Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Food Crop Diversity, Women's Income-Earning Activities, and Distance to Markets in Relation to Maternal Dietary Quality in Tanzania.

BACKGROUND Women's dietary diversity and quality are limited in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Nutrition-sensitive interventions that promote food crop diversity and women's access to income could improve diets and address the double burden of malnutrition in LMICs. OBJECTIVES We examined the associations among food crop diversity and women's income-earning activities with women's diet quality, as well as effect modification by access to markets, in the context of small-holder food production in rural Tanzania. METHODS Data from a cross-sectional study of 880 women from Rufiji, Tanzania, were analyzed. Women's dietary intake was assessed using a food frequency questionnaire. The prime diet quality score (PDQS; 21 food groups; range, 0-42), a unique diet-quality metric for women that captures the healthy and unhealthy aspects of diet, was computed. Generalized estimating equation linear models were used to evaluate the associations of food crop diversity and women's income-earning activities with PDQS, while controlling for socio-economic factors. RESULTS Maternal overweight (24.3%) and obesity (13.1%) were high. The median PDQS was 19 (IQR, 17-21). Households produced 2.0 food crops (SD ± 1.0) yearly. Food crop diversity was positively associated with PDQS (P < 0.001), but the association was strengthened by proximity to markets (P for interaction = 0.02). For women living close (<1.1 km) to markets, producing 1 additional food crop was associated with a 0.67 (95% CI, 0.22-1.12) increase in PDQS, versus a 0.40 (95% CI, 0.24-0.57) increase for women living farther away. The PDQS increased with women's salaried employment (estimate, 0.96; 95% CI, 0.26-1.67). CONCLUSIONS Household food production may interact with access to markets for sales and purchases, while nonfarm income also improves women's diet quality in rural Tanzania. Programs to improve women's diet quality should consider improving market access and women's access to income (source of empowerment), in addition to diversifying production.
Physical properties of the plasma membrane studied by local probe techniques

Im Rahmen dieser Arbeit wurden physikalische Mesmethoden entwickelt, um die Struktur und Dynamik der Plasmamembran lebender Saugetierzellen zu untersuchen. Dabei lag der Schwerpunkt zum einem auf der mechanischen Kopplung der Membranlipidschicht zu dem darunter liegenden, unterstutzend wirkenden Zytoskelett, und zum anderen auf der Beweglichkeit einzelner Membrankomponenten innnerhalb der Membranlipidschicht. Ausgangspunkte fur die Entwicklung neuer Methoden waren die Rasterkraftmikroskopie (RKM) und ´single-particle tracking’ (SPT). Die RKMermoglicht die Abbildung von Ober‡achen mit hoher Au‡osung in physiologischer Umgebung, so lange die Wechselwirkungskrafte die Probenober‡ache nicht zu sehr deformieren. SPT ist eine Technik, um die Bewegung von einzelnen Molekulen zu verfolgen. Dafur werden diese mit Polysteren-kugelchen oder kolloidem Gold markiert und mit Videomikroskopie beobachtet. Auf diesen Techniken aufbauend wurden folgende Verfahren und Gerate fur diese Arbeit entwickelt: Das Scanning-Photonic Force Microscope (SPFM) als Analogon zum RKM: In einer Laserfalle (einem mit einem Objektiv hoher Apperatur (100x, NA 1.3) fokussierten infraroten (IR) Laser) wird ein Fluorophor gefulltes Polysterenkugelchen (bead, r=0.1¹m) gefangen. Die Fluorophore des als Sonde verwendeten Kugelchens werden uber einen Zwei-Photonen Prozes durch den IR-Laser zur Fluoreszenz angeregt. Eine Auslenkung aus der Halteposition durch eine ausere Kraft fuhrt zum Abfall der Fluoreszenz. Im SPFM wird die Sonde mit Hilfe des Lasers analog zum mechanischen Hebelarm im RKM uber die Probe bewegt. Dabei wird wie beim RKM die Auslenkung und somit Kraft gemessen. Die wesentlichen Unterschiede sind die fehlende mechanische Verbindung zur Umwelt, die ein Abrastern beliebiger transparenter 3D-Strukturen ermoglicht, die extrem kleine Federkonstante des Sensors (0.1- 1¹N/m), welche daher besser an die Elastiztat von biologischen Objekten angepast ist, sowie die stark reduzierte viskose Dampfung der kleineren Sonde, was schnelleres Messen ermoglicht. Das Photonic Force Microscope (PFM) ist die Weiterentwicklung des SPFM. Bei der verwendeten kleinen Federkonstante werden die thermischen Positions‡ uktuationen sehr gros. Daher wurde ein Detektor entwickelt, der Messung der Position der Sonde in der Falle in drei Dimensionen mit Nanometer Ortsau‡osung und 50kHz-Bandbreite ermoglicht. Der Detektor basiert auf der Interferenz des an der Sonde vorwarts gestreuten Laserlichts mit dem ungestreuten Licht. Dieses Prinzip wurde zuvor nur fur seitliche Auslenkungen entlang einer Achse verwendet und erstmals in dieser Arbeit drei dimensional angewandt. Die vollstandige theoretische Beschriebung des Detektorsignals ist ebenfalls ein Novum. Im PFM werden mit diesem Detektor die thermischen 3D-Positions‡uktuationen einer durch den Laser in einem Volumen von 0.1*0.1*0. 6¹m3 gehaltenen Sonde analysiert. Zusatzlich wirkende Potentiale und die Viskositat des umgebenden Mediums konnen gemessen werden.
Muscles from the same muscle group do not necessarily share common drive: evidence from the human triceps surae.

