Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cloning and sequence analysis of the cDNA encoding P-450 aromatase (P450arom) from a rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) ovary; relationship between the amount of P450arom mRNA and the production of oestradiol-17β in the ovary

The enzyme aromatase P-450 (P450arom) catalyses the conversion of androgen to oestrogen. A cDNA insert encoding P450arom was isolated from a rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) ovary cDNA library. The insert was sequenced and found to contain an open-reading frame predicted to encode a protein of 522 amino acid residues. The deduced polypeptide is 52% homologous with human, mouse and rat P450arom and 53% homologous with that of chicken. The insert was confirmed to encode P450arom by introducing it into COS-1 monkey kidney tumour cells (COS-1 cells) and detecting the conversion of testosterone to oestradiol-17 beta by radioimmunoassay. The N-terminal region of the deduced polypeptide was 19 amino acids longer than that of the other four species, and was found by hydropathy plotting to be very hydrophobic. Northern blot analysis revealed 2.6 kb RNA transcripts which were present in the trout ovary during vitellogenesis and hybridized to the cDNA insert. In preparations from subsequent stages of ovarian development, no RNA transcripts hybridized to the probe. Since the RNA transcripts are present only during the stage of oestradiol-beta production by the ovarian follicles, oestradiol-17 beta production may be regulated, in part, by the amount of P450arom mRNA present.
CD4+:CD8+ T Cell Ratio Normalization and the Development of AIDS Events in People with HIV Starting Antiretroviral Therapy

We identify factors associated with the normalization of the CD4+:CD8+ T cell ratio among UK Collaborative HIV Cohort study participants, and describe the association of the CD4+ and CD8+ T cell counts and the CD4+:CD8+ T cell ratio, with the risk of new AIDS events among individuals who achieve a suppressed viral load. Participants initiating combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) after 2006 with a CD4+:CD8+ T cell ratio <1, and viral suppression within 6 months were included. Cox proportional hazard models were used to examine associations with ratio normalization (ratio ≥1). Poisson regression models were used to investigate factors associated with the development of AIDS after viral load suppression. A total of 13,178 participants [median age: 37 (interquartile range: 31–44)] were followed for 75,336 person-years. Of the 4,042 (32.9%) who experienced ratio normalization, individuals with a high CD4+ T cell count [>500 vs. ≤200 cells/mm3, adjusted hazard ratio (95% confidence interval): 7.93 (6.97–9.01)], low CD8+ T cell count [>1,150 vs. ≤500 cells/mm3: 0.18 (0.16–0.21)], and low CD4+:CD8+ T cell ratio [>0.8 vs. <0.2: 12.36 (10.41–14.68)] at cART initiation were more likely to experience ratio normalization. Four hundred and nineteen people developed a new AIDS event. Most recent CD4+ T cell count [>500 vs. ≤200 cells/mm3: adjusted rate ratio 0.24 (0.16–0.34)] and CD4+:CD8+ T cell ratio [>0.8 vs. <0.2: 0.33 (0.21–0.52)] were independently associated with a new AIDS event. One third of study participants experienced ratio normalization after starting cART. CD4+ T cell count and CD4+:CD8+ T cell ratio are both individually associated with ratio normalization and the development of new AIDS events after cART.
Secondary Index to Big Data NoSQL Database ¡V Incorporating Solr to HBase Approach

This paper introduces the combination of Big Data NoSQL database HBase and enterprise search platform Solr so as to tackle the problem of the secondary indexing function with fast query. In order to verify the eﬀectiveness and eﬃciency of the proposed approach, the assessment using C-P ratio has been done for several competitive benchmark databases and the proposed one. As a result, our proposed approach outperforms the other databases and fulﬁlls secondary indexing function with fast query in NoSQL database.
Overlapping resource use in three Great Basin species: implications for community invasibility and vegetation dynamics

