Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Enhanced DNA Repair Pathway is Associated with Cell Proliferation and Worse Survival in Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC)

Simple Summary We studied the relationship between enhancement of DNA repair and cancer aggressiveness, tumor immune microenvironment, and patient survival in 749 hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients from 5 cohorts using a DNA repair pathway score. We show that the DNA repair pathway was enhanced by the stepwise carcinogenic process of HCC, notably in grade 3 compared to grade 1 or 2 HCC. DNA repair high HCC was associated with worse survival, elevated intratumor heterogeneity, and mutation load, but not with the fraction of immune cell infiltration nor cytolytic activity. The expression of proliferation- and other cancer aggressiveness-related gene sets was also increased. Interestingly, these features were more pronounced in low-grade compared to high-grade HCC. In conclusion, the DNA repair score may be used to understand the role of DNA repair pathways in patient prognosis and treatment sensitivity and be used to improve patient outcome. To our knowledge, this is the first study using DNA repair pathway-related gene set expression data to examine and validate the clinical relevance of DNA repair pathway activity in HCC. Abstract Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignancies and a leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. In this study, a total of 749 HCC patients from 5 cohorts were studied to examine the relationships between enhancement of DNA repair and cancer aggressiveness, tumor immune microenvironment, and patient survival in HCC, utilizing a DNA repair pathway score. Our findings suggest that the DNA repair pathway was not only enhanced by the stepwise carcinogenic process of HCC, but also significantly enhanced in grade 3 HCC compared with grade 1 and 2 tumors. DNA repair high HCC was associated with worse survival, elevated intratumor heterogeneity, and mutation load, but not with the fraction of immune cell infiltration nor immune response. HCC tumors with a DNA repair high score enriched the cell proliferation- and other cancer aggressiveness-related gene sets. Interestingly, these features were more pronounced in grade 1 and 2 HCC compared to grade 3 HCC. To our knowledge, this is the first study to use DNA repair pathway-related gene set expression data to examine and validate the clinical relevance of DNA repair pathway activity in HCC. The DNA repair score may be used to better understand and predict prognosis in HCC.
Low Luminance Visual Acuity and Low Luminance Deficit in Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy

This study aimed to determine the relation of best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and low luminance visual acuity (LLVA) in proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) following treatment with either aflibercept or pan-retinal photocoagulation (PRP). The study was conducted as a post-hoc analysis of the CLARITY trial in which naïve and PRP treated PDR patients were randomised to receive either aflibercept or PRP. BCVA and LLVA were assessed at baseline and at week 52. Our analyses showed that the BCVA and LLVA correlate well in treatment naïve PDR with an average low luminance deficit of 11.79 Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Score (ETDRS) letters. However, LLVA at lower levels of BCVA showed more variance. Post aflibercept therapy, the mean change in BCVA and LLVA at 52 weeks after aflibercept was +2.1 (SD 6.05) letters and +0.39 (SD 5.6) letters, respectively. Similarly, after PRP, it was −2.5 (SD 4.9) letters and −1.9 (SD 8.7) letters, respectively. When comparing treatment arms, BCVA change was found to be statistically significant (p < 0.001) whereas LLVA was not (p = 0.11). These findings show that LLVA does not respond as well as BCVA following any treatment for PDR, even though BCVA and LLVA both test foveal function.
Weather Conditions Affect the Visitation Frequency, Richness and Detectability of Insect Flower Visitors in the Australian Alpine Zone

Abstract Weather conditions, such as humidity, temperature, and wind speed, affect insect activity. Understanding how different taxa respond to varying environmental conditions is necessary to determine the extent to which environmental change may impact plant-pollinator networks.This is particularly important in alpine regions where taxa may be more susceptible to extreme climatic events and overall increases in temperature.We observed plant–flower visitor interactions in Australian alpine plant communities to determine 1) the structure of the plant-flower visitor community, and 2) how floral visitation and diversity of insect taxa varied according to environmental conditions and habitat type. Coleoptera and Diptera were the most dominant flower visitors in the visitation networks. Most insect orders were moderately generalized in their interactions, but Hymenoptera showed greater specialization (d′) at exposed sites compared to other insect orders. Importantly, insect orders behaved differently in response to changes in environmental conditions. Hymenoptera visitation increased with higher temperatures. Diptera was the only taxon observed actively moving between flowers under inclement conditions. Our results demonstrate the value in sampling across the spectrum of environmental conditions to capture the differences among flower visiting insect taxa in their responses to varying environmental conditions. A diversity of responses among insect taxa could facilitate community-level resilience to changing environmental conditions.
Hydrodynamics and Mass Transfer in a Porous‐Wall Channel

