Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
CD63 is regulated by iron via the IRE-IRP system and is important for ferritin secretion by extracellular vesicles

The interplay between intracellular and extracellular ferritin is not well understood despite the recognition 3 years ago that cellular ferritin can be exported into plasma by the exosome pathway. Yanatori et al report new insights into the triggers for ferritin secretion and how this is coordinated with iron metabolism. They demonstrate that CD63, a tetraspanin protein and constituent of extracellular vesicles, is induced by iron and in turn that this increases the secretion by various cells of CD63- positive extracellular vesicles containing iron-loaded ferritin.
Early centralized isolation strategy for all confirmed cases of COVID-19 remains a core intervention to disrupt the pandemic spreading significantly

Background In response to the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), plenty of control measures were proposed. To assess the impact of current control measures on the number of new case indices 14 countries with the highest confirmed cases, highest mortality rate, and having a close relationship with the outbreak’s origin; were selected and analyzed. Methods In the study, we analyzed the impact of five control measures, including centralized isolation of all confirmed cases, closure of schools, closure of public areas, closure of cities, and closure of borders of the 14 targeted countries according to their timing; by comparing its absolute effect average, its absolute effect cumulative, and its relative effect average. Results Our analysis determined that early centralized isolation of all confirmed cases was represented as a core intervention in significantly disrupting the pandemic’s spread. This strategy helped in successfully controlling the early stage of the outbreak when the total number of cases were under 100, without the requirement of the closure of cities and public areas, which would impose a negative impact on the society and its economy. However, when the number of cases increased with the apparition of new clusters, coordination between centralized isolation and non-pharmaceutical interventions facilitated control of the crisis efficiently. Conclusion Early centralized isolation of all confirmed cases should be implemented at the time of the first detected infectious case.
Characterizations of Activated Carbon−Methanol Adsorption Pair Including the Heat of Adsorptions

This paper presents adsorption isotherms and isosteric heats of adsorption for methanol vapor adsorption for two commercially available activated carbon samples—207EA granules and WS-480 pellets (Calgon Carbon, U.S.A.)—which were also fully characterized using nitrogen sorption at 77 K. The heat of adsorption of methanol as a function of loading was determined using the Clausius–Clapeyron approach with isotherms obtained at 5 °C, 15 °C, and 25 °C. The isosteric heats of adsorption increased sharply at the small coverage due to increasing effect of condensation heat with coverage. The heat reached a maximum and then varies little with loading, with the average values at around 46.6 kJ/mol for 207EA and 45.1 kJ/mol for WS-480. The higher heats of adsorption for the former activated carbon reflect its more microporous nature (around 78 % compare to 62 % for WS-480 activated carbon). The heat of adsorption data is also comparable to that obtained elsewhere for other activated carbons.
Severe Pain Profiles and Associated Sociodemographic and Clinical Characteristics in Individuals With Sickle Cell Disease

Objective: The aim of this study was to identify classes of individuals with sickle cell disease (SCD) who share distinct severe pain profiles and evaluate differences in demographic, clinical, and psychosocial characteristics between classes. Methods: This exploratory, cross-sectional study used data collected for the SCD Implementation Consortium Research Registry at Duke University. Using Adult Sickle Cell Quality of Life-Measurement System pain-item data from 291 adults with SCD, latent class analysis was used to determine classes of individuals sharing distinct severe pain profiles. Bivariate analyses and logistic regression models were used to assess the relationships between pain profile classes and demographic, clinical, and psychosocial characteristics. Results: Three classes sharing distinct severe pain profiles were identified: Low Frequency and Impact class (n=73), Moderate Frequency and Impact class (n=94), and High Frequency and Impact class (n=124). When compared with the Low Frequency and Impact class and controlling for age and sex, individuals in the Moderate Frequency and Impact class were more likely to: be female (P=0.031) and unemployed (P=0.013); report worse sleep (P=0.005) and social functioning (P=0.005); have less emotional distress (P=0.004); describe pain as “sore” (P=0.002); and have previous SCD-related lung complications (P=0.016). When compared with the Low Frequency and Impact class, individuals in the High Frequency and Impact class: had worse social functioning (P<0.001) and previous SCD-related lung complications (P=0.006); described pain as “sore” (P<0.001); and were taking pain medication daily for SCD (P=0.001). Discussion: Severe pain experiences in SCD are complex; however, there are subgroups of people who report similar experiences of severe pain.
Prediction of Prognosis in Glioblastoma Using Radiomics Features of Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced MRI

