Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Bibliometric Analysis of Primary Aldosteronism Research From 2000 to 2020

Thousands of papers on primary aldosteronism (PA) have been published in the last two decades. This study aimed to evaluate the research hotspots and future trends in PA research using bibliometric analysis. A total of 2,365 PA research papers between 2000 and 2020 were included. The dominant position of the United States in global PA research throughout this 20-year period was evident, and it was also the country most frequently involved in international cooperation. The University of Padua was the most productive institution and a leader in research collaboration. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism was the most productive journal in terms of the number of publications on PA. Further, Mulatero P, Reincke M, Beuschlein F and Wu VC all made significant contributions to PA research. Five hotspots have been identified: (1) metabolic syndrome associated with PA; (2) molecular mechanisms of PA; (3) adrenal adenoma and adrenal cortex; (4) hypertension associated with PA; and (5) clinical monitoring parameters and diagnosis in patients with PA. Our results suggest that the molecular mechanisms of PA will remain research hotspots in the future. International collaboration is also expected to widen and deepen in the field of PA research.
Interactions of Echinacea spp. Root Extracts and Alkylamides With the Endocannabinoid System and Peripheral Inflammatory Pain

Historical ethnobotanies of indigenous peoples of the North American prairies reveal treatment of many painful conditions by Echinacea spp. Recent evidence suggests a pharmacological basis for such use as the bioactivity of E. angustifolia and E. purpurea is mediated, in part, through activation of the endocannabinoid system (ECS). Whereas the cannabimimetic effects of individual echinacea products and alkylamides have been described, the activity of crude extracts has not been compared between cannabinoid (CB) receptors or across species or genotypes. Moreover, few studies have explored echinacea’s engagement of the ECS for historic treatments or new therapeutic applications in peripheral inflammatory pain. We hypothesized that 1) the in vitro effects of root extracts on CB receptor internalization would vary with species and phytochemistry, and that echinacea root extracts would reduce inflammatory pain in vivo through activation of the ECS. Root extracts of different E. angustifolia and E. purpurea accessions were prepared, analyzed by HPLC-DAD to quantify caffeic acid derivatives and alkylamides (AKA), and tested for agonist and antagonist activities using receptor redistribution assays. Linear regression of activity relative to phytochemistry identified predictive compounds that were assessed individually in redistribution assays. Extracts were evaluated in the Hargreaves model of chronic inflammatory pain in rats with co-administration of selective CB1/2 antagonists to gauge involvement of the ECS. CB receptor agonist activity varied among accessions of both species with linear regression revealing a significant relationship between CB1 activity and AKA2 for E angustifolia, and AKA 9 + 10 for E purpurea. CB2 activity was positively related with AKA 9 + 10 and total AKAs in E. angustifolia. Four isolated AKA demonstrated agonist activity in the CB2, but not CB1, assay. In the inflammatory pain model, oral administration of either E angustifolia or E. purpurea root extract produced dose-dependent analgesic effects that were partially reversed by co-administration of CB receptor antagonists. This study demonstrates that in vitro effects of crude echinacea root extracts on CB receptors is predicted by phytochemistry. In vivo, echinacea has potential applications for peripheral inflammatory pain such as arthritis and burns, reflecting the traditional uses of Indigenous North Americans.
Effects of the chelating agent nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA) on the toxicity of metals (Cd, Cu, Zn and Pb)in the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus Lmk.

La toxicite du Cd du Cu, du Zn et du Pb isoles ou en presence de doses croissantes d'agent chelateur, l'acide nitrilotriacetique a ete testee sur des embryons d'oursin. L'acide nitrilotriacetique peut supprimer completement la toxicite du cuivre, du zinc et du plomb mais pas celle du cadmium. L'effet de cet acide sur la toxicite de ces metaux est discute
Deep Learning Based on ACR TI-RADS Can Improve the Differential Diagnosis of Thyroid Nodules

Objective The purpose of this study was to improve the differentiation between malignant and benign thyroid nodules using deep learning (DL) in category 4 and 5 based on the Thyroid Imaging Reporting and Data System (TI-RADS, TR) from the American College of Radiology (ACR). Design and Methods From June 2, 2017 to April 23, 2019, 2082 thyroid ultrasound images from 1396 consecutive patients with confirmed pathology were retrospectively collected, of which 1289 nodules were category 4 (TR4) and 793 nodules were category 5 (TR5). Ninety percent of the B-mode ultrasound images were applied for training and validation, and the residual 10% and an independent external dataset for testing purpose by three different deep learning algorithms. Results In the independent test set, the DL algorithm of best performance got an AUC of 0.904, 0.845, 0.829 in TR4, TR5, and TR4&5, respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of the optimal model was 0.829, 0.831 on TR4, 0.846, 0.778 on TR5, 0.790, 0.779 on TR4&5, versus the radiologists of 0.686 (P=0.108), 0.766 (P=0.101), 0.677 (P=0.211), 0.750 (P=0.128), and 0.680 (P=0.023), 0.761 (P=0.530), respectively. Conclusions The study demonstrated that DL could improve the differentiation of malignant from benign thyroid nodules and had significant potential for clinical application on TR4 and TR5.
Rapid and Accurate Campylobacter jejuni Detection With CRISPR-Cas12b Based on Newly Identified Campylobacter jejuni-Specific and -Conserved Genomic Signatures

