Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Sensitivity Analysis for Predicting Sub-Micron Aerosol Concentrations Based on Meteorological Parameters

Sub-micron aerosols are a vital air pollutant to be measured because they pose health effects. These particles are quantified as particle number concentration (PN). However, PN measurements are not always available in air quality measurement stations, leading to data scarcity. In order to compensate this, PN modeling needs to be developed. This paper presents a PN modeling framework using sensitivity analysis tested on a one year aerosol measurement campaign conducted in Amman, Jordan. The method prepares a set of different combinations of all measured meteorological parameters to be descriptors of PN concentration. In this case, we resort to artificial neural networks in the forms of a feed-forward neural network (FFNN) and a time-delay neural network (TDNN) as modeling tools, and then, we attempt to find the best descriptors using all these combinations as model inputs. The best modeling tools are FFNN for daily averaged data (with R2=0.77) and TDNN for hourly averaged data (with R2=0.66) where the best combinations of meteorological parameters are found to be temperature, relative humidity, pressure, and wind speed. As the models follow the patterns of diurnal cycles well, the results are considered to be satisfactory. When PN measurements are not directly available or there are massive missing PN concentration data, PN models can be used to estimate PN concentration using available measured meteorological parameters.
Proteomic and Metabolomic Correlates of Healthy Dietary Patterns: The Framingham Heart Study

Data on proteomic and metabolomic signatures of healthy dietary patterns are limited. We evaluated the cross-sectional association of serum proteomic and metabolomic markers with three dietary patterns: the Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI), the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet; and a Mediterranean-style (MDS) diet. We examined participants from the Framingham Offspring Study (mean age; 55 years; 52% women) who had complete proteomic (n = 1713) and metabolomic (n = 2284) data; using food frequency questionnaires to derive dietary pattern indices. Proteins and metabolites were quantified using the SomaScan platform and liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry; respectively. We used multivariable-adjusted linear regression models to relate each dietary pattern index (independent variables) to each proteomic and metabolomic marker (dependent variables). Of the 1373 proteins; 103 were associated with at least one dietary pattern (48 with AHEI; 83 with DASH; and 8 with MDS; all false discovery rate [FDR] ≤ 0.05). We identified unique associations between dietary patterns and proteins (17 with AHEI; 52 with DASH; and 3 with MDS; all FDR ≤ 0.05). Significant proteins enriched biological pathways involved in cellular metabolism/proliferation and immune response/inflammation. Of the 216 metabolites; 65 were associated with at least one dietary pattern (38 with AHEI; 43 with DASH; and 50 with MDS; all FDR ≤ 0.05). All three dietary patterns were associated with a common signature of 24 metabolites (63% lipids). Proteins and metabolites associated with dietary patterns may help characterize intermediate phenotypes that provide insights into the molecular mechanisms mediating diet-related disease. Our findings warrant replication in independent populations
Multihost Transmission of Schistosoma mansoni in Senegal, 2015–2018

In West Africa, Schistosoma spp. are capable of infecting multiple definitive hosts, a lifecycle feature that may complicate schistosomiasis control. We characterized the evolutionary relationships among multiple Schistosoma mansoni isolates collected from snails (intermediate hosts), humans (definitive hosts), and rodents (definitive hosts) in Senegal. On a local scale, diagnosis of S. mansoni infection ranged 3.8%–44.8% in school-aged children, 1.7%–52.6% in Mastomys huberti mice, and 1.8%–7.1% in Biomphalaria pfeifferi snails. Our phylogenetic framework confirmed the presence of multiple S. mansoni lineages that could infect both humans and rodents; divergence times of these lineages varied (0.13–0.02 million years ago). We propose that extensive movement of persons across West Africa might have contributed to the establishment of these various multihost S. mansoni clades. High S. mansoni prevalence in rodents at transmission sites frequented by humans further highlights the implications that alternative hosts could have on future public health interventions.
Effects of phosphate limitation on agarase production by Streptomyces lividans TK21