Objective To develop a radiomics risk score based on dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) MRI for prognosis prediction in patients with glioblastoma. Materials and Methods One hundred and fifty patients (92 male [61.3%]; mean age ± standard deviation, 60.5 ± 13.5 years) with glioblastoma who underwent preoperative MRI were enrolled in the study. Six hundred and forty-two radiomic features were extracted from volume transfer constant (Ktrans), fractional volume of vascular plasma space (Vp), and fractional volume of extravascular extracellular space (Ve) maps of DCE MRI, wherein the regions of interest were based on both T1-weighted contrast-enhancing areas and non-enhancing T2 hyperintense areas. Using feature selection algorithms, salient radiomic features were selected from the 642 features. Next, a radiomics risk score was developed using a weighted combination of the selected features in the discovery set (n = 105); the risk score was validated in the validation set (n = 45) by investigating the difference in prognosis between the “radiomics risk score” groups. Finally, multivariable Cox regression analysis for progression-free survival was performed using the radiomics risk score and clinical variables as covariates. Results 16 radiomic features obtained from non-enhancing T2 hyperintense areas were selected among the 642 features identified. The radiomics risk score was used to stratify high- and low-risk groups in both the discovery and validation sets (both p < 0.001 by the log-rank test). The radiomics risk score and presence of isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) mutation showed independent associations with progression-free survival in opposite directions (hazard ratio, 3.56; p = 0.004 and hazard ratio, 0.34; p = 0.022, respectively). Conclusion We developed and validated the “radiomics risk score” from the features of DCE MRI based on non-enhancing T2 hyperintense areas for risk stratification of patients with glioblastoma. It was associated with progression-free survival independently of IDH mutation status.
Chirality matters: stereo-defined phosphorothioate linkages at the termini of small interfering RNAs improve pharmacology in vivo

Abstract A critical challenge for the successful development of RNA interference-based therapeutics therapeutics has been the enhancement of their in vivo metabolic stability. In therapeutically relevant, fully chemically modified small interfering RNAs (siRNAs), modification of the two terminal phosphodiester linkages in each strand of the siRNA duplex with phosphorothioate (PS) is generally sufficient to protect against exonuclease degradation in vivo. Since PS linkages are chiral, we systematically studied the properties of siRNAs containing single chiral PS linkages at each strand terminus. We report an efficient and simple method to introduce chiral PS linkages and demonstrate that Rp diastereomers at the 5′ end and Sp diastereomers at the 3′ end of the antisense siRNA strand improved pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties in a mouse model. In silico modeling studies provide mechanistic insights into how the Rp isomer at the 5′ end and Sp isomer at the 3′ end of the antisense siRNA enhance Argonaute 2 (Ago2) loading and metabolic stability of siRNAs in a concerted manner.
Preparation and characterization of new phases in Na-(U0.5Pu0.5)-Mo-O and Na-(ThxU1−x)-Mo-O (x = 0.5 and 0.8) systems by X-ray and thermal methods

Abstract Na2(ThxU1−x)(MoO4)3 and Na4(ThxU1−x)(MoO4)4 (x = 0.5 and 0.8) were synthesized, by reacting (ThxU1−x)(MoO4)2 with Na2MoO4 in appropriate molar ratios at 873 K in an evacuated quartz ampoule for 25 h. While Na2(U0.5Pu0.5)(MoO4)3 and Na4(U0.5Pu0.5)(MoO4)4 were synthesized, by reacting (U0.5Pu0.5)(MoO4)2 with Na2MoO4 in appropriate molar ratios at 873 K in argon atmosphere for 45 h. The crystal structure of these compounds were derived from powder XRD data in a tetragonal system (space group: I41/a) by Rietveld profile method. Thermogravimetric curves of Na2(ThxU1−x)(MoO4)3 and Na4(ThxU1−x)(MoO4)4 did not show any weight changes up to 973 K in helium atmosphere. High temperature X-ray diffraction (HTXRD) studies of Na2(ThxU1−x)(MoO4)3 and Na4(ThxU1−x)(MoO4)4 in vacuum showed positive thermal expansion in the temperature range of 298 to 873 K.
Climbing Performance in U23 and Professional Cyclists during a Multi-stage Race