Campylobacter jejuni is among the most prevalent foodborne zoonotic pathogens leading to diarrheal diseases. In this study, we developed a CRISPR-Cas12b-based system to rapidly and accurately detect C. jejuni contamination. Identification of C. jejuni-specific and -conserved genomic signatures is a fundamental step in development of the detection system. By comparing C. jejuni genome sequences with those of the closely related Campylobacter coli, followed by comprehensive online BLAST searches, a 20-bp C. jejuni-conserved (identical in 1024 out of 1037 analyzed C. jejuni genome sequences) and -specific (no identical sequence detected in non-C. jejuni strains) sequence was identified and the system was then assembled. In further experiments, strong green fluorescence was observed only when C. jejuni DNA was present in the system, highlighting the specificity of this system. The assay, with a sample-to-answer time of ∼40 min, positively detected chicken samples that were contaminated with a dose of approximately 10 CFU C. jejuni per gram of chicken, which was >10 times more sensitive than the traditional Campylobacter isolation method, suggesting that this method shows promise for onsite C. jejuni detection. This study provides an example of bioinformatics-guided CRISPR-Cas12b-based detection system development for rapid and accurate onsite pathogen detection.
The Iron Curtain: Macrophages at the Interface of Systemic and Microenvironmental Iron Metabolism and Immune Response in Cancer

Macrophages fulfill central functions in systemic iron metabolism and immune response. Infiltration and polarization of macrophages in the tumor microenvironment is associated with differential cancer prognosis. Distinct metabolic iron and immune phenotypes in tumor associated macrophages have been observed in most cancers. While this prompts the hypothesis that macroenvironmental manifestations of dysfunctional iron metabolism have direct associations with microenvironmental tumor immune response, these functional connections are still emerging. We review our current understanding of the role of macrophages in systemic and microenvironmental immune response and iron metabolism and discuss these functions in the context of cancer and immunometabolic precision therapy approaches. Accumulation of tumor associated macrophages with distinct iron pathologies at the invasive tumor front suggests an “Iron Curtain” presenting as an innate functional interface between systemic and microenvironmental iron metabolism and immune response that can be harnessed therapeutically to further our goal of treating and eliminating cancer.
Religious delight: a non-functional approach to playful religious experiences

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Rescue notification system with accurate location estimation for injuries in city Marathons

ABSTRACT This study proposes a simple location-based rescue request system for use in city marathons with large numbers of athletes. Instead of using passive radio frequency identification technology, the proposed system employs initiative Bluetooth low-energy communication technology. When an athlete is injured, they can immediately transmit a rescue request that contains their estimated location and the time of the injury. Upon receiving the rescue request, medical staff can respond rapidly. This study included three parts. First, the time required for a rescue team to receive a request from an injured athlete was estimated based on past international city marathon race records. Then, a software simulation was performed to extract the simplest transfer parameter requirements for system positioning. Finally, experimental samples were produced for field verification, and the rescue notification timing system was developed. This approach was found to successfully deliver 97.4%–99.9% of the athletes’ request messages within 3–4 min and maintains the error range of the rescue locations under 15 m. It is appropriate for use in city marathons owing to its simple structure, low weight, low cost, and need for only common commercial technologies that are ready for mass production.
Ultra-strong and strain-hardenable ultrafine-grained medium-entropy alloy via enhanced grain-boundary strengthening

An equiatomic VCoNi medium-entropy alloy possesses high sensitivity to grain-boundary strengthening, achieved by severe lattice distortions. Its ultrafine-grain structure enables 1.5 Gigapascal yield strength even for the fully recrystallized alloy with a single face-centered cubic structure. The high density of grain boundaries also generates high back stresses via piling up of massive dislocations, and the low cross-slip probabilities produce not only robust dislocation-mediated plasticity but also high back stress contribution to flow stress, which affords high strain-hardening capability to ultrafine-grain alloys, with 1.7 Gigapascal ultimate tensile strength with remarkable ductility. Our approach provides a new method for developing ultrastrong metallic materials. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT
Bridging the two cultures or re-rectifying incommensurability? A commentary on Ariel Gluklich’s The Joy of Religion

