Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Monitoring and Improving the Metabolic Health of Dairy Cows during the Transition Period

Simple Summary The transition from late gestation to early lactation is a challenging period for dairy cows. A successful transition period depends on metabolic adaptation to the new physiological state in early lactation and proper management in order to support the cow’s requirements. This review paper will discuss various aspects of routine and consistent approaches to collect and analyze herd records, to detect unintended disruptions in performance. In addition, we discuss how to incorporate methods to assess health, production, nutrition, and welfare information to monitor cows during the transition period. Lastly, we discuss management strategies that can be implemented to improve the metabolic health and performance of transition dairy cows. Abstract The peripartum period of a dairy cow is characterized by several physiological and behavioral changes in response to a rapid increase in nutrient demands, to support the final stages of fetal growth and the production of colostrum and milk. Traditionally, the transition period is defined as the period 3 weeks before and 3 weeks after parturition. However, several researchers have argued that the transition period begins at the time of dry-off (~60–50 days prior to calving) and extends beyond the first month post-calving in high producing dairy cows. Independent of the definition used, adequate adaptation to the physiological demands of this period is paramount for a successful lactation. Nonetheless, not all cows are successful in transitioning from late gestation to early lactation, leading to approximately one third of dairy cows having at least one clinical disease (metabolic and/or infectious) and more than half of the cows having at least one subclinical case of disease within the first 90 days of lactation. Thus, monitoring dairy cows during this period is essential to detect early disease signs, diagnose clinical and subclinical diseases, and initiate targeted health management to avoid health and production impairment. In this review, we discuss different strategies to monitor dairy cows to detected unintended disruptions in performance and management strategies that can be implemented to improve the metabolic health and performance of dairy cows during the transition period.
Moral Disengagement, Empathy, and Cybervictim’s Representation as Predictive Factors of Cyberbullying among Italian Adolescents

This study aimed to evaluate which aspects of moral disengagement (MD), empathy, and representations of the victim’s experience (VER) could be predictors of cyberbullying (CB). One hundred and eight-nine students (11–17 years old) completed 3 self-report questionnaires: An MD scale, an empathy scale, and a CB questionnaire. In relation to the personal experience of CB, four groups were identified: Victim, bully, bully/victim, and no experience with CB. The linear bivariate correlation analysis shows correlations between empathy and VER, between empathy and MD, and between MD and VER. A multinomial logistic regression identified which predictors could increase a subject’s probability of belonging to one of the four groups regarding the personal experience of CB (victim, bully, bully/victim, no experience). Findings highlighted that low cognitive empathy might increase the probability for a student to belong to the bullies’ group, rather than the victims’ group. Furthermore, low perception of the consequences of CB on the victim might increase the probability of belonging to the bully, bully/victim, and no experience groups. Then, a high score in the diffusion of responsibility was a significant predictor of belonging to the victim group rather than the no experience group. Results from this study confirm the need for preventive measures against CB, including the empowerment of cognitive empathy, decreasing the diffusion of responsibility, and increasing the awareness of the consequences of CB on the victim.
IL-6 Receptor Blockade Increases Circulating Adiponectin Levels in People with Obesity: An Explanatory Analysis

Human obesity is associated with decreased circulating adiponectin and elevated leptin levels. In vitro experiments and studies in high fat diet (HFD)-fed mice suggest that interleukin-6 (IL-6) may regulate adiponectin and leptin release from white adipose tissue (WAT). Herein, we aimed to investigate whether IL-6 receptor blockade affects the levels of circulating adiponectin and leptin in obese human individuals. To this end, serum samples collected during a multicenter, double-blind clinical trial were analyzed. In the latter study, obese human subjects with or without type 2 diabetes were randomly assigned to recurrent placebo or intravenous tocilizumab (an IL-6 receptor antibody) administration during a 12-week exercise training intervention. Twelve weeks of tocilizumab administration (in combination with exercise training) trend wise enhanced the decrease in circulating leptin levels (−2.7 ± 8.2% in the placebo vs. −20.6 ± 5.6% in tocilizumab, p = 0.08) and significantly enhanced the increase in circulating adiponectin (3.4 ± 3.7% in the placebo vs. 27.0 ± 6.6% in tocilizumab, p = 0.01). In addition, circulating adiponectin levels were negatively correlated with the homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), indicating that increased adiponectin levels positively affect insulin sensitivity in people with obesity. In conclusion, IL-6 receptor blockade increases circulating adiponectin levels in people with obesity.
Sharp Guarantees and Optimal Performance for Inference in Binary and Gaussian-Mixture Models †