The hydrodynamics and mass-transfer equations for a porous-wall flow channel have been solved over a large range of Re and Sc. Jorne has analyzed the low Re, high Sc case. For the high Re, high Sc case we find that /tau/ /SUB xy/ h/sup 2//. mu.xv /SUB w/ = 2.43 Re /SUP 0.5/ and Nu = 0.8277 Re /SUP 0.5/ Sc /SUP 1/3/ at the solid wall. The intermediate range is treated by numerical methods.
Likelihood ratio statistics for gene set enrichment in Alzheimer's disease pathways

Introduction: The study of Alzheimer's disease (AD) has revealed biological pathways with implications for disease neuropathology and pathophysiology. These pathway‐level effects may also be mediated by individual characteristics or covariates such as age or sex. Evaluation of AD biological pathways in the context of interactions with these covariates is critical to the understanding of AD as well as the development of model systems used to study the disease.
Quantification of All-Trans Retinoic Acid by Liquid Chromatography–Tandem Mass Spectrometry and Association with Lipid Profile in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes

Retinoic acids are vitamin A metabolites that have numerous essential functions in humans, and are also used as drugs to treat acne and acute promyelocytic leukemia. All-trans retinoic acid (atRA) is the major occurring metabolite of retinoic acid in humans. This study provides a sensitive and specific liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry approach in order to quantify atRA in human plasma samples. The isolation of atRA by hyperacidified liquid–liquid extraction using hexane and ethyl acetate resulted in a recovery of 89.7 ± 9.2%. The lower limit of detection was 20 pg·mL−1, and 7 point calibration displayed good linearity (R2 = 0.994) in the range of 50–3200 pg mL−1. Selectivity was guaranteed by the use of two individual mass transitions (qualifier and quantifier), and precision and accuracy were determined intraday and interday with a coefficient variation of 9.3% (intraday) and 14.0% (interday). Moreover, the method could be used to isolate atRA from hyperlipidemic samples. Applying this method to plasma samples from patients with poorly controlled Type 2 diabetes significantly decreased atRA plasma levels as compared to those of the healthy controls. In addition, atRA concentrations were highly associated with increased low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and decreased high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels.
Association between Breakfast Skipping and Body Weight—A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Observational Longitudinal Studies

Globally, increasing rates of obesity are one of the most important health issues. The association between breakfast skipping and body weight is contradictory between cross-sectional and interventional studies. This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to summarize this association based on observational longitudinal studies. We included prospective studies on breakfast skipping and overweight/obesity or weight change in adults. The literature was searched until September 2020 in PubMed and Web of Science. Summary risk ratios (RRs) or β coefficients with a 95% confidence interval (CI), respectively, were estimated in pairwise meta-analyses by applying a random-effects model. In total, nine studies were included in the systematic review and three of them were included in the meta-analyses. The meta-analyses indicated an 11% increased RR for overweight/obesity when breakfast was skipped on ≥3 days per week compared to ≤2 days per week (95% CI: 1.04, 1.19, n = two studies). The meta-analysis on body mass index (BMI) change displayed no difference between breakfast skipping and eating (β = −0.02; 95% CI: −0.05, 0.01; n = two studies). This study provides minimal evidence that breakfast skipping might lead to weight gain and the onset of overweight and obesity.
Profiles and predictors of resilient functioning in youths with pediatric cancer history

Abstract Objective To identify and predict resilient functioning over time among youths with pediatric cancer experience (YPCE). Design YPCE aged 8–17 years (N = 231) were followed prospectively for 3 years. Their psychosocial adjustment was assessed using self-report and parent-report at 1 year (T2) and 3 years (T3) post-baseline. Methods Latent profile analysis identified subgroups of YPCE with different patterns of adjustment over time. Self-reported factors from baseline and T2 were examined as predictors of subgroup membership. Findings Three subgroups of youths were found. Two exhibited average (52.5% of the sample) to better-than-average (41.3%) functioning. One subgroup (6.2%) exhibited subclinical but at-risk range of adjustment. Low optimism and low connectedness to parents and school predicted membership in this group. Conclusions Most YPCE exhibit resilient functioning across time. However, approximately 6% report persistent maladjustment. Implications Most YPCE are well-adjusted, but those with low optimism and poor connection to parents or school may require monitoring for psychosocial difficulties.
Toxic Wasting Disorders in Sheep