Abstract The aim of this study was to analyze climbing performance across two editions of a professional multistage race, and assess the influence of climb category, prior workload, and intensity measures on climbing performance in U23 and professional cyclists. Nine U23 cyclists (age 20.8±0.9 years) and 8 professional cyclists (28.1±3.2 years) participated in this study. Data were divided into four types: overall race performance, climb category, climbing performance metrics (power output, ascent velocity, speed), and workload and intensity measures. Differences in performance metrics and workload and intensity measures between groups were investigated. Power output, ascent velocity, speed were higher in professionals than U23 cyclists for Cat 1 and Cat 2 (p≤0.001–0.016). Workload and intensity measures (Worktotal, Worktotal∙km-1, Elevationgain, eTRIMP and eTRIMP∙km-1) were higher in U23 compared to professionals (p=0.002–0.014). Climbing performance metrics were significantly predicted by prior workload and intensity measures for Cat 1 and 2 (R2=0.27–0.89, p≤0.001–0.030) but not Cat 3. These findings reveal that climbing performance in professional road cycling is influenced by climb categorization as well as prior workload and intensity measures. Combined, these findings suggest that Cat 1 and 2 climbing performance could be predicted from workload and intensity measures.
Review of Statistical Methods for Evaluating the Performance of Survival or Other Time-to-Event Prediction Models (from Conventional to Deep Learning Approaches)

The recent introduction of various high-dimensional modeling methods, such as radiomics and deep learning, has created a much greater diversity in modeling approaches for survival prediction (or, more generally, time-to-event prediction). The newness of the recent modeling approaches and unfamiliarity with the model outputs may confuse some researchers and practitioners about the evaluation of the performance of such models. Methodological literacy to critically appraise the performance evaluation of the models and, ideally, the ability to conduct such an evaluation would be needed for those who want to develop models or apply them in practice. This article intends to provide intuitive, conceptual, and practical explanations of the statistical methods for evaluating the performance of survival prediction models with minimal usage of mathematical descriptions. It covers from conventional to deep learning methods, and emphasis has been placed on recent modeling approaches. This review article includes straightforward explanations of C indices (Harrell's C index, etc.), time-dependent receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, calibration plot, other methods for evaluating the calibration performance, and Brier score.
Admission Rates Following Day-Case Major Otologic Surgery: A Systematic Review

Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text Objective: To assess whether day-case major otologic ear surgery is a safe and feasible alternative to inpatient surgery, while maintaining equal complication rates, and to identify causes of admission after day-case surgery. Data sources: PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane. Review methods: A systematic search was conducted. Studies reporting original data on the effect of day-case ear surgery on admission rate, patient satisfaction, and/or postoperative complications were included. Risk of bias of the selected articles was assessed using criteria based on the Cochrane Collaboration's tool for assessing risk of bias. Results: A total of 1,734 unique studies were retrieved of which 35 articles discussing 34 studies were eligible for data extraction. The admission rates ranged from 0% to 88% following day-case endaural surgery, 0% to 13% following day-case stapes surgery, 0% to 82% following day-case mastoid surgery, and 0% to 15% following day-case cochlear implant surgery. Patient and parent satisfaction regarding day-case surgery ranged from 67% to 99%. Five studies comparing day-case and inpatient otologic surgery showed no difference in hearing outcome, postoperative complications, or patient satisfaction. Conclusion: The highest pooled admission rate was seen following day-case mastoid surgery. Studies comparing day-case and inpatient care suggest hearing results and postoperative complication rates in day-case otologic surgery are similar to inpatient otologic surgery in both children and adults. Therefore, day-case major otologic surgery seems to be a safe and feasible alternative to inpatient surgery for both children and adults.
Appropriateness of psychiatric advance directives facilitated by peer support specialists and clinicians on Assertive Community Treatment teams

