Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The degradation and persistence of five pharmaceuticals in an artificial climate incubator during a one year period

The degradation and persistence of the five pharmaceuticals atenolol, metoprolol, propranolol, fluoxetine and venlafaxine at an initial concentration of 10 mg L−1 was studied at different pH values under fluorescent light and darkness in an artificial climate incubator during a one-year period. The results suggested that the degradation process of the target pharmaceuticals followed pseudo first-order degradation kinetics. Propranolol was degraded at a higher rate, with a half-life ranging from 5.7 to 28.5 d. The degradation rates of propranolol and venlafaxine increased with increasing pH value, while the other pharmaceuticals did not show a clear pH correlation, with the highest degradation rate at pH 7 for atenolol, pH 2 for metoprolol and pH 12 for fluoxetine. Both photodegradation and hydrolysis should contribute to the degradation. Typical transformation products were detected and were identified as metoprolol acid, α-hydroxymetoprolol, norfluoxetine and O-desmethylvenlafaxine. The findings could not only help to understand the degradation and fate of pharmaceuticals but also provide the fundamental data for persistence assessments.
Microscopic features of the rat adrenal gland associated with chronic codeine phosphate administration

Codeine is an opioid analgesic and antitussive that has been widely abused. Some adverse effects noted with its abuse include adrenocortical insufficiency and activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. The structural basis for these dysfunctions is not clearly understood. Twenty-five adult male rats were used for the study. They were divided into intervention and control groups that were administered 40 mg/kg of codeine phosphate and normal saline respectively by gavage daily for 50 days. Subsequently, both groups were given normal saline for a further fourteen days to note recovery changes. At day 0, 50 and 64, rats were randomly selected from both groups, euthanized and adrenal glands harvested for histological processing and analysis. At day 50 of codeine administration, the adrenal glands demonstrated an increase in zona fasciculata thickness but a decrease in zona reticularis thickness. Lower values were noted in the volume density of zona reticularis and cells count of the medulla in the experimental compared to the control groups (P-value<0.05). The experimental group also showed an increase in vascularization and connective tissue in the glands. After 14 days of recovery, most of the changes observed in experimental animals were reversed and the adrenal glands in both groups had similar features. A decrease in cell count of the adrenal medulla was however observed (P-value<0.05). In conclusion administration of codeine phosphate causes discernible changes in the microscopic structure of the adrenal gland, most of which appear to be reversed after two weeks recovery period.
Highly homogeneous microbial communities dominated by Mycoplasma pneumoniae instead of increased resistance to macrolide antibiotics is the characteristic of lower respiratory tract microbiome of children with refractory Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia

Background Although researchers have found that the microbiota changed during the lower respiratory tract (LRT) infection, little was known about the association between LRT microbiome and refractory M. pneumoniae pneumonia (RMPP). Methods From June 28th, 2019 to March 23rd, 2020, we enrolled fifty-two children diagnosed with RMPP or non-refractory M. pneumoniae pneumonia (NRMPP), and characterized the structure and function of microbiota in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) by metagenomic next generation sequencing (mNGS). Results Based on Bray-Curtis distance between samples, samples in RMPP group were highly homogeneous, and Shannon index in the RMPP group was much lower than NRMPP group while Simpson index, which presents the degree of dominance, was higher in RMPP group. The dominant taxon with relative abundance greater than 50% was merely Mycoplasma among RMPP and NRMPP patients, but the proportions of other taxonomic distribution were different. M. pneumoniae was the dominant species and occupied almost all niches in the vast majority of RMPP patients, whereas the other genera were dramatically lower. The NRMPP group was more enriched in antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) than the RMPP group, and also exhibited a greater relative abundance of macrolide antibiotics resistance gene (macB) and fluoroquinolone antibiotic resistance genes (patA-B) in M. pneumoniae genome. In RMPP patients, higher relative abundance of Streptococcus pneumoniae had a strong correlation with increased hospitalization days while higher relative abundance of Streptococcus pneumoniae had a negative correlation with hospitalization days among NRMPP patients. Conclusions The microbiota of LRT in children with RMPP was much more homogeneous and simpler than that of the NRMPP group and with lower relative abundance of macrolide antibiotics resistance gene in M. pneumoniae genome. M. pneumoniae was absolutely dominant in the vast majority of RMPP patients. Prolonged hospitalization days was associated with relative abundance of M. pneumoniae in NRMPP patients while it was related with other pathogens’ relative abundance (e.g., Streptococcus pneumoniae) in RMPP patients.
Comparative study on the diagnostic value of intravenous/peritumoral injection of indocyanine green for metastatic lymph node location in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC)

