Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fuel Bed Alterations by Thinning, Chipping, and Prescription Fire in a Sierra Nevada Mixed Conifer Stand

Thinning using cut-to-length harvesting coupled with on-site slash chipping and redistribution and followed by prescribed underburning were assessed for their impacts on downed and dead fuels in an eastern Sierra Nevada mixed conifer stand. California white fir (Abies concolor var. lowiana [Gord.] Lemm.) dominated stand composition and was targeted in the thinning operation while Jeffrey pine (Pinus jeffreyi Grev. & Balf.), sugar pine (Pinus lambertiana Dougl.), incense-cedar (Libocedrus decurrens Torr.), and California red fir (Abies magnifica A. Murr.) were less prevalent. Thinning increased total fuel loading 6% and bed depth 14% but the chipping operation confined the additions to the 1+10-hr and 100-hr timelag categories. Subsequent underburning consumed the fuels produced by the mechanical treatments plus a substantial portion of the preexisting load, and the resulting reduction in total loading was almost twice that combusted in the absence of the thinning and chipping operations. Among an array of regression models used to evaluate assorted variables for their predictive capacity regarding downed and dead fuels, positive correlations between both 1+10-hr and total fuels prior to treatment and pretreatment basal area were prominent. Results reported here quantify fuel load modifications from management practices that are being increasingly utilized to enhance stand health and fire resilience in the Lake Tahoe Basin and surrounding forests.
Snacking in Japanese nursery school children aged 3–6 years: its characteristics and contribution to overall dietary intake

Abstract Objective: This cross-sectional study evaluated the dietary characteristics of snacks, the contribution of snacks to daily nutrient intake and the association of energy intake (EI) from snacks with the prevalence of nutritional inadequacy in Japanese nursery school children. Design: Foods and nutrients consumed in each eating occasion were assessed by 3-d dietary records. The prevalence of inadequate intake of twenty nutrients assessed by the age- and sex-specific reference values in the Japanese Dietary Reference Intakes was compared according to tertile categories of EI from snacks. Setting: A multi-regional dietary survey based on nursery schools in Japan. Participants A total of 187 boys and 191 girls aged 3–6 years. Results: EI from snacks accounted for 19·5 % (sd 6·9) of total daily EI. Confectionaries accounted for the largest part of EI from snacks (35·3 %), followed by milk (19·5 %). Relative to their energy contribution, snacks accounted for a small proportion for all nutrients examined, except for free sugar, calcium, SFA and riboflavin. Although a higher EI from snacks was associated with favourable profiles for intakes of calcium, iron, thiamine and riboflavin, excessive intakes of free sugar and Na were more prevalent among children with a higher EI from snacks. Conclusions: Although snacks are effective in meeting the requirement of some nutrients among Japanese nursery school children, snacks are generally not nutrient-dense and have an impact on excessive intake of some nutrients. There is hence room for improvement in food choices at snack time.
Insights into the Polyhexamethylene Biguanide (PHMB) Mechanism of Action on Bacterial Membrane and DNA: A Molecular Dynamics Study

Polyhexamethylene biguanide (PHMB) is a cationic polymer with antimicrobial and antiviral properties. It has been commonly accepted that the antimicrobial activity is due the ability of PHMB to perforate the bacterial phospholipid membrane leading ultimately to its death. In this study we show by the means of atomistic molecular dynamics (MD) simulations that while the PHMB molecules attach to the surface of the phospholipid bilayer and partially penetrate it, they do not cause any pore formation at least within the microsecond simulation times. The polymers initially adsorb onto the membrane surface via the favourable electrostatic interactions between the phospholipid headgroups and the biguanide groups, and then partially penetrate the membrane slightly disrupting its structure. This, however, does not lead to the formation of any pores. The microsecond-scale simulations reveal that it is unlikely for PHMB to spontaneously pass through the phospholipid membrane. Our findings suggest that PHMB translocation across the bilayer may take place through binding to the phospholipids. Once inside the cell, the polymer can effectively ‘bind’ to DNA through extensive interactions with DNA phosphate backbone, which can potentially block the DNA replication process or activate DNA repair pathways. TOC Graphic
Microfluidic device for concentration and SERS‐based detection of bacteria in drinking water