We study convex empirical risk minimization for high-dimensional inference in binary linear classification under both discriminative binary linear models, as well as generative Gaussian-mixture models. Our first result sharply predicts the statistical performance of such estimators in the proportional asymptotic regime under isotropic Gaussian features. Importantly, the predictions hold for a wide class of convex loss functions, which we exploit to prove bounds on the best achievable performance. Notably, we show that the proposed bounds are tight for popular binary models (such as signed and logistic) and for the Gaussian-mixture model by constructing appropriate loss functions that achieve it. Our numerical simulations suggest that the theory is accurate even for relatively small problem dimensions and that it enjoys a certain universality property.
Drug Discovery of Nucleos(t)ide Antiviral Agents: Dedicated to Prof. Dr. Erik De Clercq on Occasion of His 80th Birthday

Nucleoside and nucleotide analogues are essential antivirals in the treatment of infectious diseases such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), herpes simplex virus (HSV), varicella-zoster virus (VZV), and human cytomegalovirus (HCMV). To celebrate the 80th birthday of Prof. Dr. Erik De Clercq on 28 March 2021, this review provides an overview of his contributions to eight approved nucleos(t)ide drugs: (i) three adenosine nucleotide analogues, namely tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (Viread®) and tenofovir alafenamide (Vemlidy®) against HIV and HBV infections and adefovir dipivoxil (Hepsera®) against HBV infections; (ii) two thymidine nucleoside analogues, namely brivudine (Zostex®) against HSV-1 and VZV infections and stavudine (Zerit®) against HIV infections; (iii) two guanosine analogues, namely valacyclovir (Valtrex®, Zelitrex®) against HSV and VZV and rabacfosadine (Tanovea®-CA1) for the treatment of lymphoma in dogs; and (iv) one cytidine nucleotide analogue, namely cidofovir (Vistide®) for the treatment of HCMV retinitis in AIDS patients. Although adefovir dipivoxil, stavudine, and cidofovir are virtually discontinued for clinical use, tenofovir disoproxil fumarate and tenofovir alafenamide remain the most important antivirals against HIV and HBV infections worldwide. Overall, the broad-spectrum antiviral potential of nucleos(t)ide analogues supports their development to treat or prevent current and emerging infectious diseases worldwide.
Antifumonisin Efficacy of 2-Hydroxy-4-Methoxybenzaldehyde Isolated from Decalepis hamiltonii

Fumonisins are mycotoxins primarily produced by Fusarium verticillioides that grow on food and feedstuffs. In the present investigation, the antifumonisin activity of 2-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzaldehyde isolated from Decalepis hamiltonii was evaluated. The results demonstrated that the compound 2-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzaldehyde exhibited dose-dependent antifungal activity with the zone of inhibition, minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum fungicidal concentration values 14.8 mm (at 500 μg/disc), 100 and 500 μg/mL, respectively. The fumonisin B1 production was completely inhibited at 400 mg/L under in vitro and 750 mg/kg under in vivo. There were no adverse effects observed in treated seed samples. The present findings indicate the possible use of 2-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzaldehyde as an alternative agent for management of fusarial growth and mycotoxins contamination.
What and How: Generalized Lifelong Spectral Clustering via Dual Memory

