Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Identifying Prognostic Significance of RCL1 and Four-Gene Signature as Novel Potential Biomarkers in HCC Patients

Background Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a highly malignant disease, and it is characterized by rapid progression and low five-year survival rate. At present, there are no effective methods for monitoring the treatment and prognosis of HCC. Methods The transcriptome and gene expression profiles of HCC were obtained from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) program, International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC), and Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) databases. The random forest method was applied to construct a four-gene prognostic model based on RNA terminal phosphate cyclase like 1 (RCL1) expression. The Kaplan-Meier method was performed to evaluate the prognostic value of RCL1, long noncoding RNAs (AC079061, AL354872, and LINC01093), and four-gene signature (SPP1, MYBL2, TRNP1, and FTCD). We examined the relationship between RCL1 expression and immune cells infiltration, tumor mutation burden (TMB), and microsatellite instability (MSI). Results The results of multiple databases indicated that the aberrant expression of RCL1 was associated with clinical outcome, immune cells infiltration, TMB, and MSI in HCC patients. Meanwhile, we found that long noncoding RNAs (AC079061, AL354872, and LINC01093) and RCL1 were significantly coexpressed in HCC patients. We also confirmed that the four-gene signature was an independent prognostic factor for HCC patients. Ferroptosis potential index, immune checkpoint molecules, and clinical feature were found to have obvious correlations with risk score. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve values for the model were 0.7–0.8 in the training set and the validation set, suggesting high robustness of the four-gene signature. We then built a nomogram for facilitating the use in clinical practice. Conclusion Our study demonstrated that RCL1 and a novel four-gene signature can be used as prognostic biomarkers for predicting clinical outcome in HCC patients; and this model may assist in individualized treatment monitoring of HCC patients in clinical practice.
High temperatures and human pressures interact to influence mortality in an African carnivore

Abstract The impacts of high ambient temperatures on mortality in humans and domestic animals are well‐understood. However much less is known about how hot weather affects mortality in wild animals. High ambient temperatures have been associated with African wild dog Lycaon pictus pup mortality, suggesting that high temperatures might also be linked to high adult mortality. We analyzed mortality patterns in African wild dogs radio‐collared in Kenya (0°N), Botswana (20°S), and Zimbabwe (20°S), to examine whether ambient temperature was associated with adult mortality. We found that high ambient temperatures were associated with increased adult wild dog mortality at the Kenya site, and there was some evidence for temperature associations with mortality at the Botswana and Zimbabwe sites. At the Kenya study site, which had the highest human impact, high ambient temperatures were associated with increased risks of wild dogs being killed by people, and by domestic dog diseases. In contrast, temperature was not associated with the risk of snare‐related mortality at the Zimbabwe site, which had the second‐highest human impact. Causes of death varied markedly between sites. Pack size was positively associated with survival at all three sites. These findings suggest that while climate change may not lead to new causes of mortality, rising temperatures may exacerbate existing anthropogenic threats to this endangered species, with implications for conservation. This evidence suggests that temperature‐related mortality, including interactions between temperature and other anthropogenic threats, should be investigated in a greater number of species to understand and mitigate likely impacts of climate change.
A Real-Time Clinical Decision Support System, for Mild Cognitive Impairment Detection, Based on a Hybrid Neural Architecture

