or mercuric chloride (II)

The present investigation examined the detoxifying potential of methanolic herbal extracts, namely the leaf and bark extract of Eucalyptus tereticornis, bark extract of Saraca asoca, Cassia fistula and Withania somnifera in vitro using primary chicken embryo fibroblast (CEF) cells against damaging effects of urea and mercuric chloride (HgCl) (II). The influence of 20 mM urea and 10 µM HgCl (II) was determined on cell viability or proliferation of cells after treatment with plant extracts. Higher survival rate of primary CEF cells treated with higher concentrations of plant extracts was observed due to their protective ability against urea and HgCl (II). Cassia fistula bark extract (10 mg mL−1) was found to be most effective against 20 mM urea as it protects 90% of CEF cells whereas W. somnifera protects 86% of the cells within 24 h. After treating cells with10 µM HgCl, W. somnifera and E. tereticornis leaf extracts were found to be more effective among all other extracts as they protect approximately 86% and 70% of CEF cells, respectively, within 24 h. These results indicate that C. fistula and W. somnifera has the highest potential amongst all the five plant extracts for protecting CEF cells against damaging effects of urea and HgCl (II), respectively.