Spectral clustering (SC) has become one of the most widely-adopted clustering algorithms, and been successfully applied into various applications. We in this work explore the problem of spectral clustering in a lifelong learning framework termed as <underline>G</underline>eneralized <underline>L</underline>ife<underline>l</underline>ong <underline>S</underline>pectral <underline>C</underline>lustering (GL<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$^2$</tex-math><alternatives><mml:math><mml:msup><mml:mrow/><mml:mn>2</mml:mn></mml:msup></mml:math><inline-graphic xlink:href="sun-ieq1-3058852.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula>SC). Different from most current studies, which concentrate on a fixed spectral clustering task set and cannot efficiently incorporate a new clustering task, the goal of our work is to establish a generalized model for new spectral clustering tasks by “What” and “How” to lifelong learn from past tasks. In respect of “what to lifelong learn”, our GL<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$^2$</tex-math><alternatives><mml:math><mml:msup><mml:mrow/><mml:mn>2</mml:mn></mml:msup></mml:math><inline-graphic xlink:href="sun-ieq2-3058852.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula>SC framework contains a dual memory mechanism with a deep orthogonal factorization manner: an orthogonal basis memory stores hidden and hierarchical clustering centers among learned tasks, and a feature embedding memory captures deep manifold representation common across multiple related tasks. When learning a new clustering task, the intuition here for “how to lifelong learn” is that GL<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$^2$</tex-math><alternatives><mml:math><mml:msup><mml:mrow/><mml:mn>2</mml:mn></mml:msup></mml:math><inline-graphic xlink:href="sun-ieq3-3058852.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula>SC can transfer intrinsic knowledge from dual memory mechanism to obtain task-specific encoding matrix. Then the encoding matrix can redefine the dual memory over time to provide maximal benefits when learning future tasks, and reversely maximize performance for past tasks. To achieve this, we propose an alternative optimization formulation with convergence guarantee for solving our GL<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$^2$</tex-math><alternatives><mml:math><mml:msup><mml:mrow/><mml:mn>2</mml:mn></mml:msup></mml:math><inline-graphic xlink:href="sun-ieq4-3058852.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula>SC model. To the end, empirical comparisons on several benchmark datasets show the effectiveness of our GL<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$^2$</tex-math><alternatives><mml:math><mml:msup><mml:mrow/><mml:mn>2</mml:mn></mml:msup></mml:math><inline-graphic xlink:href="sun-ieq5-3058852.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula>SC, in comparison with several state-of-the-art clustering models.
Patterning Nanoparticles by Microcontact Printing and Further Growth of One-Dimensional Nanomaterials

A general method for patterning various functional inorganic nanomaterials on SiOx/Si substrates by using microcontact printing (µCP) was developed. The application of hydrophobic poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) stamps is essential for the reproducibility of this process. By tuning the concentration of the nanoparticle solutions, we can control the thickness of the nanoparticle layers on surfaces. The patterned ZnO nanoparticles on surfaces are used as seeds to grow
Combination of immune checkpoint inhibitors and tyrosine kinase inhibitors for the treatment of renal cell carcinoma

ABSTRACT Introduction We have experienced several paradigm shifts and substantial changes in the treatment of metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) over the last two decades. Combination therapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) as a dual combination (ICI-ICI) or with VEGFR-tyrosine kinase inhibitors (VEGF-TKI) has shown remarkable efficacy in mRCC patients and has become the standard of care in first-line therapy. Areas covered In this review, we will discuss the background as well as the benefits of combining ICI with TKI compared to ICI-ICI combination therapy for mRCC treatment and will also briefly highlight biomarkers for patient selection on therapies to improve patient outcomes and limit toxicities. Expert opinion Due to the mediated additional anti-tumor effects, there is a strong rationale to combine ICIs and TKIs for mRCC therapy. When comparing first-line therapy options, the exceptionally higher ORR and PFS for the ICI-TKI combinations should be highlighted, whereas, nevertheless, the complete response rate is slightly higher for the ICI-ICI combination. In terms of an individualized therapeutic approach, biomarkers predicting the success or failure of an anti-VEGF-based regimen or ICI therapy as a corresponding mono – or combination therapy are lacking so far, however, gene expression signatures can be a landmark in this field.
Evidence for a Window of Enhanced Plasticity in the Human Motor Cortex Following Ischemic Stroke