It has been proposed that movements are produced through groups of muscles, or motor modules, activated by common neural commands. However, the neural origin of motor modules is still debated. Here, we used complementary approaches to determine: i) whether three muscles of the same muscle group (soleus, gastrocnemius medialis [GM] and lateralis [GL]) are activated by a common neural drive ; and ii) whether the neural drive to GM and GL could be differentially modified by altering the mechanical requirements of the task. Eighteen human participants performed an isometric standing heel raise and submaximal isometric plantarflexions (10%, 30%, 50% of maximal effort). High-density surface electromyography recordings were decomposed into motor unit action potentials and coherence analysis was applied on the motor units spike trains. We identified strong common drive to each muscle, but minimal common drive between the muscles. Further, large between-muscle differences were observed during the isometric plantarflexions, such as a delayed recruitment time of GL compared to GM and soleus motor units and opposite time-dependent changes in the estimates of neural drive to muscles during the torque plateau. Finally, the feet position adopted during the heel raise task (neutral vs internally rotated) affected only the GL neural drive with no change for GM. These results provide conclusive that not all anatomically defined synergist muscles are controlled by strong common neural drive. Independent drive to some muscles from the same muscle group may allow for more flexible control to comply with secondary goals such as joint stabilization.
Persistent Tinnitus after Inhaled N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT)

ABSTRACT This case report describes a 39-year-old male with remote history of polysubstance use disorder and depression who developed tinnitus after use of inhaled N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT). Although development of ear ringing was attributed to use on a single occasion, tinnitus occurred within the context of a larger self-experiment involving weekly microdoses of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD). Distress and anxiety over the ear ringing prompted evaluation by an audiologist, primary care physician, and consultant psychopharmacologist. Tinnitus persisted for several months, although intensity and ability to cope with symptoms improved over time. A microdose of psilocybin mushrooms exacerbated tinnitus on two separate occasions, after which psychedelics were discontinued. Psychedelics are associated with a range of acute sensory changes including auditory phenomenon, although have not previously been associated with tinnitus in medical literature. Here, we present a probable case of tinnitus associated with DMT use and review potential underlying mechanisms connecting psychedelics and tinnitus.
Impact of virus aggregation on disinfection

This study is based on the hypothesis that viral aggregation slows the inactivation by chemical disinfectants. This slow-down depends on the aggregate size, the concentration and the reactivity of the disinfectant. In this work we test this hypothesis by experimentally investigating the inactivation MS2 coliphage aggregates by dichloramine and PhiX174 aggregates by PAA. The experiments performed with MS2 and dichloramine show good adherence to the theory. We observed that inactivation by dichloramine was slowed by 3.4 to 13 times with aggregates of size between 420 and 580 nm, and with a dichloramine concentration varying between 3.5 and 13 mg/L. The larger the aggregates, and the higher the concentration of disinfection, the greater was the observed inhibition of inactivation due to aggregates. Comparing the inactivation of MS2 by dichloramine and by PAA, we observed that dichloramine was a stronger disinfectant, and the impact of aggregation on dichlormaine was more extensive. This permitted to verify the hypothesis that a more reactive disinfectant was more sensitive to aggregation. Our results were furthermore in good agreement with the mechanistic model for the inactivation of viral aggregates developed by Mattle et al. (2011). In contrast to MS2, results for the disinfection of aggregates of PhiX174 did not exhibit an effect of aggregation on disinfection. We hypothesize that PhiX174 viruses within aggregates were not sufficiently compact to result in inhibition of disinfection. This phenomenon was probably due to the spikes on the PhiX174 capsid. Structural features of viral aggregates thus influence their propensity to inhibit inactivation.
A cell-nonautonomous mechanism of yeast chronological aging regulated by caloric restriction and one-carbon metabolism