The dagA gene from Streptomyces coelicolor, encoding an extracellular agarase, has been expressed in Streptomyces lividans on a multicopy plasmid. Chemostat cultures were used to investigate the influence of phosphate limitation on the synthesis and secretion of this enzyme. The strain was cultivated with glucose as the carbon source and magnesium or phosphate as growth-limiting substrates and samples used to determine dagA transcription, agarase secretion and alkaline phosphatase activity under the various limitations. The data show that, compared to growth under magnesium limitation, phosphate-limited cells show increases in dagA transcription, the rate of agarase production and secretion, and alkaline phosphatase activity.
The African Hunting Dog: A Wild Life Management Incident

The 1957 dry season in the Luangwa Valley was an extended one and the rains were almost a month overdue, when at the end of November a visit was paid to a salt pan in the Nsefu Game Reserve. Because the pan provided the only water, over approximately 20 square miles of arid country, there should have been as in former seasons, a constant coming and going of various species, such as impala, hartebeeste, zebra and warthog. But although there were signs of these, only the larger animals such as buffalo, elephant and rhino appeared to be visiting the pan in their usual numbers. The reason for the lack of smaller ungulates was obvious: a pack of twenty-four hunting dogs was in residence—three adult females, four adult males and seventeen young—all of which were capable of hunting.
Temporary Fertility Decline after Large Rubella Outbreak, Japan

Japan experienced 2 large rubella epidemics in 2004 and 2012–2014. Because of suboptimal immunization levels, the country has been experiencing a third major outbreak during 2018–2020. We conducted time series analyses to evaluate the effect of the 2012–2014 nationwide rubella epidemic on prefecture-level natality in Japan. We identified a statistically significant decline in fertility rates associated with rubella epidemic activity and increased Google searches for the term “rubella. ” We noted that the timing of fertility declines in 2014 occurred 9–13 months after peak rubella incidence months in 2013 in 4 prefectures with the highest rubella incidence. Public health interventions should focus on enhancing vaccination campaigns against rubella, not only to protect pregnant women from infection but also to mitigate declines in population size and birth rates.
Evidence From Meta-Analysis Supports Ictal Magnetoencephalographic Source Imaging as an Accurate Method in Presurgery Evaluation of Patients With Drug-Resistant Epilepsy

Background. Successful epilepsy surgery relies on localization and removal of the brain area responsible for initializing the seizures called the epileptogenic zone (EZ). Intracranial EEG (icEEG) is gold standard of this localization but has several limitations like invasiveness and limited covered area. A noninvasive method with accurate localization precision is therefore desirable. The aim of this article is to investigate the following hypotheses: (1) Ictal onset zone as localized by magnetic source imaging (iMSI) can reliably localize the EZ in focal epilepsy and (2) this localization is as good as that of icEEG. Methods. Six original studies and a total of 59 unique patients were included in a meta-analysis. Results. Sensitivity and specificity of iMSI based on surgery outcome were 77% (95% CI 60%-90%) and 75% (95% CI 53%-90%), respectively. Specificity of iMSI was statistically higher than that of icEEG. There was no significant difference between sensitivity of iMSI and icEEG. Conclusion. The meta-analysis supports that iMSI is an accurate method, achieving similar sensitivity and higher specificity than icEEG. However, at present the use of the method is limited by short recording times. A limitation that might be overcome in the future using technical advances.
Nonlinear Regression Operating on Microstructures Described from Topological Data Analysis for the Real-Time Prediction of Effective Properties

Real-time decision making needs evaluating quantities of interest (QoI) in almost real time. When these QoI are related to models based on physics, the use of Model Order Reduction techniques allows speeding-up calculations, enabling fast and accurate evaluations. To accommodate real-time constraints, a valuable route consists of computing parametric solutions—the so-called computational vademecums—that constructed off-line, can be inspected on-line. However, when dealing with shapes and topologies (complex or rich microstructures) their parametric description constitutes a major difficulty. In this paper, we propose using Topological Data Analysis for describing those rich topologies and morphologies in a concise way, and then using the associated topological descriptions for generating accurate supervised classification and nonlinear regression, enabling an almost real-time evaluation of QoI and the associated decision making.
Ventilation foetale et développement cranio-maxillaire