Background In preclinical models, behavioral training early after stroke produces larger gains compared with delayed training. The effects are thought to be mediated by increased and widespread reorganization of synaptic connections in the brain. It is viewed as a period of spontaneous biological recovery during which synaptic plasticity is increased. Objective To look for evidence of a similar change in synaptic plasticity in the human brain in the weeks and months after ischemic stroke. Methods We used continuous theta burst stimulation (cTBS) to activate synapses repeatedly in the motor cortex. This initiates early stages of synaptic plasticity that temporarily reduces cortical excitability and motor-evoked potential amplitude. Thus, the greater the effect of cTBS on the motor-evoked potential, the greater the inferred level of synaptic plasticity. Data were collected from separate cohorts (Australia and UK). In each cohort, serial measurements were made in the weeks to months following stroke. Data were obtained for the ipsilesional motor cortex in 31 stroke survivors (Australia, 66.6 ± 17.8 years) over 12 months and the contralesional motor cortex in 29 stroke survivors (UK, 68.2 ± 9.8 years) over 6 months. Results Depression of cortical excitability by cTBS was most prominent shortly after stroke in the contralesional hemisphere and diminished over subsequent sessions (P = .030). cTBS response did not differ across the 12-month follow-up period in the ipsilesional hemisphere (P = .903). Conclusions Our results provide the first neurophysiological evidence consistent with a period of enhanced synaptic plasticity in the human brain after stroke. Behavioral training given during this period may be especially effective in supporting poststroke recovery.
Personalized Endoscopy in Complex Malignant Hilar Biliary Strictures

Malignant hilar biliary obstruction (HBO) represents a complex clinical condition in terms of diagnosis, surgical and medical treatment, endoscopic approach, and palliation. The main etiology of malignant HBO is hilar cholangiocarcinoma that is considered an aggressive biliary tract’s cancer and has still today a poor prognosis. Endoscopy plays a crucial role in malignant HBO from the diagnosis to the palliation. This technique allows the collection of cytological or histological samples, direct visualization of the suspect malignant tissue, and an echoendoscopic evaluation of the primary tumor and its locoregional staging. Because obstructive jaundice is the most common clinical presentation of malignant HBO, endoscopic biliary drainage, when indicated, is the preferred treatment over the percutaneous approach. Several endoscopic techniques are today available for both the diagnosis and the treatment of biliary obstruction. The choice among them can differ for each clinical scenario. In fact, a personalized endoscopic approach is mandatory in order to perform the proper procedure in the singular patient.
Obinutuzumab in Kidney Transplantation: Effect on B-cell Counts and Crossmatch Tests

Background. Resistance to the action of rituximab (RTX) has been documented in several diseases. More recently, obinutuzumab (OBZ) has shown promise where RTX has failed in oncology and lupus nephritis. Unlike RTX, OBZ is a weak activator of complement, which may avoid the false-positive complement-dependent cytotoxicity (CDC) crossmatch tests after RTX infusions. Methods. The aim of this study was to explore the effect of OBZ on B-cell depletion in kidney-transplant candidates and its impact on crossmatch test results. We included 12 patients, who were either highly sensitized kidney-transplant candidates or kidney-transplant recipients presenting with antibody-mediated rejection. Six received OBZ, and 6 received RTX. CD-19 counts, flow cytometry, and CDC crossmatch tests were run immediately before and at 2 wk after drug infusion. Results. OBZ reduced CD-19 counts: median reduction was 98%. B-cell CDC crossmatch test results became positive following RTX infusion but were not affected by OBZ infusion. Conclusions. OBZ effectively depleted B-cell counts in sensitized kidney-transplant candidates and, unlike RTX, had no effect on CDC crossmatch results.
Terahertz Shielding Properties of Carbon Black Based Polymer Nanocomposites