Ariel Gluklich takes up an important and according to him partly overlooked topic in The Joy of Religion (2020). The book has many qualities, and much of its argument is challenging, original, and thoughtful. It attends to pleasure and joy in an imbalanced fashion, but there is a reason. While the former is usually culturally excoriated, the latter is eulogized, but howdoes that relate to their biological counterparts? Is it in cultural representations only that we bifurcate happiness into negative and positive sides, or do they, also at the biotic level, trigger differently valenced behaviors and effects? Gluklich admirably seeks to tie together a science-based approach with cultural studies applied to the question how does the emotional, instinctual level connect to feelings of pleasure and joy. Ambitious as the book is, in the end I find the argument unsatisfactory. The attempt to establish a dialogue between the two cultures falters on the grounds that Glucklich’s embrace of a philosophical phenomenological tradition ultimately disqualifies the scientific contribution. The use of cognitive science, evolutionary biology and psychology are obvious in a study of religious joy, as is the attempt to combine the approach with cultural studies, and Gluklich both wants to have his biscuit and eat it. He grants that pleasure is a biological fact, which can be studied by cognitive science and evolutionary biology and psychology, i.e., as an adaptation for avoidance and approach. As a cultural phenomenon, though, pleasure eludes the scientific perspective. The argument is not outright religious, as one may be tempted to think, but it has an apologetic tenor in the dismissal of science for a full grasp of religious experience. It ends up in re-rectifying the time-honored dichotomy between explanation and interpretation. I do not mean to suggest that this is a full rejection, however. There is much to learn; but the attempt to bridge scientific theorizing with philosophical phenomenology does not persuade because of the incommensurability between the two and the elevation of phenomenology at the cost of science. I am also critical about some of the examples adduced from the history of religions, but my focus here is on the overarching argument.
Fault detection and diagnosis for the screw chillers using multi-region XGBoost model

Chillers play essential roles in the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems to ensure the required thermal comfort. To reduce the operational risk such as faulty operation or energy waste, it’s essential to develop the robust and effective fault detection and diagnosis (FDD) strategy for the chillers. This paper presents a novel hybrid reference model called multi-region XGBoost model that integrates parameter optimized XGBoost model with mean shift clustering method. Based on the reference model, an FDD strategy, including two stages, is proposed. The experiments are carried out on a screw chiller, on which three thermal faults are investigated. The indicative characteristic quantities are selected as the model inputs for detection and diagnosis purpose. The FDD result of the multi-region XGBoost model is compared with that of support vector machine (SVM) model and XGBoost model without clustering. In terms of the performance of fault detection, the multi-region XGBoost model detects 97.26% faulty samples while correctly identifies 99.10% fault-free samples. As for fault diagnosis, the multi-region XGBoost model possesses the highest fault diagnosis accuracy of 96.89%. Besides, the hybrid model also shows the best generalization ability. The FDD result reveals that the multi-region XGBoost model has the reliable efficiency for the screw chiller application.
Solo female travellers’ memorable experiences: positive encounters with male strangers

ABSTRACT Solo female travel has been on the rise globally, which has drawn attention from the academics. However, no research has specifically centred on the social world of solo female travellers in either Western or Asian inquiries. The study is set on Asian solo female travel, in this case the Taiwanese women, with a view to unveiling their memorable experiences with male strangers on the cross-cultural adventures. A total of 19 Taiwanese participants were enlisted, and the qualitative study results present their positive encounters with male strangers on a continuum. Four types of situations denoting their relationships were further discussed: Tidbits of Travel, Acts of Kindness, Company and Friendship, and Affective Relationships. The research contributes to tourism scholarship by demonstrating the pluralities of their gender relationships with stranger males, which is in due response to the dearth of research in this area.
Effects of alloying elements on the generalised stacking fault energies of Pt: a first-principles study

ABSTRACT By adding alloying elements in Pt, the solid-solution strengthening is extensively used to improve the mechanical properties of Pt-based alloys, one of the most promising high-temperature materials due to its higher melting point. Yet the microscopic mechanism of the alloying effects on the mechanical properties of Pt is unclear. Based on a systematic study of the influence of alloying elements on the generalised stacking fault energy (GSFE) of Pt with first-principles calculations, the alloying effects on deformation mechanism and ductility of Pt are explored in this study. It is found that the alloying elements such as Y, Hf, Mo tend to decrease the intrinsic stacking fault energy ( ) of Pt and improve its ductility, while Ru, Rh, Ir tend to increase the and result in brittleness. The analysis of the electron localisation function (ELF) and density of states (DOS) indicates that the weaker or enhancer bonding between Pt atom and alloying atom at the local stacking fault area is responsible for the variation of the GSFEs, which further affects the mechanical properties of Pt-based alloys.
Urban Stream Vulnerability Toward PAHs and n-Alkanes and Their Source Identification