Les donnees qu'apporte l'echographie Doppler couleur suggerent de facon tres explicite quel pourrait etre le role de la ventilation foetale et des capsules nasales dans la morphogenese du prognathisme maxillaire, des cornets, des valves nasales et du rhino-pharynx. En outre, les troubles de la forme que l'on observe dans les cranio-synostoses d'Apert et de Crouzon, dans l'achondroplasie et dans les fentes labiales unilaterales, temoigneraient de ce que l'action morphogene de la dynamique ventilatoire foetale deborde le territoire facial pour s'etendre au crâne, base et voute. La richesse des hypotheses soulevees grâce a cette technique d'imagerie pourrait remettre en cause certaines conceptions de la morphogenese cranio-maxillaire foetale.
Drosophila melanogaster: the model organism

In the 20th century, there were two decades during which Drosophila melanogaster was the most significant model organism and each decade led to the establishment of new scientific disciplines. The first decade was roughly from 1910 and during this period a small group at Columbia University, headed by Thomas Hunt Morgan, established the rules of transmission genetics with which we are all familiar. In the second decade, roughly from 1970, many of the principles and techniques of the earlier period were used to determine the genetic control of basic aspects of the biology of organisms, notably their development and their behaviour. In this review I will show that it was not only the genius of the research workers (five were awarded Nobel Prizes and it has been argued, with justification, that at least one more should have been awarded) but also the special features of D. melanogaster that led to these advances. While Drosophila is still a significant model organism, the advent of molecular biology permits the investigation of organisms less amenable to genetic analysis, but the principles applied in these investigations were in the main principles laid down during the earlier work on Drosophila.
Contribution à l'étude des Amphibiens de Guyane française IX. Le têtard gastromyzophore d'Atelopus flavescens DUMÉRIL et BIBRON (Anura, Bufonidae)

The eggs and gastromyzophorous tadpole of Atelopus flavescens have been found in a small river in French Guiana. The egg-string was fixed under a water-bathed stone below a small cascad, the tadpoles were fixed to stones by their ventral sucker in shallow and oxygeneus (7,5 mg/l O 2 ) water. The tadpole is described.
The Ecology of a Novel Symbiosis Between a Marine Peritrich Ciliate and Chemoautotrophic Bacteria

A symbiosis between a sessile colonial ciliate, Zoothamnium niveum HEMPRICH & EHRENBERG. 1831. and chemolithoautotrophic bacteria oxidizing reduced sulfur compounds is described. The ciliates and their ectosymbionts occur on mangrove peat in the Caribbean. The feather-shaped ciliate colonies expand and contract, thus exposing the microbes alternately to oxygenated water above and sulfidic water within the boundary layer developed on the surface of the highly sulfidic peat. The symbioticciliates colonize sites with high sulfide flux where the microbial surface mat has been disturbed and grow there until the microbe mat re-establishes itself.
School academic climate and oral health (tooth loss) in adolescents

Background Preventing tooth loss depends on oral health maintenance behaviors. This study hypothesized that adolescents with educational aspirations have greater motivation to invest in the future, including maintenance of oral health status. Aim To analyze the association between a school academic climate of educational aspirations and tooth loss (first permanent molars) among adolescents. Methods A cross-sectional study was designed to include 2,500 adolescents (aged 14–19 years) enrolled in public high schools of Olinda located in Northeast Brazil. Multilevel Poisson regression random intercept models were conducted with tooth loss (first permanent molars) as the outcome. The primary cohort of interest was school academic climate, as measured by the proportion of students taking the national high school exams. Results Tooth loss of the first permanent molars (assessed by clinical exam) was more prevalent in adolescents from more disadvantaged backgrounds (receiving family allowance, low maternal education). However, after controlling for a wide range of individual characteristics, adolescents enrolled in schools with lower academic climate had a higher prevalence of tooth loss (PR 1.42, 95%CI: 1.09,1.85). Conclusion The school academic climate is associated with tooth loss, suggesting that educational aspirations are linked to adolescent oral health maintenance behaviors.
EXPLORING THE NATURAL ROLE OF MICROCYSTINS—A REVIEW OF EFFECTS ON PHOTOAUTOTROPHIC ORGANISMS 1