Caloric restriction (CR) improves health span and life span of organisms ranging from yeast to mammals. Understanding the mechanisms involved will uncover future interventions for aging-associated diseases. In budding yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, CR is commonly defined by reduced glucose in the growth medium, which extends both replicative and chronological life span (CLS). We found that conditioned media collected from stationary-phase CR cultures extended CLS when supplemented into nonrestricted (NR) cultures, suggesting a potential cell-nonautonomous mechanism of CR-induced life span regulation. Chromatography and untargeted metabolomics of the conditioned media, as well as transcriptional responses associated with the longevity effect, pointed to specific amino acids enriched in the CR conditioned media (CRCM) as functional molecules, with L-serine being a particularly strong candidate. Indeed, supplementing L-serine into NR cultures extended CLS through a mechanism dependent on the one-carbon metabolism pathway, thus implicating this conserved and central metabolic hub in life span regulation.
Design and Efficient Synthesis of RalA Inhibitors Containing the Dihydro‐α‐carboline Scaffold

Ras‐related protein RalA is a member of the Ras small GTPases superfamily. Its activation plays an important role in regulating tumor initiation, invasion, migration, and metastasis. In this study, we designed a new type of RalA inhibitor containing a dihydro‐α‐carboline scaffold. The structurally new dihydro‐α‐carboline derivatives could be efficiently synthesized in good yields through a newly developed three‐component [3+2+1] cyclization reaction. Evaluation of the biological activity showed that some of the dihydro‐α‐carboline derivatives can inhibit RalA/B and proliferative activities of NSCLC cell lines. The 4‐(pyridin‐3‐yl)‐dihydro‐α‐carboline compound (3 o) was found to be the most potent derivative, with IC50 values of 0.43±0.03, 0.64±0.07, 0.93±0.10, and 1.54±0.15 μM against A549, H1299, H460, and H1975 cells, respectively. Mechanism investigation suggested that 3 o inhibits the RalA/B activation of A549, down‐regulates Bcl‐2, stimulates cytochrome c and PARP cleavage, and induces cell apoptosis. A molecular docking study revealed that 3 o can form stable hydrogen bonds with residues of RalA. Moreover, amide‐π and alkyl‐π interactions also contributed to the affinity between 3 o and RalA.
Research progress on toxicity, function, and mechanism of metal oxide nanoparticles on vascular endothelial cells

Metal oxide nanoparticles present stable and unique performance that makes them suitable for various biomedical applications. There are four common exposure ways that nanoparticles enter our body: injection, inhalation, skin penetration, and ingestion. Among them, injection, ingestion, and skin routes may become significant ways for nano‐scale treatment and cosmetics, and inhalation is the essential way for occupational exposure. All those nanoparticles could pass through the exposure routes and enter the circulation, which could cause damage on the cardiovascular system. So it is necessary to evaluate the toxicity of metal oxide nanoparticles and to explore the mechanism. This review chose four commonly used nanometal oxides to discuss about the toxicity they produced, the function they affected, and the mechanisms on cardiovascular endothelial cells. First, we discussed the toxicity they caused. These nanoparticles are less toxic when applied in low doses, but owing to the small particle size and large specific surface area, acute exposure or the metal ions released by nanoparticles will lead to phenotypic changes of endothelial cells, oxidative stress, and apoptosis. An endothelial cell is an essential part of blood vessels and could act as a barrier, maintain vascular tension, and keep the balance between coagulation and anticoagulation. Once vascular endothelium is injured or exposed to vascular risk factors, it would cause endothelial activation, endothelial dysfunction, and nitric oxide (NO) synthase (NOS) dysfunction, which are closely related to the cardiovascular disease. Finally, we talked about the mechanisms by four levels, and we especially mentioned inflammation, the production of reactive oxygen species, and NO.
Exogenous activation and inhibition of plasminogen/plasmin activity during in vitro maturation of bovine cumulus‐oocyte complexes: A biological and spectroscopic approach