There is a constant need for the development of easy‐to‐operate systems for the rapid and unambiguous identification of bacterial pathogens in drinking water without the requirement for time‐consuming culture processes. In this study, we present a disposable and low‐cost lab‐on‐a‐chip device utilizing a nanoporous membrane, which connects two stacked perpendicular microfluidic channels. Whereas one of the channels supplies the sample, the second one attracts it by potential‐driven forces. Surface‐enhanced Raman spectrometry (SERS) is employed as a reliable detection method for bacteria identification. To gain the effect of surface enhancement, silver nanoparticles were added to the sample. The pores of the membrane act as a filter trapping the bodies of microorganisms as well as clusters of nanoparticles creating suitable conditions for sensitive SERS detection. Therein, we focused on the construction and characterization of the device performance. To demonstrate the functionality of the microfluidic chip, we analyzed common pathogens (Escherichia coli DH5α and Pseudomonas taiwanensis VLB120) from spiked tap water using the optimized experimental parameters. The obtained results confirmed our system to be promising for the construction of a disposable optical platform for reliable and rapid pathogen detection which couples their electrokinetic concentration on the integrated nanoporous membrane with SERS detection.
Integration Through Connecting in Explanatory Sequential Mixed Method Studies

The purposes of this methods article are to (a) discuss how integration can occur through a connecting approach in explanatory sequential mixed methods studies, (b) describe a connecting strategy developed for a study testing a conceptual model to predict lung cancer screening, and (c) describe three analytic products developed by subsequent integration procedures enabled by the connecting strategy. Connecting occurs when numeric data from a quantitative strand of a study are used to select a sample to be interviewed for a subsequent qualitative strand. Because researchers often do not fully exploit numeric data for this purpose, we developed a multi-step systematic sampling strategy that produced an interview sample of eight subgroups of five persons (n = 40) whose profiles converged with or diverged from the conceptual model in specified ways. The subgroups facilitated the development of tailored interview guides, in-depth narrative summaries, and exemplar case studies to expand the quantitative findings.
The Effect of Web-Based Nursing Process Teaching on Senior Nursing Students' Care Planning Skills.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effect of web-based nursing process teaching on senior nursing students' care plan preparation skills. METHODS Pretest-posttest intervention design was used. A total of 131 senior nursing students were evaluated for 5 weeks. Data were collected using a datasheet, a nursing care plan (pretest-posttest), and a self-efficacy form. FINDINGS The intervention group had significantly higher data collection, planning stage scores, and a total care plan score than the others. The intervention group was competent in all self-efficacy items, except the one concerning prioritizing nursing diagnoses. CONCLUSIONS Web-based nursing process teaching offered with the curriculum helps students to develop care planning skills. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE It is necessary to focus on different teaching methods and using standardized terminology in teaching the nursing process.
Prostate‐specific membrane antigen expression in the vasculature of primary lung carcinomas associates with faster metastatic dissemination to the brain

Glioblastomas and brain metastases (BM) of solid tumours are the most common central nervous system neoplasms associated with very unfavourable prognosis. In this study, we report the association of prostate‐specific membrane antigen (PSMA) with various clinical parameters in a large cohort of primary and secondary brain tumours. A tissue microarray containing 371 cases of ascending grades of gliomas pertaining to astrocytic origin and samples of 52 cases of primary lung carcinomas with matching BM with follow‐up time accounting to 10.4 years was evaluated for PSMA expression using immunohistochemistry. In addition, PSMA expression was studied in BM arising from melanomas and breast carcinomas. Neovascular expression of PSMA was evident alongside with high expression in the proliferating microvasculature of glioblastomas when compared to the tumour cell expression. This result correlated with the results obtained from the in silico (cancer genome databases) analyses. In gliomas, only the vascular expression of PSMA associated with poor overall survival but not the tumour cell expression. In the matched primary lung cancers and their BM (n = 52), vascular PSMA expression in primary tumours associated with significantly accelerated metastatic dissemination to the brain with a tendency towards poor overall survival. Taken together, we report that the vascular expression of PSMA in the primary and secondary brain tumours globally associates with the malignant progression and poor outcome of the patients.
Food Preferences of Dominant Salt Marsh Herbivores and Detritivores