Clinical procedure for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is mainly based on clinical records and short cognitive tests. However, low suspicion and difficulties in understanding test cut-offs make diagnostic accuracy being low, particularly in primary care. Artificial neural networks (ANNs) are suitable to design computed aided diagnostic systems because of their features of generating relationships between variables and their learning capability. The main aim pursued in that work is to explore the ability of a hybrid ANN-based system in order to provide a tool to assist in the clinical decision-making that facilitates a reliable MCI estimate. The model is designed to work with variables usually available in primary care, including Minimental Status Examination (MMSE), Functional Assessment Questionnaire (FAQ), Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), age, and years of education. It will be useful in any clinical setting. Other important goal of our study is to compare the diagnostic rendering of ANN-based system and clinical physicians. A sample of 128 MCI subjects and 203 controls was selected from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI). The ANN-based system found the optimal variable combination, being AUC, sensitivity, specificity, and clinical utility index (CUI) calculated. The ANN results were compared with those from medical experts which include two family physicians, a neurologist, and a geriatrician. The optimal ANN model reached an AUC of 95.2%, with a sensitivity of 90.0% and a specificity of 84.78% and was based on MMSE, FAQ, and age inputs. As a whole, physician performance achieved a sensitivity of 46.66% and a specificity of 91.3%. CUIs were also better for the ANN model. The proposed ANN system reaches excellent diagnostic accuracy although it is based only on common clinical tests. These results suggest that the system is especially suitable for primary care implementation, aiding physicians work with cognitive impairment suspicions.
Long-Term Functional Results of Intra- and Extra-Articular Hand Fractures Treatment With Titanium Miniature Plates and Screws With Minimum Follow-Up of 24 Months

Introduction The purpose of this study was to evaluate the long-term outcome of an extended range of hand fractures treated with titanium, low profile plates, and screws. Materials and methods This retrospective study included adult patients with at least one phalangeal and/or metacarpal fracture, treated with mini titanium plates and screws, between 2004-2016, in a single trauma center, that were followed-up for at least 24 months and with complete, intact medical records. Results 90 patients (79 men and 11 women) with 114 hand (46 phalangeal, 68 metacarpal) fractures fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Thirty-two fractures were open (28.07%), 27 were intra-articular (23.68%), and 12 were both open and intra-articular fractures. The mean age of the patients was 36.02 years (range 17-75). Mean follow-up was 95.3 months (range 24 to 138). Open fractures had a reduced mean grip strength and total active motion. No difference was observed between intra-articular and extra-articular fractures (for grip strength and total active motion). Predictors of the final outcome included the severity of the initial injury (open vs closed) and not the anatomic location (intra- or extra-articular, metacarpal, or phalangeal) of the fracture. Conclusions Low-profile plates and screws can successfully be used to establish union and restore the alignment of the fractured bone while achieving a satisfactory clinical outcome, even in cases of open or intra-articular fractures.
Females and males respond differently to calls impaired by noise in a tree frog

Abstract Both human and nonhuman animals communicating acoustically face the problem of noise interference, especially anurans during mating activities. Previous studies concentrated on the effect of continuous noise on signal recognition, but it is still unknown whether different notes in advertisement calls impaired by noise affect female choice and male–male competition or not. In this study, we tested female preferences and male‐evoked vocal responses in serrate‐legged small tree frog (Kurixalus odontotarsus), by broadcasting the five‐note advertisement call and the advertisement call with the second, third, or fourth note replaced by noise, respectively. In phonotaxis experiments, females significantly discriminated against the advertisement call with the fourth note impaired by noise, although they did not discriminate against other two calls impaired by noise, which indicates that the negative effect of noise on female preference is related to the order of impaired notes in the advertisement call. In playback experiments, males increased the total number of notes in response to noise‐impaired calls compared with spontaneous calls. More interestingly, the vocal responses evoked by noise‐impaired calls were generally similar to those evoked by complete advertisement calls, suggesting that males may recognize the noise‐impaired calls as complete advertisement calls. Taken together, our study shows that different notes in advertisement calls replaced by noise have distinct effects on female choice and male–male competition.
Premature Ovarian Insufficiency (POI) Induced by Dynamic Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy via P13K-AKT-FOXO3a in Rat Models