Background Accurate assessment of regional lymph node (LN) status is essential for the treatment of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) patients. In this study, we aimed to compare the difference between intravenous injection of indocyanine green (ICG) and peritumoral injection of ICG in the location of metastatic LNs. Methods Twenty-nine patients were enrolled in this study with 13 patients receiving intravenous injection of ICG and 16 patients receiving peritumoral injection of ICG. During the surgery, the fluorescence-positive LNs in vivo were sent to undergo frozen section after fluorescence intensity was recorded. After the cervical LN dissection, all LNs were sorted by region, and the fluorescence intensity was recorded before the LNs were sent for paraffin section. Results During the surgery, both intravenous or peritumoral injections with near-infrared (NIR) fluorescence imaging of ICG had their respective pros and cons in vivo, with the sensitivity and specificity being 62.5%/75% and 98.1%/89.1% respectively. After the surgery, both methods could reduce the pathological workload by preselecting the LNs at-risk in the premise of accurate assessing the cervical LN stage. However, intravenous ICG administration was more valuable in determining all types of LN status according to the fluorescence intensity [area under the curve (AUC): 0.91 vs. 0.78, P<0.001]. Conclusions With the assistance of NIR fluorescence imaging using ICG, both administration methods could reduce the postoperative complication and the pathological workload, whereas the intravenous mode of ICG administration is superior in application value.
High Substitution Rate in TiO 2 Anatase Nanoparticles with Cationic Vacancies for Fast Lithium Storage

Doping is generally used to tune and enhance the properties of metal oxides. However, their chemical composition cannot be readily modified beyond low dopant amounts without disrupting the crystalline atomic structure. In the case of anatase TiO2, we introduce a new solution-based chemical route allowing the composition to be significantly modified, substituting the divalent O2– anions by monovalent F– and OH– anions resulting in the formation of cationic Ti4+ vacancies (□) whose concentration can be controlled by the reaction temperature. The resulting polyanionic anatase has the general composition Ti1–x–y□x+yO2–4(x+y)F4x(OH)4y, reaching vacancy concentrations of up to 22%, i.e., Ti0.78□0.22O1. 12F0.4(OH)0.48. Solid-state 19F NMR spectroscopy reveals that fluoride ions can accommodate up to three different environments, depending on Ti and vacancies (i.e. Ti3-F, Ti2□1-F, and Ti1□2-F), with a preferential location close to vacancies. DFT calculations further confirm the fluoride/vacancy ordering. When its.
Immunopathophysiology and clinical impact of uveitis in inflammatory rheumatic diseases: An update

Uveitis is one of the most frequent ophthalmologic manifestations in rheumatology. Uveal inflammation can underlie a systemic inflammatory rheumatic disease (SIRD) in approximately 30% of cases with a significant burden on the quality of life since it represents a cause of blindness in up to 20% of cases in Western countries.
Use of the fluorescence of rhodamine B for the pH sensing of a glycine solution

The fluorescence of rhodamine B can be strongly affected by its environmental pH value. By directly introducing the dye into various glycine solution, the fluorescence was used to monitor the pH value in the range of 5.9 ~ 6.7. Two newly developed techniques for broadband analysis, the barycenter technique and the self-referenced intensity ratio technique, were employed to retrieve the pH sensing functions. While compared with traditional techniques, e.g. the peak shift monitoring, both the two new techniques presented finer precision. The obtained sensing functions may find their applications in the test of biochemical samples, body tissue fluid, water quality, etc.
Thermodynamic cyclic voltammograms: peak positions and shapes