Abstract Background Psychiatric advance directives (PADs) are used to document a person’s treatment preferences for a future mental health crisis. Peer support specialists have been proposed to facilitate PADs, but little is known about the quality of peer versus clinician facilitated PADs. Aims This study examined whether PAD documents facilitated by peer specialists and non-peer clinicians differed in the mix of treatment requests and refusals and expert ratings of feasibility and consistency. Methods Analyses were conducted of content and expert ratings of 72 PAD documents from a randomized trial of PAD facilitation by peers and clinicians on Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) teams. A count of treatment refusals and requests was used to classify documents as predominantly prescriptive, proscriptive, or balanced. Regression was used to estimate relationships between PAD facilitator type and content. Results Peer-facilitated PADs were significantly more likely to be predominantly prescriptive than were PADs facilitated by non-peer clinicians. Prescriptive PADs were more likely to receive expert ratings of high feasibility and consistency. Conclusions Results should alleviate some clinicians’ apprehensions regarding the appropriateness of peer-facilitated PADs, such as the concern that people with lived experience with mental illness might encourage other consumers to use their PAD primarily for treatment refusals.
Hippocampus chronic deep brain stimulation induces reversible transcript changes in a macaque model of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy

Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text Abstract Background: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) has seizure-suppressing effects but the molecular mechanisms underlying its therapeutic action remain unclear. This study aimed to systematically elucidate the mechanisms underlying DBS-induced seizure suppression at a molecular level. Methods: We established a macaque model of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (mTLE), and continuous high-frequency hippocampus DBS (hip-DBS) was applied for 3 months. The effects of hip-DBS on hippocampus gene expression were examined using high-throughput microarray analysis followed by bioinformatics analysis. Moreover, the microarray results were validated using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and Western blot analyses. Results: The results showed that chronic hip-DBS modulated the hippocampal gene expression. We identified 4119 differentially expressed genes and assigned these genes to 16 model profiles. Series test of cluster analysis showed that profiles 5, 3, and 2 were the predominant expression profiles. Moreover, profile 5 was mainly involved in focal adhesion and extracellular matrix-receptor interaction pathway. Nine dysregulated genes (Arhgap5, Col1a2, Itgb1, Pik3r1, Lama4, Fn1, Col3a1, Itga9, and Shc4) and three genes (Col1a2, Itgb1, and Flna) in these two pathways were further validated by qRT-PCR and Western blot analyses, respectively, which showed a concordance. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that hip-DBS could markedly reverse mTLE-induced abnormal gene expression. Findings from this study establish the basis for further investigation of the underlying regulatory mechanisms of DBS for mTLE.
99mTc‐labeled antibiotics for infection diagnosis: Mechanism, action, and progress

Discovery of penicillin marked a turning point in the history of infection therapy which also led to the emergence of bacterial resistance. It is now 100 years to fight with ever‐muted variants of pathogens by developing more and more antibiotics. Since 1987 to todate, no successful class of antibiotic was introduced; this three decade period is known as “the discovery void” period. While, the clinically approved antibiotics are gradually dying in front of bacterial resistance due to which bacterial infections are appearing leading cause of death and disability. Nuclear medicine imaging technique is the strongest modality to diagnose and follow‐up of deep‐seated and complicated infections. However, the selection of radiolabeled antimicrobial agents plays critical role in gaining sensitivity and specificity of the imaging results. This review comprises of two main sections; first section explains antibiotic targets, and second section explains the imaging efficacy of 99mTc‐labeled antimicrobial agents against bacterial infection along with the emphasis on progress and update of 99mTc‐labeled antibiotics as infection imaging probes. The review, in conclusion, could be an acceleration for radiopharmaceutical chemists for designing and developing 99mTc‐labeled antimicrobial agents to improve infection imaging quality.
Noninvasive continuous arterial pressure monitoring during anesthesia induction in patients undergoing cardiac surgery