1 In the Great Basin of the western United States of America, the invasive annual grass Bromus tectorum has extensively replaced native shrub and bunchgrass communities, but the native bunchgrass Elymus elymoides has been reported to suppress Bromus. Curlew Valley, a site in Northern Utah, provides a model community to test the effects of particular species on invasion by examining competitive relationships among Elymus, Bromus and the native shrub Artemisia tridentata. 2 The site contains Bromus/Elymus, Elymus/Artemisia and monodominant Elymus stands. Transect data indicate that Elymus suppresses Bromus disproportionately relative to its above‐ground cover. Artemisia seedlings recruit in Elymus stands but rarely in the presence of Bromus. This relationship might be explained by competition between the two grasses involving a different resource or occurring in a different season to that between each grass and Artemisia. 3 Time reflectometry data collected in monodominant patches indicated that in spring, soil moisture use by Bromus is rapid, whereas depletion under Elymus and Artemisia is more moderate. Artemisia seedlings may therefore encounter a similar moisture environment in monodominant or mixed perennial stands. However, efficient autumn soil moisture use by Elymus may help suppress Bromus. 4 In competition plots, target Artemisia grown with Bromus were stunted relative to those grown with Elymus, despite equivalent above‐ground biomass of the two grasses. Competition for nitrogen in spring and autumn, assessed with 15N tracer, appears to be secondary to moisture availability in determining competitive outcomes. 5 Elymus physiology and function appear to play an important role in determining the composition of communities in Curlew Valley, by maintaining zones free of Bromus where Artemisia can recruit.
Population dynamics of Bactrocera dorsalis (Diptera: Tephritidae) and analysis of factors influencing populations in Baoshanba, Yunnan, China

Population dynamics of the Oriental fruit fly, Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel) (Diptera: Tephritidae), were monitored year‐round using methyl eugenol‐baited traps in 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006 in Baoshanba, Yunnan Province, China. Environmental factors including air temperature, rainfall and host‐plant species were analyzed with respect to the population dynamics. This species occurred only during April–November, with one yearly peak in August. The population fluctuation patterns with respect to season were identical in all study years. Correlation analysis and stepwise regression analysis indicated that air temperature, rainfall, sunlight hours and relative humidity were the major climatic factors that correlated with changes in the size of the fly population, and that monthly mean temperature, monthly sunlight hours and monthly relative humidity were most important. The seasonal increase in population size coincided with the fruiting period of the fly's host plants, but host fruit availability influenced the population size only when temperatures were sufficiently high. Cold temperatures may explain why there was no trap capture in the winter months. We believe that air temperature is the key factor explaining the seasonal occurrence of the fly population at Baoshanba.
Tracking Internal and Global Diffusive Dynamics During Protein Aggregation by High-Resolution Neutron Spectroscopy.

Proteins can misfold and form either amorphous or organized aggregates with different morphologies and features. Aggregates of amyloid nature are pathological hallmarks in so-called protein conformational diseases, including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. Evidence prevails that the transient early phases of the reaction determine the aggregate morphology and toxicity. As a consequence, real-time monitoring of protein aggregation is of utmost importance. Here, we employed time-resolved neutron backscattering spectroscopy to follow center-of-mass self-diffusion and nano- to picosecond internal dynamics of lysozyme during aggregation into a specific β-sheet rich superstructure, called particulates, formed at the isoelectric point of the protein. Particulate formation is found to be a one-step process and protein internal dynamics to remain unchanged during the entire aggregation process. The time-resolved neutron backscattering spectroscopy approach developed here, in combination with standard kinetics assays, provides a unifying framework in which dynamics and conformational transitions can be related to the different aggregation pathways.
What every intensivist must know about antimicrobial stewardship: its pitfalls and its challenges

The increased rates of multiresistant pathogens are a global threat to the healthcare system. As the delivery of new antimicrobials is far from addressing all resistance challenges, new alternatives to improve the current use of antimicrobials have been increasingly studied and adopted. One of the most relevant is undoubtedly antimicrobial stewardship (AMS). Antimicrobial stewardship is increasingly used to improve adherence to guidelines and clinical outcomes, to decrease antimicrobial resistance and other collateral damage and to control costs. A recent Cochrane review investigated the effectiveness and safety of AMS and found high-certainty evidence that interventions lead to more hospital patients receiving the appropriate treatment according to antibiotic policies and moderate-certainty evidence that interventions reduce the length of hospital stay without affecting safety. (1) Several pitfalls and limitations exist that may compromise the proper conception, implementation and development of AMS for intensive care units (ICU). The purpose of this paper is to briefly address some of the main pitfalls.
The Impact of Childhood Growth Stunting and Post-Migration Dysbiosis on the Development of Metabolic Syndrome Among Indigenous Immigrant Mexican Women