Food preferences of six dominant salt marsh invertebrates were studied to identify detritivores and to assess differences in their diets. Animals fed on agar suspensions of dead and live foods in petri dishes with four compartments. Only two foods were included in each dish. Relative palatability was assessed by measuring the amount of suspension removed or by counting the number of feeding marks left on the surface of the suspensions. Feeding marks reflected differences in mouth parts and feeding mechanisms of the six invertebrates. Melampus bidentatus, Orchestia grillus, and Philoscia vittata preferred dead litter over live tissues of marsh graminoids, blue-green algae, and sulfur bacteria. No preference for detritus from different graminoids was shown by M. bidentatus. Orchestia grillus fed preferentially on Spartina patens detritus. Philoscia vittata preferred detritus from S. alterniflora and S. patens. Blue-green algae and sulfur bacteria were preferred over detritus by Littorina saxatalis, but detritus was preferred over live graminoids. Littorina saxatalis fed preferentially on Juncus gerardi detritus. Blue-green algae, sulfur bacteria, and live graminoids were preferred over detritus by L. littorea. Talorchestia longicornis also preferred blue-green algae. On the basis of their food preferences, Littorina saxatalis, Melampus bidentatus, Orchestia grillus, and Philoscia vittata were classified as detritivores. Feeding on detritus from different plant species could result in a partitioning of this food resource in the detritus-based food chains of the salt marsh ecosystem.
Comparing Training Techniques in Personal Protective Equipment Use

Abstract Introduction: Physicians’ management of hazardous material (HAZMAT) incidents requires personal protective equipment (PPE) utilization to ensure the safety of victims, facilities, and providers; therefore, providing effective and accessible training in its use is crucial. While an emphasis has been placed on the importance of PPE, there is debate about the most effective training methods. Circumstances may not allow for a traditional in-person demonstration; an accessible video training may provide a useful alternative. Hypothesis: Video training of Emergency Medicine (EM) residents in the donning and doffing of Level C PPE is more effective than in-person training. Null Hypothesis: Video training of EM residents in the donning and doffing of Level C PPE is equally effective compared with in-person training. Methods: A randomized, controlled pilot trial was performed with 20 EM residents as part of their annual Emergency Preparedness training. Residents were divided into four groups, with Group 1 and Group 2 viewing a demonstration video developed by the Emergency Preparedness Team (EPT) and Group 3 and Group 4 receiving the standard in-person demonstration training by an EPT member. The groups then separately performed a donning and doffing simulation while blinded evaluators assessed critical tasks utilizing a prepared evaluation tool. At the drill’s conclusion, all participants also completed a self-evaluation survey about their subjective interpretations of their respective trainings. Results: Both video and in-person training modalities showed significant overall improvement in participants’ confidence in doffing and donning PPE equipment (P <.05). However, no statistically significant difference was found in the number of failed critical tasks in donning or doffing between the training modalities (P >.05). Based on these results, the null hypothesis cannot be rejected. However, these results were limited by the small sample size and the study was not sufficiently powered to show a difference between training modalities. Conclusion: In this pilot study, video and in-person training were equally effective in training for donning and doffing Level C PPE, with similar error rates in both modalities. Further research into this subject with an appropriately powered study is warranted to determine whether this equivalence persists using a larger sample size.
MODELING PROTEIN SYNTHESIS AND DEPOSITION DURING SWINE GROWTH