Objective: In this study we compared noninvasive arterial pressure measurement using ClearSight™ vascular-unloading-technique (Edwards Lifesciences Corp, Irvine, CA) with invasive arterial pressure measurement during induction of anesthesia undergoing mayor cardiac surgery. Design: Prospective, monocentric. Setting: University hospital. Participants: 54 patients undergoing mayor cardiac surgery. Interventions: During induction all patients were simultaneously monitored with invasive (reference method) and noninvasive arterial pressure measurement (test-method) over a mean time period of 27 minutes. Measurements and Main Results: We observed slightly lower systolic and mean arterial pressures noninvasive than invasive. For systolic arterial pressure the mean of the differences was -18,05 mmHg (p < 0,05, SD ±16,78 mmHg), the mean arterial pressure MAP -5,47 mmHg (p < 0,05, SD ±11,08 mmHg) and for diastolic pressure -1,09 mmHg (p < 0,05, SD±11,15 mmHg),. The mean of the differences in heartrate was 1,15 (p < 0,05, SD±6,9 mmHg). When considering all measured values of the invasively measured MAP and the ClearSight ™ -MAP at the same timestamp over the recording interval, an almost identical progress can be seen that indicates a sufficient mapping of the hemodynamic changes. The percentage error for mean arterial, systolic and diastolic pressure measured by ClearSight™ amounts to 25,95 %, 26,77 % and 34,16 %, respectively. Conclusions: We conclude that ClearSight ™ is a good option for hemodynamic monitoring during induction of anesthesia. Taking into account the limitations, non-invasive arterial blood pressure measurement offers sufficient security to safely initiate anesthesia, especially when MAP is of particular interest. The use of non-invasive arterial blood pressure measurement with ClearSight ™ during induction of anesthesia in patients scheduled for major cardiac surgery is reliable and easy to use.
Optical properties of nanosized ZnO films prepared by sol-gel process

Nanosized ZnO films were prepared by sol-gel process on quartz substrates. The effects of sol concentration and annealing temperature on the surface morphology,microstructure and optical properties of the films were investigated. The results show that the sols remain stable and usable for spin-coating within 7 d. The ZnO films have a homogeneous and dense surface with grain size about 30 nm. The ZnO thin film annealed at 500 ℃ for 1 h from the sol with Zn concentration of 0.8 mol/L shows an average transmittance of 94% in visible wavelength range. The optical band gaps in ZnO films by various annealing temperatures are from 3.265 eV to 3.293 eV. The violet emission located at 438 nm is probably due to the recombination transitions relating to the interface traps at the grain boundaries.
Perceptions of Arguments in Support of Policies to Reduce Sugary Drink Consumption Among Low-Income White, Black and Latinx Parents of Young Children

Purpose: To test for racial/ethnic differences in perceived argument strength in favor of structural interventions to curb childhood obesity among lower-income parents of young children. Design: Cross-sectional, self-report. Setting: Online research panel, national sample of 1485 US adults in Fall 2019. Participants: Parents of children (age 0-5 years) with an annual income <$40,000, stratified by White, Black and/or Latinx race/ethnicity. Measures: SSB consumption, policy support, and strength of arguments in favor of marketing restrictions and a penny-per-ounce tax. Analysis: Descriptive statistics, multivariable OLS models. Results: Race/ethnicity was not a significant predictor of the perceived strength of a composite of marketing arguments (pBlack = 0.07; pLatinx = 0.10), however it was a significant predictor of the perceived strength of tax arguments (pBlack = 0.01; pLatinx = 0.01). Perceptions of strength of 12 of 35 discrete SSB tax arguments differed by race/ethnicity (p < .05). Arguments regarding industry targeting of Black children (marketing: pBlack < .001; pLatinx = .001; tax: pBlack < .001; pLatinx = .001), were particularly demonstrative of this difference. In contrast, arguments that these policies would provide support for parents (marketing: pBlack = 0.20; pLatinx = 0.84) and communities (tax: pBlack = 0.24; pLatinx = 0.58) were seen as strong arguments across groups. Conclusions: Black and Hispanic/Latinx parents may be more prepared to move toward SSB policy support than white parents. Emphasizing community benefits of policy may be effective in moving constituents toward policy support across groups.