This study is aimed to investigate the mechanisms of radiation-induced mouse models of premature ovarian insufficiency (POI). Wistar female rats were grouped into the control, 3.2 Gy, 4.0 Gy, and 4.8 Gy groups. Overall ovarian functions were assessed with the H&E staining and ELISA. Proinflammatory cytokine secretion was analyzed ELISA, and the reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels were analyzed with immunohistochemistry. Protein expressions were analyzed by Western blot analysis. The 4.0 Gy and 4.8 Gy groups had significantly lower ovarian weight coefficients than the control and 3.2 Gy groups (after only one irradiation therapy). The 3.2 Gy radiation group induced periodic disturbance and hormone change at 4 weeks after radiation. In the 4.0 Gy and 4.8 Gy groups, the preantral follicles and antral follicles were decreased, while Atresia follicles were increased. E2 was decreased, while FSH and LH secretions were increased. The ovaries in the 4.0 Gy group were not completely atrophied, and some preantral follicles remained. Ovarian atrophy and follicular Atresia were found in the 4.8 Gy group. Inflammatory and oxidative markers were upregulated. PI3K and AKT were downregulated in the 4.0 Gy and 4.8 Gy groups, while FOXO3a was upregulated. Ovarian injuries may lead to oxidative damages and inflammatory injuries, downregulate the expression of P13k and Akt, upregulate the expression of FOXO3a, and lead to follicular atresia in the ovary.
A note on investigating co‐occurrence patterns and dynamics for many species, with imperfect detection and a log‐linear modeling parameterization

Abstract Patterns in, and the underlying dynamics of, species co‐occurrence is of interest in many ecological applications. Unaccounted for, imperfect detection of the species can lead to misleading inferences about the nature and magnitude of any interaction. A range of different parameterizations have been published that could be used with the same fundamental modeling framework that accounts for imperfect detection, although each parameterization has different advantages and disadvantages. We propose a parameterization based on log‐linear modeling that does not require a species hierarchy to be defined (in terms of dominance) and enables a numerically robust approach for estimating covariate effects. Conceptually, the parameterization is equivalent to using the presence of species in the current, or a previous, time period as predictor variables for the current occurrence of other species. This leads to natural, “symmetric,” interpretations of parameter estimates. The parameterization can be applied to many species, in either a maximum likelihood or Bayesian estimation framework. We illustrate the method using camera‐trapping data collected on three mesocarnivore species in South Texas.
The Effect of Integrated Intervention Based on Protection Motivation Theory and Implementation Intention to Promote Physical Activity and Physiological Indicators of Patients with Type 2 Diabetes

Despite benefits of physical activity, the level of physical activity is not desirable in patients with type 2 diabetes. The aim of this study is the using of integration of intervention based on the theory of protection motivation and implementation intention in order to improve the level of activity in patients with diabetes. This field trial study has been performed on 125 patients with type 2 diabetes. Samples have been randomly selected, and they are divided into two intervention and control groups. In the intervention group, training sessions were conducted based on the protection motivation theory and implementation intention. Physical activity levels, VO2 max, and hemoglobin A1C were measured before and three months after the intervention in the two groups. Data were analyzed by using SPSS 18, and independent t-test, paired t-test, and equivalent nonparametric tests were used for analyzing abnormal data. The results of this study showed that the level of physical activity was higher in the intervention group (p = 0.02). Also, the amount of hemoglobin A1c in the intervention group has been decreased significantly three months later (p < 0.001). In this study, VO2 max and blood lipids were not significantly different in the two groups. However, there was higher VO2 max compared to before the intervention in the intervention group. The present study showed that combining motivational interventions and implementing intention intervention can be effective in promoting the physical activity of patients with type 2 diabetes.
Anticholinesterase Activity of Eight Medicinal Plant Species: In Vitro and In Silico Studies in the Search for Therapeutic Agents against Alzheimer's Disease