ABSTRACT An equation describing protein synthesis as a function of energy and protein intake was developed for a simplified model of swine growth. The equation (rectangular hyperbola) contained four fundamental parameters that had physiological and nutritional significance. The four fundamental parameters were the energy available for protein synthesis, protein available, the minimum energy required to synthesize one kilogram of protein (7.3 MJ/kg) and the efficiency of protein utilization. In a series of calibration runs an expression was developed to describe the efficiency of protein utilization as a function of body weight, energy and protein supply, and the maximum possible rate of protein deposition. The proposed model provided realistic predictions of protein and fat deposition under a wide variety of conditions.
The Mediator Roles of Problematic Internet Use and Perceived Stress Between Health Behaviors and Work-Life Balance Among Internet Users in Germany and China: Web-Based Cross-Sectional Study

Background Work-life balance is associated with health behaviors. In the face of digitalization, understanding this link requires a theory-based investigation of problematic internet use and perceived stress, which are so far unknown. Objective On the basis of the compensatory carry-over action model, this study aimed to determine whether problematic internet use and perceived stress mediate the relationship between health behaviors and work-life balance in two groups of internet users from different environments (residents in Germany and China). We also investigated whether the place of residence was a moderator. Methods An online questionnaire (N=877) was administered to residents from Germany (n=374) and China (n=503) in 3 languages (German, English, and Chinese). Moderated mediation analyses were run with health behaviors as the independent variable, work-life balance as the dependent variable, problematic internet use and perceived stress as the mediator variables, and place of residence as a potential moderator. Results On a mean level, individuals in Germany reported less problematic internet use and more health behaviors than individuals in China; however, they also had lower work-life balance and higher perceived stress. Results showed that health behaviors seem to be directly related to work-life balance in both groups. Among the residents of Germany, a partial mediation was revealed (β=.13; P=.01), whereas among the residents of China, a full mediation was found (β=.02; P=.61). The mediator role of perceived stress was compared with problematic internet use in all the serial models and the parallel model. Residence moderated the relationship between health behaviors and work-life balance: The interrelation between health behaviors and work-life balance was stronger in Germany (β=.19; P<.001) than in China (β=.11; P=.01) when controlling for other variables. Conclusions The findings of this study are in line with the compensatory carry-over action model. To promote work-life balance, individuals should perform health behaviors to help overcome problematic internet use and perceived stress. Both problematic internet use and perceived stress mediated health behaviors and work-life balance partially in German study participants and fully in Chinese study participants.
PRODUCTION DYNAMICS OF RIVERINE CHIRONOMIDS: EXTREMELY HIGH BIOMASS TURNOVER RATES OF PRIMARY CONSUMERS

A critical step in understanding food webs and trophic dynamics of communities is quantification of the role of the primary consumers, and a major aspect of such quantification is determination of their production. Annual production and biomass turnover were estimated for the larval chironomid (midge) assemblage found on the submerged woody (snag) habitat of a Coastal Plain blackwater river. Temperature-specific growth rate equations, generated from field growth studies, were applied to the biomass values from quantitative field samples to obtain mean daily production on a monthly basis throughout the year. The most productive genera were the filtering collectors, Rheotanytarsus (31.1 g dry mass·m−2·yr−1 for snag surface area) and the gathering collectors, Polypedilum (11.3 g·m−2·yr−1) and Rheocricotopus (9.8 g·m−2·yr−1). Total production was 65.4 g·m−2·yr−1 based on summing values of individual taxa, and 69.9 g·m−2·yr−1 when applying a family-level equation to biomass of all taxa. When converted to produ.
Morphological data indicates two major clades of the subtribe Gorteriinae (Asteraceae‐Arctotideae)