Cyanobacterial blooms and the production of cyanotoxins represent a serious global problem. Although the effects of a group of important cyanotoxins, microcystins (MCs), have been studied intensively in various organisms, little is known about the natural functions of these cyclic heptapeptides. MCs may have allelopathic effects. This paper summarizes the information from the studies that have investigated the effects of MCs on photoautotrophs in vitro and in vivo. Interactions with terrestrial plants, macrophytes, macroalgae, and planktonic microalgae are reported in detail with respect to the ecological relevancy of experimental conditions related to allelopathy. Our review shows that only a limited number of studies described harmful effects of MCs at concentrations that are typical for the environment. Consequently, the ability of MCs to act as general allelopathic compounds against photoautotrophs seems unlikely. However, further research is needed for definitive confirmation or rejection of the allelopathic hypothesis as well as, an explanation of the crucial question of MC function in the context of new information from evolutionary and molecular biology.
Long-term safety of approved biologics for ulcerative colitis

ABSTRACT Introduction Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) affecting the large intestine and carrying a heavy burden of morbidity for patients. Conventional treatment is based on mesalamine, corticosteroids, and immunosuppressants. In the last two decades, biologic therapies have revolutionized the treatment of UC, increasing the number of therapeutic options and providing better disease control. Areas covered Most biologics have been approved in recent years and long-term data are still scarce. The aim of this review is to summarize safety data on long-term use of biologics in ulcerative colitis. The authors searched the literature up to May 2020 for studies assessing biological drugs’ safety in UC with a follow-up longer than one year and present the key findings. Expert opinion Biologics long-term safety is consistent with what expected from shorter term studies and no main new concerns emerged from longer follow-up. Real world experience is consistent with clinical trials data. Although comparisons are difficult, safety profiles are not equal among different biologics.
Spontaneous and induced chromosome doubling in gynogenic lines of onion (Allium cepa L.)

The presence of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) or naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) and 6-benzyladenine (6—BA) in the medium is required to induce an acceptable yield of gynogenic embryos from unfertilized ovary and flower cultures in onion. Four different exposure times of ovary and flower cultures to exogenous growth regulators (15, 30, and 45 days, and the entire culture period) were assayed. The objective was to ascertain the effect of these substances and of their period of application on the formation of gynogenic embryos and on the yield of haploids. An exposure of 15 days was sufficient for ovaries and flowers to be stimulated towards the gynogenic response, whereas, for the remaining period of 30—80 days, the pro-embryos could easily grow on a growth-regulator-free medium. In the gynogenic material obtained, phenotypic differences were visible between genetically independent lines but not between plants within each line, even when they had a different ploidy level (n or 2n). Almost all lines obtained by gynogenesis were sterile. Only a small percentage (1%) became fertile through spontaneous chromosome doubling, and these produced 2—20 seeds each, giving normal plants. The recovery of fertility occurred more often during the generations of bulbils. To exploit this natural propensity towards diploidization in this phase, different amounts and numbers of applications of colchicine were evaluated in two experiments. The treatments corresponding to 10 and 100 mg/1 of colchicine applied for 24h gave the highest number of diploid cells in root tips but no diploidization occurred in the shoot apices. Three days of colchicine treatment at 10 mg/1 produced 46% of plants completely diploid in the shoot apex. The flower fertility of these doubled haploid plants is being evaluated.
Effect of salinity, temperature, and growth regulators on the germination and early seedling growth of Atriplex griffithii var. stocksii