Many Bangladeshi medicinal plants have been used to treat Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative diseases. In the present study, the anticholinesterase effects of eight selected Bangladeshi medicinal plant species were investigated. Species were selected based on the traditional uses against CNS-related diseases. Extracts were prepared using a gentle cold extraction method. In vitro cholinesterase inhibitory effects were measured by Ellman's method in 96-well microplates. Blumea lacera (Compositae) and Cyclea barbata (Menispermaceae) were found to have the highest acetylcholinesterase inhibitory (IC50, 150 ± 11 and 176 ± 14 µg/mL, respectively) and butyrylcholinesterase inhibitory effect (IC50, 297 ± 13 and 124 ± 2 µg/mL, respectively). Cyclea barbata demonstrated competitive inhibition, where Blumea lacera showed an uncompetitive inhibition mode for acetylcholinesterase. Smilax guianensis (Smilacaceae) and Byttneria pilosa (Malvaceae) were also found to show moderate AChE inhibition (IC50, 205 ± 31 and 221 ± 2 µg/mL, respectively), although no significant BChE inhibitory effect was observed for extracts from these plant species. Among others, Thunbergia grandiflora (Acanthaceae) and Mikania micrantha (Compositae) were found to display noticeable AChE (IC50, 252 ± 22 µg/mL) and BChE (IC50, 314 ± 15 µg/mL) inhibitory effects, respectively. Molecular docking experiment suggested that compounds 5-hydroxy-3,6,7,3′,4′-pentamethoxyflavone (BL4) and kaempferol-3-O-α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1⟶6)-β-D-glucopyranoside (BL5) from Blumea lacera bound stably to the binding groove of the AChE and BChE by hydrogen-bond interactions, respectively. Therefore, these compounds could be candidates for cholinesterase inhibitors. The present findings demonstrated that Blumea lacera and Cyclea barbata are interesting objects for further studies aiming at future therapeutics for Alzheimer's disease.
Construction and Validation of a Lung Cancer Diagnostic Model Based on 6-Gene Methylation Frequency in Blood, Clinical Features, and Serum Tumor Markers

Lung cancer has a high mortality rate. Promoting early diagnosis and screening of lung cancer is the most effective way to enhance the survival rate of lung cancer patients. Through computer technology, a comprehensive evaluation of genetic testing results and basic clinical information of lung cancer patients could effectively diagnose early lung cancer and indicate cancer risks. This study retrospectively collected 70 pairs of lung cancer tissue samples and normal human tissue samples. The methylation frequencies of 6 genes (FHIT, p16, MGMT, RASSF1A, APC, DAPK) in lung cancer patients, the basic clinical information, and tumor marker levels of these patients were analyzed. Then, the python package “sklearn” was employed to build a support vector machine (SVM) classifier which performed 10-fold cross-validation to construct diagnostic models that could identify lung cancer risk of suspected cases. Receiver operation characteristic (ROC) curves were drawn, and the performance of the combined diagnostic model based on several factors (clinical information, tumor marker level, and methylation frequency of 6 genes in blood) was shown to be better than that of models with only one pathological feature. The AUC value of the combined model was 0.963, and the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy were 0.900, 0.971, and 0.936, respectively. The above results revealed that the diagnostic model based on these features was highly reliable, which could screen and diagnose suspected early lung cancer patients, contributing to increasing diagnosis rate and survival rate of lung cancer patients.
MiR-373 Inhibits the Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition of Prostatic Cancer via Targeting Runt-Related Transcription Factor 2