The phylogeny of subtribe Gorteriinae (Asteraceae‐Arctotideae) is investigated by means of cladistic analysis of morphological characters. Two sister groups are formed, namely a Gorteria clade also containing Hirpicium and Gazania, and a Berkheya clade, which also contains Cullumia, Cuspidia, Didelta and Heterorhachis. The Gorteria clade has strong jackknife support and is diagnosed by four morphological characters (leaves with longitudinally striate hairs, fringed anther apical appendages, pollen of the “Gazania‐type”, and subulate‐ensiform, ascending style sweeping hairs) that are unique within the Asteraceae. The Berkheya clade is moderately supported and diagnosed by two characters without contradiction (spiny leaves, and mamillate, large style sweeping hairs). Hirpicium and Berkheya are paraphyletic, with the other, morphologically more homogeneous genera (Gorteria, and Gazania, Cullumia, Cuspidia, Didelta and Heterorhachis, respectively) nested within them. There is some evidence for a radiation of species of the summer rainfall area of South Africa and tropical Africa and the corresponding species are nested within a grade confined to the Cape Floristic Region.
Relative Brain Size and Demographic Strategies in Didelphid Marsupials

Mean cranial volumes were established for 17 species of didelphid marsupials. The variability in mean cranial capacity for any given weight class was examined. Arboreal preference is associated with a relatively large brain except in the case of Philander opossum. Among didelphid opossums those with relatively large cranial capacities are characterized by a relatively longer life span and lower litter sizes. When compared to prosimians, didelphids generally exhibit shorter life spans, smaller relative cranial capacities, and larger litters. It is concluded that some didelphid marsupials (e.g., Caluromys) have undergone selection toward a demographic strategy which is in part convergent with the extant nocturnal prosimians.
Progress in breeding interspecific hybrid ryegrasses

Stable hybrids were produced between tetraploid perennial and Italian ryegrasses derived from commercial varieties and germplasm introduced from European collections. Spaced plant characteristics were used to select Fl plants for the production of F2 families which were assessed in small plots for growth and quality traits. Ten of the 19 selected hybrid families were based on perennial ryegrass collected from the Zurich Uplands. The influence of this parental material in improving vegetative growth during early spring, late summer and autumn was demonstrated. Its use in improving feeding value by increasing the water-soluble carbohydrate content of hybrids was also shown. Consequently, selected hybrid varieties based on this new genetic resource showed considerable improvements in seasonal growth and quality over the older hybrid variety Augusta and Italian ryegrass variety RvP.
Benefit of vessel closure with the Azur CX Peripheral Coil System in small children with complex CHD

Abstract Vessel occlusion is a frequently used procedure to close congenital or acquired collaterals or communications. We report two cases of successful vessel closure, in small infants with CHD, using the Azur CX Peripheral Coil System. The low profile of the device, the controlled delivery of the coils, and the delivery through a microcatheter make it particularly interesting for the occlusion of highly tortuous vessels in children.
Genetic diversity and spatial distribution of rhizobial bacteria nodulating on black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) rhizospheres

Black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) is an economically and ecologically important tree in Japan. The species is widely used for afforestation because of its symbiotic relationship with nitrogen-fixing rhizobia. In this study, genetic diversity of rhizobia isolated from black locust nodules and spatial distribution of their genotypes were examined. From a coastal forest, six black locust saplings including the whole root systems were collected and positions of nodules on the roots were recorded. Bacteria were isolated from each nodule and then genotyped by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)-Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP) and sequencing analysis of the 16S rRNA gene. Dendrogram analysis based on PCR-RFLP and sequencing analysis indicated that Mesorhizobium species dominantly colonized black locust roots in this forest, occupying at least 77% of living nodules. Positions and PCR-RFLP genotypes of the nodules revealed that rhizobia isolated from neighbouring nodules tended to have the same genotype in some cases. Statistical analysis has supported this fact. The clustering distribution of nodules in the same RFLP groups should be considered to contribute to the large genetic diversity of rhizobia.