This study deals with the effect of plasminogen/plasmin on the in vitro maturation (IVM) of bovine cumulus‐oocyte complexes (COCs). Exogenous plasminogen activator streptokinase (SK) added to the IVM medium revealed similar values of cumulus expansion and oocyte nuclear maturation compared to controls (standard IVM medium). However, a decrease in both determinations was observed in COCs matured with the supplementation of ɛ‐aminocaproic acid (ɛ‐ACA), a specific plasmin inhibitor. After in vitro fertilization, no differences were observed in either cleavage or blastocyst rates between SK and control groups; however, ε‐ACA treatment caused a decrease in both developmental rates. Zona pellucida (ZP) digestion time decreased in the SK group while it increased in the ε‐ACA group. Raman microspectroscopy revealed an increase in the intensity of the band corresponding to the glycerol group of sialic acid in the ZP of oocytes matured with SK, whereas ZP spectra of oocytes treated with ɛ‐ACA presented similarities with immature oocytes. The results indicate that although treatment with SK did not alter oocyte developmental competence, it induced modifications in the ZP of oocytes that could modify the folding of glycoproteins. Plasmin inhibition impairs oocyte maturation and has an impact on embryo development, thus evidencing the importance of this protease during IVM.
Childhood trauma, brain structure and emotion recognition in patients with schizophrenia and healthy participants

Abstract Childhood trauma, and in particular physical neglect, has been repeatedly associated with lower performance on measures of social cognition (e.g. emotion recognition tasks) in both psychiatric and non-clinical populations. The neural mechanisms underpinning this association have remained unclear. Here, we investigated whether volumetric changes in three stress-sensitive regions—the amygdala, hippocampus and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC)—mediate the association between childhood trauma and emotion recognition in a healthy participant sample (N = 112) and a clinical sample of patients with schizophrenia (N = 46). Direct effects of childhood trauma, specifically physical neglect, on Emotion Recognition Task were observed in the whole sample. In healthy participants, reduced total and left ACC volumes were observed to fully mediate the association between both physical neglect and total childhood trauma score, and emotion recognition. No mediating effects of the hippocampus and amygdala volumes were observed for either group. These results suggest that reduced ACC volume may represent part of the mechanism by which early life adversity results in poorer social cognitive function. Confirmation of the causal basis of this association would highlight the importance of resilience-building interventions to mitigate the detrimental effects of childhood trauma on brain structure and function.
Analyse intégrative du rôle de l’excision de la méthionine N-terminale dans le cytoplasme des eucaryotes supérieurs

Le premier acide amine incorpore dans une chaine polypeptidique naissante est toujours la methionine. On identifie donc toujours ce premier residu a la methionine N-terminale. Cependant, les deux tiers des proteines accumulees a l’etat stationnaire ne presentent plus leur methionine initiatrice. Cet enlevement resulte essentiellement d’une maturation proteolytique affectant chaque proteine. Ainsi, l’Excision de la Methionine N-terminale (NME) concerne la majorite des proteines et ce des que les premiers residus emergent du ribosome. Ce mecanisme est retrouve dans tous les compartiments cellulaires ou une synthese proteique a lieu : le cytoplasme, les plastes et les mitochondries. Les enzymes responsables du clivage de la methionine initiatrice sont les METhionine AminoPeptidases (METAPs) ; les METAPs sont conservees dans le Regne vivant. Des etudes fonctionnelles de deletions geniques ont montre le caractere letal du maintien de la premiere methionine dans tous les organismes. Il y a plus de dix ans, les METAPs ont ete identifiees comme etant la cible de composes naturels ayant des effets anticellulaires. Aujourd’hui un nombre croissant d’etudes rapportent que la NME est une cible prometteuse pour le traitement de nombreuses pathologies. Neanmoins, les bases moleculaires qui expliquent le caractere essentiel de la NME restent tres peu comprises, en particulier dans le cytoplasme des eucaryotes superieurs. Grâce a un systeme inductible permettant de moduler finement la NME cytoplasmique dans la plante modele Arabidopsis thaliana et differentes approches incluant des analyses proteomiques et metabolomiques, j’ai pu etudier les evenements moleculaires precoces associes a l’inhibition de la NME cytoplasmique. J’ai egalement caracterise la contribution relative des deux types de METAP cytoplasmiques au processus. Dans ce contexte, j’ai pu demontrer chez A. thaliana que la NME cytoplasmique agit sur deux voies de signalisation frequemment deregulees lors de conditions pathologiques : le statut des composes thioles et la proteolyse. La diminution de la NME cytoplasmique induit une proteolyse accrue principalement via une augmentation du nombre de proteines destinees a une degradation rapide. Ainsi, l’activite de la NME, en modulant la sensibilite de nombreuses proteines a subir la proteolyse, est un element fondamental de la regulation de la demi-vie proteique. Finalement, mes resultats simialires obtenus egalement chez les Archees, levures et les lignees de cellules humaines suggerent l’existence d’un mecanisme ubiquitaire associe a la NME.
Allogeneic stem cell transplant in patients with acute myeloid leukemia and karnofsky performance status score less than or equal to 80%: A study from the acute leukemia working party of the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (EBMT)