ABSTRACT Monjolinho River is an important water body located in the central urban region of São Paulo State in southeast Brazil. The present work reports a 4-year study related to spatio-temporal distribution and source identification of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and n-alkanes in surface water and sediment samples of Monjolinho River. A total of 25 sampling campaigns for water, and 10 sampling campaigns for sediment collection, were performed from 2011 to 2014. In sediment samples, total PAHs were found in the range of 2.25 µg kg−1–26,253.87 µg kg−1, while n-alkane concentrations ranged from 0.01 to 165.64 µg kg−1. Total PAHs' concentration in surface water was in the range of 0.17–1,348.35 ng L−1, while n-alkanes were detected in the range of 6.17–316.15 µg L−1. Principal component analysis was used as a statistical tool for summarizing and interpreting a huge quantity of data. It was observed that concentrations of contaminants increased along the river course in urban zone. Distribution indexes were calculated to identify possible sources of carbon pool that pointed towards petrogenic, pyrogenic, and biogenic sources. The overall concentrations of PAHs and n-alkanes were low compared to many previous studies done elsewhere and were mostly below the threshold effects level except in very few occasional cases, while probable effect level was violated in 1 sample during 4 years. Although adverse impacts are unexpected due to overall low contaminant concentrations, unexpected industrial, and sewage discharges make it risky for safer use as a drinking water resource, especially in dry conditions.
Metabolic syndrome, intracranial arterial stenosis and cerebral small vessel disease in community-dwelling populations

Background and purpose This study aimed to investigate the association of metabolic syndrome (MetS) with both intracranial atherosclerotic stenosis (ICAS) and imaging markers of cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) in a community-based sample. Methods This study included 943 participants (aged 55.6±9.2 years, 36.1% male) from the community-based Shunyi cohort study. MetS was defined according to the joint interim criteria and quantified by the MetS severity Z-score. ICAS was evaluated by brain magnetic resonance angiography. The MRI markers of CSVD, including white matter hyperintensities (WMHs), lacunes, cerebral microbleeds (CMBs) and enlarged perivascular spaces (EPVS), were assessed. Multiple regression models were used to investigate the association of MetS severity Z-score with ICAS and these CSVD markers. Results We found that risk of ICAS (OR=1.75, 95% CI 1.39 to 2.21, p<0.001) increased consistently with MetS severity. MetS severity was significantly associated with higher risks of WMH volume (β=0.11, 95% CI 0.01 to 0.20, p=0.02) and lacunes (OR=1.28, 95% CI 1.03 to 1.59, p=0.03) but not the presence of CMBs (OR=0.93, 95% CI 0.74 to 1.16, p=0.51) and PVS severity (EPVS in basal ganglia: OR=0.96, 95% CI 0.84 to 1.09, p=0.51 and EPVS in white matter: OR=1.09, 95% CI 0.96 to 1.23, p=0.21). Conclusions Our findings suggest that WMH and lacunes share risk factors with atherosclerosis of the cerebral artery, whereas the impact of glucose and lipid metabolic disorder to CMB or EPVS might be weak.
Hindered nitroxide : A new yellowing inhibitor for mechanical pulps

Un inhibiteur compose de 2-(hydroxy-2' di-tert-amylphenyl-3',5')benzotriazole, un absorbeur UV (AUV), et d'un radical libre hydroxy-4 tetramethylpiperidine-2,2,6,6 de n-oxyle (NO), un piege a radical d'oxyde d'azote, a imparti a la couleur de la PTM de resineux blanchie au peroxyde (PTMB) une stabilite sans precedent. Pendant les 600 jours d'exposition continue a la lumiere ambiante de bureau (eclairage fluorescent + lumiere du jour a travers les fenetres), la PTMB traitee avec 1% d'AUV et 1% de piege a radical n'a perdu que 10 points de blancheur ISO, la meme perte de blancheur que la pâte kraft blanchie. La PTMB non traitee a perdu plus de 40 points de blancheur pendant la meme periode d'exposition. Lorsque nous avons reduit la quantite d'oxyde d'azote a 0,1%, une stabilite identique a ete observee pour les 250 jours d'exposition, avec une perte de blancheur legerement plus importante pour des temps d'exposition plus longs. L'oxyde d'azote inhibe aussi le jaunissement thermique des pâtes contenant de la lignine, a tres faibles charges. L'hydroxylamine correspondant a l'oxyde d'azote entrave est egalement efficace comme agent anti-jaunissement.