Based on a mean-field description of thermodynamic cyclic voltammograms (CVs), we analyze here in full generality, how CV peak positions and shapes are related to the underlying interface energetics, in particular when also including electrostatic double layer (DL) effects. We show in particular, how non-Nernstian behaviour is related to capacitive DL charging, and how this relates to common adsorbate-centered interpretations such as a changed adsorption energetics due to dipole-field interactions and the electrosorption valency – the number of exchanged electrons upon electrosorption per adsorbate. Using Ag(111) in halide-containing solutions as test case, we demonstrate that DL effects can introduce peak shifts that are already explained by rationalizing the interaction of isolated adsorbates with the interfacial fields, while alterations of the peak shape are mainly driven by the coverage-dependence of the adsorbate dipoles. In addition, we analyze in detail how changing the experimental conditions such as the ion concentrations in the solvent but also of the background electrolyte can affect the CV peaks via their impact on the potential drop in the DL and the DL capacitance, respectively. These results suggest new routes to analyze experimental CVs and use of those for a detailed assessment of the accuracy of atomistic models of electrified interfaces e.g. with and without explicitly treated interfacial solvent and/or approximate implicit solvent models.
Prevalence of noncommunicable disease risk factors among market traders in Jos North Local Government Area, Plateau State Nigeria

Background: Noncommunicable diseases have become a new public health priority in low-and middle-income countries where urbanization and lifestyle changes have approached what obtains in developed countries. Aim: The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of noncommunicable disease risk factors among market traders in Jos North Local Government Area of Plateau State. Method: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study carried out among adult market traders who were selected through a two-stage sampling technique. Data were collected using a semi-structured interviewer-administered questionnaire adapted from the WHO STEP-wise tool. Anthropometric measurements were taken along with blood pressure readings. Data were analyzed using Epi Info version 3.5. 4 and a value of P ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: A total of 271 respondents were studied with a mean age of 36.2 ± 13.3 years. Prevalence of hypertension was 26.6% and diabetes mellitus 9.6%. Overweight and obesity were observed in 26.2% and 31.0% of the population, respectively while inadequate intake of fruits and vegetables was reported by 88.9% and 69.4% of respondents respectively. Current alcohol and cigarette use was 25.5% and 0.7% respectively while 245 (90.4%) respondents were sedentary. Current alcohol use, inadequate fruit and vegetable intake and obesity were associated with hypertension just as current alcohol use, sedentary lifestyle and consumption of carbonated drinks were associated with diabetes mellitus. Conclusion: The prevalence of hypertension and diabetes mellitus and their associated risk factors was high among these market traders. Therefore, there is need for focused preventive interventions in this neglected group.
Virtual Reality–Based Psychotherapy in Social Anxiety Disorder: fMRI Study Using a Self-Referential Task