Simple Summary There are several substances, either inorganic or organic that may be toxic for sheep. Intoxications by some of these substances have an acute clinical course with specific signs and lesions that may guide the diagnostic procedures. However, there are other insidious, subacute to chronic presentations, usually related to continuous intake of the toxic substance over long periods of time, that may present with emaciation, ill-thrift, and/or poor external aspect. In such scenarios, diagnosis may be challenging and should be achieved through a combination of history of exposure, subtle gross and histological findings (if present), and available ancillary tests. Abstract Infectious and parasitic agents have been frequently associated with debilitating and wasting conditions in sheep. The prevalence of these agents has probably undermined the role of toxic causes as contributors to such disorders. In addition, many of these intoxications frequently produce acute clinical disease with specific and characteristic lesions, thus a causal relationship with the toxic substance may be relatively easy to establish. However, persistent exposure to some of these organic or inorganic toxic substances may lead to emaciation, ill-thrift, and poor external aspect. The anti-nutritional factors and alkaloids of several plants, including pyrrolizidine alkaloids, among others, have also been associated with emaciation and/or poor general performance in sheep flocks. In this review, some of these disorders are discussed with an emphasis on clinical signs and lesions, relevant diagnostic aspects, and available therapeutic approaches. In most cases, demonstrating a history of exposure should be one of the most relevant aspects of the diagnostic approach, and removing the animals from the toxic source is the cornerstone of the majority of the treatment strategies.
Big Five Personality Traits, Coping Strategies and Compulsive Buying in Spanish University Students

Personality traits and coping strategies have historically been two key elements in the field of health psychology. It is, therefore, striking that there is no study in the field of compulsive buying that integrates the most generic, decontextualized and stable aspects (traits) with those having a more marked processual and dynamic nature, which are closer to goal-based views of human nature (coping strategies). Another weakness of the compulsive buying field is that, despite the confirmed growing increase in compulsive buying in the younger age groups, most studies have been conducted with adult samples. Hence, this study seeks to clarify the role of the Big Five domains and different coping strategies in university students’ compulsive buying. The sample consisted of 1093 participants who were classified as either compulsive buyers or non-compulsive buyers. Both groups were compared regarding sociodemographic variables (gender, age), the Big Five personality traits, and coping strategies through chi-square tests or Student’s t-tests. Besides, a multivariate logistic regression analysis was conducted to determine which of these determinants might play a part in the construction of a risk profile for compulsive buying. The results showed that other than gender (specifically being female), Neuroticism and the use of such coping strategies as problem avoidance and wishful thinking are risk factors that increase the propensity for compulsive buying. The use of active coping strategies such as problem solving, cognitive restructuring and social support, as well as the Conscientiousness dimension are protection factors that decrease the likelihood of becoming a compulsive buyer. Finally, and on the basis of the findings obtained, possible guidelines are given, which, hopefully, may effectively contribute to the prevention of and/or intervention in compulsive buying among young adults.
Preparation and Adhesion of a Dual-Component Self-Assembled Dual-Layer Film on Silicon by a Dip-Coating Nanoparticles Method

A novel microfabrication method is presented to fabricate with spatial control a dual-component self-assembled dual-layer film on silicon by dip-coating nanoparticles. In this research, the same chain length carboxylic acids with a fluorocarbon backbone chain and hydrocarbon backbone chain were composite-prepared on 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APS) self-assembled monolayer (SAM). Film wettability was determined by measurement of contact angle, and thickness was determined with the ellipsometric method. Changes in adhesive properties of the film are determined by atomic force microscopy (AFM).
The Potential Properties of Natural Compounds in Cardiac Stem Cell Activation: Their Role in Myocardial Regeneration

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), which include congenital heart disease, rhythm disorders, subclinical atherosclerosis, coronary heart disease, and many other cardiac disorders, cause about 30% of deaths globally; representing one of the main health problems worldwide. Among CVDs, ischemic heart diseases (IHDs) are one of the major causes of morbidity and mortality in the world. The onset of IHDs is essentially due to an unbalance between the metabolic demands of the myocardium and its supply of oxygen and nutrients, coupled with a low regenerative capacity of the heart, which leads to great cardiomyocyte (CM) loss; promoting heart failure (HF) and myocardial infarction (MI). To date, the first strategy recommended to avoid IHDs is prevention in order to reduce the underlying risk factors. In the management of IHDs, traditional therapeutic options are widely used to improve symptoms, attenuate adverse cardiac remodeling, and reduce early mortality rate. However, there are no available treatments that aim to improve cardiac performance by replacing the irreversible damaged cardiomyocytes (CMs). Currently, heart transplantation is the only treatment being carried out for irreversibly damaged CMs. Hence, the discovery of new therapeutic options seems to be necessary. Interestingly, recent experimental evidence suggests that regenerative stem cell medicine could be a useful therapeutic approach to counteract cardiac damage and promote tissue regeneration. To this end, researchers are tasked with answering one main question: how can myocardial regeneration be stimulated? In this regard, natural compounds from plant extracts seem to play a particularly promising role. The present review will summarize the recent advances in our knowledge of stem cell therapy in the management of CVDs; focusing on the main properties and potential mechanisms of natural compounds in stimulating and activating stem cells for myocardial regeneration.
Electron-Collision-Induced Dissociative Ionization Cross Sections for Silane