Seed germination and early seedling growth of Atriplex griffithii var. stocksii from seeds collected from a saline desert habitat in Karachi, Pakistan, were studied. The seeds of A. griffithii did not germinate under high salt stress (516 mM NaCl). Best germination percentages were obtained in distilled water. Seed germination was stimulated in light at cooler alternating temperature (25:10 °C) and inhibited at warmer temperature (30:15, 30:20, and 35:25 °C) regimes. Early seedling growth showed responses towards salinity and temperature that were similar to the germination responses. Both GA3 and kinetin alleviated salinity-induced germination inhibition, and in most cases germination was stimulated by growth regulator treatments. A low concentration of kinetin (0.46 μM) and a high concentration of GA3 (28.9 μM) significantly promoted early seedling growth at all salinity treatments. Key words: Atriplex griffithii var. stocksii, seed germination, early seedling growth, salinity, temperature, growth regul.
Recovery dynamics of zooplankton following mouth-breaching in the temporarily open/closed Mdloti Estuary, South Africa

Mouth-breaching events have major impacts on biological processes in temporarily open/closed estuaries. The aim of this investigation was to monitor zooplankton recovery dynamics following artificial breaching of the Mdloti Estuary in February 2004. Spatial and temporal patterns in zooplankton distribution in the lower, middle and upper reaches of the estuary before, during and after breaching were compared over three months from 27 January to 26 April 2004. Thirty-five taxa were identified, with the dominant copepod Pseudodiaptomus hessei accounting for 42% and 58% of the total abundance and biomass, respectively. Breaching resulted in a 98% loss of zooplankton biomass. While a temporary recovery was recorded during open-mouth conditions, it was not sustained due to continual sediment scouring and flushing. Pre-breaching zooplankton abundance and biomass levels were only attained nine days after mouth closure, with peaks being recorded after 19, 28 and 35 days in the lower, upper and middle reaches, respectively. Recovery was, therefore, faster in the lower reaches. Mouth state was primarily responsible for regulating zooplankton stock. However, the zooplankton in the various reaches did not recover in synchrony after mouth closure, because abiotic factors and food availability were different in the three estuarine reaches.
Photo-crosslinked alginate nano-hydroxyapatite paste for bone tissue engineering

In this study, methacrylation of alginate was carried out by reacting sodium alginate with methacrylic anhydride in the presence of sodium hydroxide. Separately synthesized nano-hydroxyapatite (nano-HAp) powder was surface functionalized using mercaptopropionic acid and ethylene glycol methacrylate phosphate (EGMP) in the presence of azobisisobutyronitrile benzene as a free radical initiator in a nitrogen atmosphere. Methacrylated alginate solution was mixed with the required amount of surface-functionalized HAp nanoparticles in the presence of 0.05% Irgacure 2959 as a photoinitiator and was placed at the centre of a 8 kW UV light source (265 nm) to prepare photo-crosslinked bone paste. X-ray diffraction analysis indicated that surface functionalization did not alter phase purity of HAp nanopowder in the prepared paste. The graft polymerization of EGMP on the surface of HAp was confirmed by the presence of the 1732 cm−1 band, which belongs to C=-O stretching of EGMP, in addition to the characteristic peaks of nano-HAp and alginate in the composite paste. The storage and loss moduli of all the prepared pastes increased non-linearly with time up to 100 s, demonstrating their pseudo plastic behaviour. The rate of release of bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP-2) was significantly faster in the first few days, and the release curve gradually levelled off prior to slowing down up to 22 d. Mesenchymal stem cell adhesion studies revealed that cells could attach to the paste material and stretch over the surface of the material after 14 d of incubation. MTT assay showed that prepared paste materials were conducive to attachment and proliferation of mesenchymal stem cells. Immunocytochemical analysis revealed that the addition of surface-functionalized nano-HAp and BMP-2 to alginate hydrogel enhanced the osteogenic potential of the prepared paste. The results indicate that the newly developed photo-crosslinked paste may be physically and biologically suitable for application as a bone filler.