While weight gain is common following migration to a new country and Mexican Americans have a disparate prevalence of overweight and obesity. In particular, Mexican American women have one of the world’s highest rates of Metabolic Syndrome (MetS), characterized by abdominal obesity, insulin resistance, hypertension, and dyslipidemia, all of which increase the risk for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD). Although the etiology of this dilemma is not well understood, using the framework of allostatic load (AL), we posit that exposure to multiple physiologic, psychosocial and environmental stressors over the course of the lifespan may contribute to an increased risk of MetS among indigenous Mexican immigrant women. Two such frequently overlooked stressors are: 1) a history of childhood growth stunting (CGS) and 2) dietary changes post migration that result in decreased diversity of the gut microbiome (dysbiosis). To date, little is known about how migration experiences differentially affect the relationship between CGS and MetS in adulthood. The purpose of this theoretical article is to present a proposed model of how early life stressors (ELS), specifically CGS, may interact with insalubrious aspects of the immigration experience to promote an increased risk for MetS among indigenous Mexican immigrant women. This model may be used in a bi-national effort to guide intervention efforts to decrease CGS in Mexico and to prevent, monitor or delay the components of MetS post migration in the US.
Application Research of Biochar for the Remediation of Soil Heavy Metals Contamination: A Review

Soil contamination by heavy metals threatens the quality of agricultural products and human health, so it is necessary to choose certain economic and effective remediation techniques to control the continuous deterioration of land quality. This paper is intended to present an overview on the application of biochar as an addition to the remediation of heavy-metal-contaminated soil, in terms of its preparation technologies and performance characteristics, remediation mechanisms and effects, and impacts on heavy metal bioavailability. Biochar is a carbon-neutral or carbon-negative product produced by the thermochemical transformation of plant- and animal-based biomass. Biochar shows numerous advantages in increasing soil pH value and organic carbon content, improving soil water-holding capacity, reducing the available fraction of heavy metals, increasing agricultural crop yield and inhibiting the uptake and accumulation of heavy metals. Different conditions, such as biomass type, pyrolysis temperature, heating rate and residence time are the pivotal factors governing the performance characteristics of biochar. Affected by the pH value and dissolved organic carbon and ash content of biochar, the interaction mechanisms between biochar and heavy metals mainly includes complexation, reduction, cation exchange, electrostatic attraction and precipitation. Finally, the potential risks of in-situ remediation strategy of biochar are expounded upon, which provides the directions for future research to ensure the safe production and sustainable utilization of biochar.
Silent Speech Decoding Using Spectrogram Features Based on Neuromuscular Activities

Silent speech decoding is a novel application of the Brain–Computer Interface (BCI) based on articulatory neuromuscular activities, reducing difficulties in data acquirement and processing. In this paper, spatial features and decoders that can be used to recognize the neuromuscular signals are investigated. Surface electromyography (sEMG) data are recorded from human subjects in mimed speech situations. Specifically, we propose to utilize transfer learning and deep learning methods by transforming the sEMG data into spectrograms that contain abundant information in time and frequency domains and are regarded as channel-interactive. For transfer learning, a pre-trained model of Xception on the large image dataset is used for feature generation. Three deep learning methods, Multi-Layer Perception, Convolutional Neural Network and bidirectional Long Short-Term Memory, are then trained using the extracted features and evaluated for recognizing the articulatory muscles’ movements in our word set. The proposed decoders successfully recognized the silent speech and bidirectional Long Short-Term Memory achieved the best accuracy of 90%, outperforming the other two algorithms. Experimental results demonstrate the validity of spectrogram features and deep learning algorithms.
Aggression in imported fire ants: an explanation for shifts in their spatial distributions in Southern United States?