Background Although it has been well demonstrated that the efficacy of virtual reality therapy for social anxiety disorder is comparable to that of traditional cognitive behavioral therapy, little is known about the effect of virtual reality on pathological self-referential processes in individuals with social anxiety disorder. Objective We aimed to determine changes in self-referential processing and their neural mechanisms following virtual reality treatment. Methods We recruited participants with and without a primary diagnosis of social anxiety disorder to undergo clinical assessments (Social Phobia Scale and Post-Event Rumination Scale) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans. Participants with social anxiety disorder received virtual reality–based exposure treatment for 6 sessions starting immediately after baseline testing. After the sixth session, participants with social anxiety disorder completed follow-up scans during which they were asked to judge whether a series of words (positive, negative, neutral) was relevant to them. Results Of 25 individuals with social anxiety disorder who participated in the study, 21 completed the sessions and follow-up; 22 control individuals also participated. There were no significant differences in age (P=.36), sex (P=.71), or handedness (P=.51) between the groups. Whole-brain analysis revealed that participants in the social anxiety disorder group had increased neural responses during positive self-referential processing in the medial temporal and frontal cortexes compared with those in the control group. Participants in the social anxiety disorder group also showed increased left insular activation and decreased right middle frontal gyrus activation during negative self-referential processing. After undergoing virtual reality–based therapy, overall symptoms of the participants with social anxiety disorder were reduced, and these participants exhibited greater activity in a brain regions responsible for self-referential and autobiographical memory processes while viewing positive words during postintervention fMRI scans. Interestingly, the greater the blood oxygen level dependent changes related to positive self-referential processing, the lower the tendency to ruminate on the negative events and the lower the social anxiety following the virtual reality session. Compared with that at baseline, higher activation was also found within broad somatosensory areas in individuals with social anxiety disorder during negative self-referential processing following virtual reality therapy. Conclusions These fMRI findings might reflect the enhanced physiological and cognitive processing in individuals with social anxiety disorder in response to self-referential information. They also provide neural evidence of the effect of virtual reality exposure therapy on social anxiety and self-derogation.
Novel TGFβ Inhibitors Ameliorate Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma Progression and Improve the Antitumor Immune Response of Anti–PD-L1 Immunotherapy

TGFβ is a key regulator of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) progression, and its potential role as a therapeutic target has been investigated with a limited success. This study evaluates two novel TGFβ inhibitors as mono or combinatorial therapy with anti–PD-L1 antibodies (α-PD-L1 Ab) in a murine OSCC model. Immunocompetent C57BL/6 mice bearing malignant oral lesions induced by 4-nitroquinoline 1-oxide (4-NQO) were treated for 4 weeks with TGFβ inhibitors mRER (i.p., 50 μg/d) or mmTGFβ2-7m (10 μg/d delivered by osmotic pumps) alone or in combination with α-PD-L1 Abs (7× i.p. of 100 μg/72 h). Tumor progression and body weight were monitored. Levels of bioactive TGFβ in serum were quantified using a TGFβ bioassay. Tissues were analyzed by immunohistology and flow cytometry. Therapy with mRER or mmTGFβ2-7m reduced tumor burden (P < 0.05) and decreased body weight loss compared with controls. In inhibitor-treated mice, levels of TGFβ in tumor tissue and serum were reduced (P < 0.05), whereas they increased with tumor progression in controls. Both inhibitors enhanced CD8+ T-cell infiltration into tumors and mRER reduced levels of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (P < 0.001). In combination with α-PD-L1 Abs, tumor burden was not further reduced; however, mmTGFβ2-7m further reduced weight loss (P < 0.05). The collagen-rich stroma was reduced by using combinatorial TGFβ/PD-L1 therapies (P < 0.05), enabling an accelerated lymphocyte infiltration into tumor tissues. The blockade of TGFβ signaling by mRER or mmTGFβ2-7m ameliorated in vivo progression of established murine OSCC. The inhibitors promoted antitumor immune responses, alone and in combination with α-PD-L1 Abs.
Diagnostic value of linked color imaging based on endoscopy for gastric intestinal metaplasia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background The diagnostic value of linked color imaging based on endoscopy for gastric intestinal metaplasia has shown variable results. Therefore, this meta-analysis sought to systematically evaluate the value of linked color imaging (LCI) based on the blue laser endoscopy system for the diagnosis of gastric intestinal metaplasia (GIM). Methods Literature searches were conducted of electronic databases including PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, and Web of Science to screen diagnostic tests of LCI. The random-effects model was adopted to calculate the diagnostic efficacy of LCI for GIM. Meta-DiSc 1.40 software was applied for the calculation of sensitivity, specificity, and likelihood ratios; symmetric receiver operator characteristic (SROC) curves were drawn, and the areas under the SROC curves (AUCs) were computed. Quality of the included studies was chosen to assess using the quality assessment of diagnostic accuracy studies-2 (QUADAS-2) tool. Results Six original studies involving 700 participants were included in the meta-analysis. The pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, and negative likelihood ratio of LCI for diagnosing GIM were 0.87 (0.83–0.91), 0.86 (0.82–0.89), 5.72 (3.63–8.99), and 0.17 (0.08–0.36), respectively. SROC curve analysis showed that the AUC value was 0.9283. Discussion Our study shows that LCI can be used for the accurate diagnosis of GIM. Considering weaknesses of available studies in terms of design, further studies with rigorous design are in need for further validating the findings of this meta-analysis.
A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK FOR REPLACING AUDIT COMMITTEES WITH ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE INFUSED BOT