Prostatic cancer (PCa) is a prevalent form of malignancy based on its high associated levels of mortality and morbidity across the world. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are significant in the advancement of prostatic cancer. The current study is aimed at exploring the potential roles of miR-373 in PCa. In turn, the study conducted a qRT-PCR test to determine the levels of mRNA. A western blot test was also executed in determining the protein level. The processes of transwell assay and wound healing were integrated in the detection of the potential for PCa cells to invade and migrate. The integration of dual luciferase reporter assay is critical in determining the levels of luciferase activity among prostatic cancer cells. Then, the results showed a net decrease of miR-373 within prostatic cancer cells and tissues. Upregulated miR-373 reduced the invasion and migration potential of PCa cells. Moreover, overexpressed miR-373 increased the levels of E-cadherin and FSP1 as epithelial cell markers. Similarly, the overregulation of miR-373 brought about the upregulation of mesenchymal markers (N-cadherin, Snail, and vimentin). The study predicted runt-related transcription factor 2 (RUNX2) to be a target of miR-373. The luciferase activity of PCa cells was decreased after the cotransfection with miR-373 mimics and RUNX2 3′ untranslated region (3′UTR) wild type (WT). Moreover, RUNX2 became upregulated in PCa cells and tissues. The upregulation of miR-373 decreased the mRNA and protein level of RUNX2. However, overexpressed RUNX2 abated the roles of miR-373 in the intrusion and migration of PCa cells and in regulating the expression of epithelial cell markers and mesenchymal markers. In short, miR-373 may regulate the EMT of PCa cells via targeting RUNX2. The miR-373/RUNX2 axis provides a therapeutic target for PCa.
Assessment of the 2019 post‐market environmental monitoring report on the cultivation of genetically modified maize MON 810 in the EU

Abstract Following a request from the European Commission, the EFSA assessed the 2019 post‐market environmental monitoring (PMEM) report on the cultivation of Cry1Ab‐expressing maize event MON 810. Like previous years, there was full compliance with refuge requirement in Portugal and partial compliance with refuge requirements by Spanish farmers growing MON 810 varieties. European and Mediterranean corn borer populations collected from north‐eastern Spain during the 2019 maize growing season and tested for Cry1Ab susceptibility show no symptoms of resistance to maize MON 810. The assessment of farmer questionnaires and relevant scientific publications does not indicate any unanticipated adverse effects on human and animal health or the environment arising from the cultivation of maize MON 810. Overall, EFSA concludes that the evidence reported in the 2019 PMEM report does not invalidate previous EFSA evaluations on the safety of maize MON 810. However, as in previous years, EFSA identifies shortcomings on resistance monitoring that need revision in future reports. In particular, the monitoring plan, as implemented in 2019, is not sufficiently sensitive to detect the recommended 3% resistance allele frequency. Consequently, EFSA strongly recommends the consent holder to achieve full compliance with refuge obligations in areas where adoption of maize MON 810 is high and increase the sensitivity of the monitoring plan by performing periodic F2 screens on corn borer populations from north‐eastern Spain. EFSA recommends revising the farmer questionnaires when new characteristics of the receiving environment emerge which are relevant for the environmental risk assessment of MON 810 such as the emergence of teosinte. EFSA encourages the Competent authorities of concerned EU Member States, the consent holder and environmental networks to engage in a dialogue to develop a framework on how to best identify and report unexpected adverse effects from the cultivation of Bt maize varieties.
The Effects of Nonnutritive Sweeteners on the Cariogenic Potential of Oral Microbiome

Nonnutritive sweeteners (NNSs) are sugar substitutes widely used to reduce the negative health effects of excessive sugar consumption. Dental caries, one of the most prevalent chronic diseases globally, results from a pathogenic biofilm with microecological imbalance and frequent exposure to sugars. Some research has shown that certain NNSs possess less cariogenic potential than sucrose, indicating their putative effect on oral microbiome. To uncover the alterations of acidogenic pathogens and alkali-generating commensals, as well as the biofilm cariogenic potential under the influence of NNSs, we selected four common NNSs (acesulfame-K, aspartame, saccharin, and sucralose) and established single-, dual-, and multispecies in vitro culture model to assess their effects on Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans) and/or Streptococcus sanguinis (S. sanguinis) compared to sucrose with the same sweetness. The results showed that NNSs significantly suppressed the planktonic growth, acid production, and biofilm formation of S. mutans or S. sanguinis compared with sucrose in single-species cultures. Additionally, decreased S. mutans/S. sanguinis ratio, less EPS generation, and higher pH value were observed in dual-species and saliva-derived multispecies biofilms with supplementary NNSs. Collectively, this study demonstrates that NNSs inhibit the cariogenic potential of biofilms by maintaining microbial equilibrium, thus having a promising prospect as anticaries agents.