Secondary electron energy and angle dependent differential cross sections for the production of cations (), and resulting from dissociative ionization of by electron collision have been evaluated at fixed incident electron energies of 100 and 200 eV. The semiempirical formulation of Jain and Khare which requires the oscillator strength data as a major input has been employed. In the absence of experimental data for differential cross sections, the corresponding derived integral partial and total ionization cross sections in the energy range varying from ionization threshold to 1000 eV revealed a satisfactory agreement with the available experimental and theoretical data. We have also evaluated the ionization rate coefficients on the basis of calculated partial ionization cross sections and Maxwell-Boltzmann energy distributions.
The Profile of the Obstetric Patients with SARS-CoV-2 Infection According to Country of Origin of the Publication: A Systematic Review of the Literature

SARS-CoV-2 is the novel member of coronavirus responsible for the worldwide pandemic COVID-19, affecting all types of people. In this context, established research identified pregnant women as a susceptible group of SARS-CoV-2 infection, although there is still limited data regarding the real impact of COVID-19 in this group. With that purpose, we conducted a systematic review describing the maternal-fetal results of pregnant women infected by SARS-CoV-2, in aim to analyze the profile of the obstetric patients according to the country of origin of the publication. A total of 38 articles were included in this systematic review with 2670 patients from 7 countries, with 20 works published from China (52.6%). We reported significative differences according to the median maternal age, with Spain as the country with the highest age (34.6 years); The percentage of tabaquism; proportion of symptomatic patients in the triage; type of radiological exam (China and France conduct CT scans on all their patients in comparison to the use of chest X-Ray in the rest of the countries studied); percentages of C-sections (83.9% in China; 35.9% Spain, p < 0.001); maternal mortality rate, proportion of patients who need treatments, the use of antivirals, antibiotics, and anticoagulants as well as measurements of the newborns. Perinatal results are favorable in the majority of countries, with very low rates of vertical transmission in the majority of works. The studies collected in this review showed moderate to high index of quality. The different works describe the affectation during the first wave of the pandemic, where the pregnant woman with SARS-CoV-2 infection is generally symptomatic during the third trimester of gestation along with other factors associated with worse prognosis of the disease, such as higher age, body mass index, and further comorbidities developed during pregnancy. In the obstetric patient, proportion of C-sections are elevated together with prematurity, increasing maternal perinatal morbimortality. Differences found between countries could be based on the proper profile of the patient in each region, the period of the pandemic directly affecting how it was managed, and the variations regarding in situ medical attention.
Plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition of SiNx:H and SiO2

As the nanoelectronics industry looks to transition to both three dimensional transistor and interconnect technologies at the <22 nm node, highly conformal dielectric coatings with precise thickness control are increasingly being demanded. Plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) currently fills this role for most applications requiring low temperature processing but does not always meet step coverage and thickness precision requirements. The authors present results for a hybrid technique, plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition (PEALD), which utilizes typical PECVD process gases and tooling while delivering improved topography coverage and thickness control. Specifically, the authors show that alternating SiH4 gas/N2 plasma exposures applied in an atomic layer deposition sequence can be used to deposit SiNx:H films in a self-limiting fashion with improved conformality and superior performance as a moisture barrier. PEALD of SiO2 using alternating SiH4 and CO2 plasma exposures is further demonstr.
A Multi-Class Automatic Sleep Staging Method Based on Photoplethysmography Signals

Automatic sleep staging with only one channel is a challenging problem in sleep-related research. In this paper, a simple and efficient method named PPG-based multi-class automatic sleep staging (PMSS) is proposed using only a photoplethysmography (PPG) signal. Single-channel PPG data were obtained from four categories of subjects in the CAP sleep database. After the preprocessing of PPG data, feature extraction was performed from the time domain, frequency domain, and nonlinear domain, and a total of 21 features were extracted. Finally, the Light Gradient Boosting Machine (LightGBM) classifier was used for multi-class sleep staging. The accuracy of the multi-class automatic sleep staging was over 70%, and the Cohen’s kappa statistic k was over 0.6. This also showed that the PMSS method can also be applied to stage the sleep state for patients with sleep disorders.