Abstract Due to advances in machine learning technology in recent years, artificial intelligence is becoming an increasingly viable replacement for human labor across a wide domain of business operations traditionally thought to be safe from the ever-widening reach of automation. We argue that one such function that may be an increasingly fitting candidate for such automation is the audit committee. In recent years, however, several shortcomings among prominent companies with regards to financial reporting quality have highlighted the weaknesses of audit committees and eroded billions in shareholder wealth. We offer a solution to the increasing problem of audit committee ineffectiveness in the modern business environment by proposing that the functions of audit committee be delegated to Artificial Intelligence infused bots. We find that such a system would have notable policy implications for shareholders, investors, regulators such as the SEC, and society at large.
Tobacco dependence and motivation to quit smoking: an identity-based framework (Adicción al tabaco y motivación para dejar de fumar: una perspectiva identitaria)

ABSTRACT Literature has extensively shown that tobacco dependence is negatively associated with motivation to quit smoking. In this research, we aimed to account for this negative relationship by adopting an identity-based framework. More specifically, we hypothesized that tobacco dependence constitutes an identity threat that smokers seek to manage by diminishing their motivation to quit. To assess whether such a mechanism is at work, we used a self-affirmation manipulation across two independent studies that were pooled into one (N = 308). More specifically, we asked daily smokers to report their tobacco dependence prior to manipulating self-affirmation. Then, we assessed their motivation to quit. Results demonstrated that, among high-dependent smokers, those who were self-affirmed reported higher motivation to quit than those who were not. Self-affirmation had no effect among low-dependent smokers. These findings illuminate the idea that an interpretation in terms of identity processes can offer new insights into understanding tobacco dependence and its consequences on smokers’ motivation to quit.
Prediction of the Success of Startup Companies Based on Support Vector Machine and Random Forset

Startup companies are a huge driving force for economic development, and the success of these high-risk companies can bring huge returns to venture capital companies. The ability to predict the success of startups is a great advantage for investors to overtake their competitors. With the development of information technology, highly reliable results can be obtained by using complex machine learning algorithms or data mining. Data were acquired from the world's largest structured database for startup companies. These data included nearly 40 characteristics of almost 22,000 companies. The main purpose of this research is to establish a model to classify start-ups and analyze the important features for the success of startup companies. Random Forest and Support Vector Machine were used to explore the important features that determine the success of startup companies and explain some of the features. It also compared the effects of different machine learning methods, illustrating the effectiveness of machine learning methods for investors to predict the success of startups. These analyses will provide investors and venture capital companies with effective methods, reduce their large manpower input for prediction, and improve the efficiency of their analysis of startup companies.
The Role of Habit in the Acceptance of a Mandatory Technology: The Case of a Learning Management System

Research on the acceptance of mandatory technologies is rare and even more in the education field. The few studies on technology acceptance that paid attention to the habit construct in mandatory use contexts produced confusing findings. The purpose of this research is to shed light on the role of habit in the acceptance of mandatory technologies. A sample of 475 students using a mandatory learning management system for their online courses filled an online questionnaire. Results showed that relationships between the habit construct and intrinsic value and behavioral intention are both significant and that adding intrinsic value as a mediator between habit and behavioral intention increases the explained variance of behavioral intention significantly. This research contributes to advance theory on technology acceptance in mandatory use contexts and provides insights for practitioners into how to enhance the acceptance of technologies in mandatory use environments.