The majority of industry using high-speed communication systems is shifting towards higher frequencies, namely the terahertz range, to meet demands of more effective data transfer. Due to the rising number of devices working in terahertz range, effective shielding of electromagnetic interference (EMI) is required, and thus the need for novel shielding materials to reduce the electromagnetic pollution. Here, we show a study on optical and electrical properties of a series of ethylene co-butyl acrylate/carbon black (EBA/CB) composites with various CB loading. We investigate the transmittance, reflectance, shielding efficiency, absorption coefficient, refractive index and complex dielectric permittivity of the fabricated composites. Finally, we report a material that exhibits superior shielding efficiency (SE)—80 dB at 0.9 THz (14.44 vol% CB loading, 1 mm thick)—which is one of the highest SE values among non-metallic composite materials reported in the literature thus far. Importantly, 99% of the incoming radiation is absorbed by the material, significantly increasing its applicability. The absorption coefficient (α) reaches ~100 cm−1 for the samples with highest CB loading. The EBA/CB composites can be used as lightweight and flexible shielding packaging materials for electronics, as passive terahertz absorbers or as radiation shields for stealth applications.
Ultrafine Particles Deposition Inside Passenger Vehicles

Although commuting time typically accounts for only 6% of the day for Americans, it has become a significant source of exposure to ultrafine particles (d p < 0.1 μ m) from vehicular emissions. Particle deposition onto surfaces, as an important particle loss mechanism, has been studied extensively in the indoor environments. However since air velocities, surface area to volume ratios and other contributing factors differ greatly between indoor and in-cabin environments, conclusions from indoor studies may not be directly applied to in-cabin microenvironments. In this study, ultrafine particle deposition rates were characterized under a range of air velocities and surface areas conditions inside different types of passenger vehicles. A diesel generator was used as a particle source and a Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer (SMPS) was used to measure ultrafine particle size distribution inside the test vehicles. As in-cabin air velocities increased from natural convection (< 0.02 m s–1 ) to 0.65 m s–1 , ultrafine particle deposition rates increased with the greatest increases occurred for smaller particles. Other influencing factors, such as the number of passengers inside the vehicle, were also considered and investigated. It was found that ultrafine particle deposition rates are proportional to the surface areas inside vehicles consistent with previous indoor studies. Compared with available ultrafine particle deposition rates reported in the indoor environments, the in-cabin ultrafine particle deposition rates found in this study are about 3 to 20 times greater. This is likely due to higher air velocities and larger surface area to volume ratios in the in-cabin microenvironment.
Masked transposition priming effects are observed in Korean in the same–different task

Research suggests that readers of Korean Hangul demonstrate precise orthographic coding. In contrast to findings from many other languages, the identification of Hangul words is not speeded by prior masked presentation of transposition primes relative to substitution primes. The present studies asked whether evidence for precise orthographic coding is also observed in the same–different task—a task claimed to reflect pre-lexical orthographic representations. Experiments tested whether masked transposed-letter (Experiment 1) or transposed-syllable-block (Experiment 2) primes facilitate judgements about whether a target matches a reference stimulus. In contrast to previous results using lexical decision, significant transposition effects were observed in both cases. These findings add weight to the proposition that apparent differences across writing systems in the precision of orthographic coding may reflect demands of the word identification process rather than properties of orthographic representations themselves.
TCP Transcription Factors Suppress Cotyledon Trichomes by Impeding a Cell Differentiation-regulating Complex.

Trichomes are specialized epidermal cells that act as barriers against biotic and abiotic stresses. Although the formation of trichomes on hairy organs is well studied, the molecular mechanisms of trichome inhibition on smooth organs is still largely unknown. Here, we demonstrate that the CINCINNATA (CIN)-like TEOSINTE BRANCHED1/CYCLOIDEA/PCF (TCP) transcription factors inhibit the formation of trichomes on cotyledons in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). The tcp2/3/4/5/10/13/17 septuple mutant produces cotyledons with ectopic trichomes on the adaxial sides. The expression patterns of TCP genes are developmentally regulated during cotyledon development. TCP proteins directly interact with GLABRA3 (GL3), a key component of the MYB transcription factor/basic helix-loop-helix domain protein/WD40-repeat proteins (MYB-bHLH-WD40, MBW) complex essential for trichome formation, to interfere with the transactivation activity of the MBW complex in cotyledons. TCPs also disrupt the MBW complex-R3 MYB negative feedback loop by directly promoting the expression of R3 MYB genes, which enhances the repression of the MBW complex. Our findings reveal a molecular framework in which TCPs suppress trichome formation on adaxial sides of cotyledons by repressing the activity of the MBW complex at the protein level and the transcripts of R3 MYB genes at the transcriptional level.