Abstract 1. The imported fire ants, Solenopsis invicta Buren (red), S. richteri Forel (black), and their hybrids (S. invicta × S. richteri) are sympatric congeners with overlapping but shifting spatial distributions in northern Alabama and Mississippi, United States.
Incubator Temperature and Oxygen Concentration at the Plateau Stage in Oxygen Consumption Affects Intestinal Maturation of Broiler Chicks

Incubator temperature and oxygen concentrations were tested as factors determining the intestinal maturation of two lines of broiler chickens. One line was a Low G line selected because its eggs display low eggshell conductance. The second line was a High G line that grew at a reduced rate and its eggs show high eggshell conductance values. All eggs were incubated normally until the 18 day of development or the th beginning of the plateau stage in oxygen consumption. At that time the eggs were divided randomly and placed into experimental cabinets operating at 36, 37 38 or 39oC in experiment 1 or with 17, 19, 21 or 23% oxygen in experiment 2. In experiment 3, the best and worst conditions observed in experiments 1 and 2 were combined in a factorial arrangement. Body weight and intestinal maturation were measured by assaying for maltase and alkaline phosphatase activities in intestinal tissues. Increasing temperatures suppressed intestinal maturation whereas increasing oxygen concentrations enhanced intestinal maturation. When examined together in a factorial arrangement, it was clear that the effects of temperature and oxygen on the embryos were independent because they did not interact. The effects of temperature and oxygen were greater on Low G broiler embryos than they were on High G type embryos. It is concluded that incubator temperatures greater than 37o C, and oxygen concentrations less than 21% are detrimental to intestinal maturation in broiler chicks.
The Role of Enterococcus faecium as a Key Producer and Fermentation Condition as an Influencing Factor in Tyramine Accumulation in Cheonggukjang

The study evaluated the role of Enterococcus faecium in tyramine production and its response to fermentation temperature in a traditional Korean fermented soybean paste, Cheonggukjang. Tyramine content was detected in retail Cheonggukjang products at high concentrations exceeding the recommended limit up to a factor of 14. All retail Cheonggukjang products contained Enterococcus spp. at concentrations of at least 6 Log CFU/g. Upon isolation of Enterococcus strains, approximately 93% (157 strains) produced tyramine at over 100 µg/mL. The strains that produced the highest concentrations of tyramine (301.14–315.29 μg/mL) were identified as E. faecium through 16S rRNA sequencing. The results indicate that E. faecium is one of the major contributing factors to high tyramine content in Cheonggukjang. During fermentation, tyramine content in Cheonggukjang groups co-inoculated with E. faecium strains was highest at 45 °C, followed by 37 °C and 25 °C. The tyramine content of most Cheonggukjang groups continually increased as fermentation progressed, except groups fermented at 25 °C. At 45 °C, the tyramine content occasionally exceeded the recommended limit within 3 days of fermentation. The results suggest that lowering fermentation temperature and shortening duration may reduce the tyramine content of Cheonggukjang, thereby reducing the safety risks that may arise when consuming food with high tyramine concentrations.
DOES EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY HELP THE UNDERSTANDING OF METABOLIC SURGERY? A FOCUSED REVIEW