Limited data are currently available on the outcome of patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) undergoing allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo‐SCT) with a reduced performance status. We herein present the results of a registry study on 2,936 AML patients undergoing allo‐SCT in first remission (CR1) with a Karnofsky Performance Status (KPS) score less than or equal to 80%. Two‐year leukemia‐free survival (LFS), overall survival (OS) and graft‐versus‐host disease (GVHD)‐free, and relapse‐free survival (GRFS) rates were 54%, 59%, and 41%, respectively. In multivariable analysis, patients with a KPS score = 80% had lower non‐relapse mortality (NRM) and superior OS in comparison to patients with a KPS score <80% (p < 0.001). In the subgroup of patients with a KPS score =80%, a reduced‐intensity conditioning (RIC) regimen was associated with an increased risk of relapse (p = 0.002) and lower GRFS (p < 0.001) compared to myeloablative conditioning (MAC). Differently, in patients with a KPS score <80%, a RIC regimen resulted in lower NRM (p < 0.001), whereas relapse incidence did not differ, thus leading to an improved GRFS (p = 0.008) as compared to MAC. A transplant from a matched sibling donor (MSD) was associated with a reduced incidence of grade III‐IV acute GVHD (p < 0.01) and NRM (p < 0.01) in comparison to other donor types. In conclusion, allo‐SCT appears feasible in AML patients with a jeopardized KPS score. Survival is significantly affected by the conditioning intensity, which should be adjusted according to the severity of KPS impairment.
The presence of TIM‐3 positive cells in WHO grade III and IV astrocytic gliomas correlates with isocitrate dehydrogenase mutation status

Diffuse gliomas are aggressive brain tumors that respond poorly to immunotherapy including immune checkpoint inhibition. This resistance may arise from an immunocompromised microenvironment and deficient immune recognition of tumor cells because of low mutational burden. The most prominent genetic alterations in diffuse glioma are mutations in the isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) genes that generate the immunosuppressive oncometabolite d‐2‐hydroxyglutarate. Our objective was to explore the association between IDH mutation and presence of cells expressing the immune checkpoint proteins galectin‐9 and/or T cell immunoglobulin and mucin‐domain containing‐3 (TIM‐3). Astrocytic gliomas of World Health Organization (WHO) grades III or IV (36 IDH‐mutant and 36 IDH‐wild‐type) from 72 patients were included in this study. A novel multiplex chromogenic immunohistochemistry panel was applied using antibodies against galectin‐9, TIM‐3, and the oligodendrocyte transcription factor 2 (OLIG2). Validation studies were performed using data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) project. IDH mutation was associated with decreased levels of TIM‐3+ cells (p < 0.05). No significant association was found between galectin‐9 and IDH status (p = 0.10). Most TIM‐3+ and galectin‐9+ cells resembled microglia/macrophages, and very few TIM‐3+ and/or galectin‐9+ cells co‐expressed OLIG2. The percentage of TIM‐3+ T cells was generally low, however, IDH‐mutant tumors contained significantly fewer TIM‐3+ T cells (p < 0.01) and had a lower interaction rate between TIM‐3+ T cells and galectin‐9+ microglia/macrophages (p < 0.05). TCGA data confirmed lower TIM‐3 mRNA expression in IDH‐mutant compared to IDH‐wild‐type astrocytic gliomas (p = 0.013). Our results show that IDH mutation is associated with diminished levels of TIM‐3+ cells and fewer interactions between TIM‐3+ T cells and galectin‐9+ microglia/macrophages, suggesting reduced activity of the galectin‐9/TIM‐3 immune checkpoint pathway in IDH‐mutant astrocytic gliomas.