ABSTRACT Introduction: The wide net of physiological issues involved in metabolic surgery is extremely complex. Nonetheless, compared anatomy and phisiology can provide good clues of how digestive tracts are shaped for more or less caloric food, for more or less fiber, for abundance and for scarcity. Objective: To review data from Compared Anatomy and Physiology, and in the Evolutionary Sciences that could help in the better comprehension of the metabolic surgery. Method: A focused review of the literature selecting information from these three fields of knowledge in databases: Cochrane Library, Medline and SciELO, articles and book chapters in English and Portuguese, between 1955 and 2019, using the headings “GIP, GLP-1, PYY, type 2 diabetes, vertebrates digestive system, hominid evolution, obesity, bariatric surgery “. Results: The digestive tract of superior animals shows highly specialized organs to digest and absorb specific diets. In spite of the wide variations of digestive systems, some general rules are observed. The proximal part of the digestive tract, facing the scarcity of sugars, is basically dedicated to generate sugar from different substrates (gluconeogenesis). Basic proximal gut tasks are to proportionally input free sugars, insulin, other fuels and to generate anabolic elements to the blood, some of them obesogenic. To limit the ingestion by satiety, by gastric emptying diminution and to limit the excessive elevation of major fuels (sugar and fat) in the blood are mostly the metabolict asks of the distal gut. A rapid and profound change in human diet composition added large amounts of high glycemic index foods. They seem to have caused an enhancement in the endocrine and metabolic activities of the proximal gut and a reduction in these activities of the distal gut. The most efficient models of metabolic surgery indeed make adjustments in this proximal/distal balance in the gut metabolic activities. Conclusion: Metabolic surgery works basically by making adjustments to the proximal and distal gut metabolic activities that resemble the action of natural selection in the development the digestive systems of superior animals.
Predicting the duration of antimalarial treatment with heme degradation inhibitors of blood schizonticides using mathematical models

A mathematical model of the death rate of malaria parasite due to the antimalarial drugs is established in this paper to predict the treatment duration and the drug dosage. This model is based on probabilities, pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics (PK/PD), biology, medical sciences, theoretical physics and chemistry. The death rate of malaria parasite is derived from the flow rates of drug molecules to the malaria parasite by using the theory of blood convection and probabilities. Using the malaria model, numerical results are generated. In conclusion, the numerical estimate of treatment duration from our model ranges from 1 to 10 days, conforming to actual clinical data.
The effect of liquid medium on vibration and control of the AFM piezoelectric microcantilever

This article investigates the vibration motion and control of the piezoelectric microcantilever (MC) of the atomic force microscope in the amplitude mode in a liquid environment for both free and forced vibrations. The modeled MC includes two electrode layers, a piezoelectric layer, and the geometric discontinuities as a result of these layers and the change in the MC cross section at the probe‐MC contact point is modeled. The equations of motion are derived using Hamilton's principle and then discretized with the aid of the finite element method. The system frequency and time response in the free vibration mode when placed in a liquid medium are compared with experimental results. Also, the sample surface topography in the noncontact mode, when passing through the surface roughness, has been modeled as rectangular and wedge‐shaped. Furthermore, the control of piezoelectric MC in two cases of near and far from the sample surface is examined. In the case of far from the surface, the system is controlled using the piezoelectric layer installed on the beam, whereas in the case of near the surface, the piezo is turned off due to the existence of nonlinear forces such as Van der Waals and Derjaguin, Muller, and Toporov contact forces and the control is achieved through the base excitation. For system control modeling, the robust fuzzy sliding mode control (FSMC) approach is utilized and the results are compared with those of the simple sliding mode control (SMC) as well as proportional, integral, and derivative control. The presented FSMC approach can remarkably reduce the chattering phenomenon at the SMC input in the liquid medium and accordingly improve the results compared to the other two methods.
Approaching Sex Differences in Cardiovascular Non-Coding RNA Research

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the biggest cause of sickness and mortality worldwide in both males and females. Clinical statistics demonstrate clear sex differences in risk, prevalence, mortality rates, and response to treatment for different entities of CVD. The reason for this remains poorly understood. Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) are emerging as key mediators and biomarkers of CVD. Similarly, current knowledge on differential regulation, expression, and pathology-associated function of ncRNAs between sexes is minimal. Here, we provide a state-of-the-art overview of what is known on sex differences in ncRNA research in CVD as well as discussing the contributing biological factors to this sex dimorphism including genetic and epigenetic factors and sex hormone regulation of transcription. We then focus on the experimental models of CVD and their use in translational ncRNA research in the cardiovascular field. In particular, we want to highlight the importance of considering sex of the cellular and pre-clinical models in clinical studies in ncRNA research and to carefully consider the appropriate experimental models most applicable to human patient populations. Moreover, we aim to identify sex-specific targets for treatment and diagnosis for the biggest socioeconomic health problem globally.