Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Pathways for plant‐mediated negative feedback to insect herbivores: accounting for non‐linear effects of larval density on plant quality and quantity

Changes in plant traits induced by herbivore damage can produce a negative feedback to increasing herbivore densities. Several aspects of these plant‐mediated feedbacks are predicted to influence herbivore population dynamics, but the degree to which feedbacks are non‐linear, whether their strength varies among plant genotypes, and whether they occur via changes in the quality of plant tissue or the amount of tissue available have rarely been examined. In this study, we damaged five genotypes of the perennial weed Carolina horsenettle, Solanum carolinense L. (Solanaceae), with eight densities of the false potato beetle, Leptinotarsa juncta (Germar) (Coleoptera: Chysomelidae, Chrysomelini). To account for plant quantity available to beetles, we measured the leaf area of each plant after imposing larval density treatments. We then measured the oviposition preference of L. juncta adults for damaged vs. undamaged plants and the relative growth rate (RGR) of L. juncta larvae on each plant, as well as plant trypsin proteinase inhibitor (tryPI) expression. We found that L. juncta females strongly preferred to oviposit on undamaged S. carolinense, and that preference for a plant decreased as the density of damaging larvae increased. In addition, we found decreased larval RGR and increased production of tryPIs with greater initial larval density. Effects of larval density on insect preference, performance, and tryPI expression were linear and did not vary among plant genotypes. Larval density effects were not solely due to reduced plant quantity, as plant leaf area had no effect on oviposition preference or larval performance. This suggests that effects were most likely due to changes in the quality of plant tissue. Thus, negative feedback on increasing larval density can be mediated by the effects of induced resistance on both oviposition preference and larval performance. Published models suggest that the linear, quality‐mediated feedbacks observed in this experiment are predicted to stabilize herbivore population dynamics.
E-cigarette use perceptions that differentiate e-cigarette susceptibility and use among high school students

ABSTRACT Background E-cigarette use among adolescents is increasingly popular and a growing public health concern. Objectives To examine how individual e-cigarette use perceptions differ between adolescents based on e-cigarette use status and susceptibility to future use of e-cigarettes. Methods Data were collected using surveys administered across eight Connecticut high schools (grades 9–12), Spring 2015. N = 2592 students (Mage = 16.01, SD = 1.28, Female = 51.7%) reported e-cigarette use and susceptibility and were categorized into non-susceptible never-users (57.8%), susceptible never-users (16.9%) and ever-users (25.4%). Youth also responded to 12 e-cigarette use perceptions describing perceived benefits and risks of e-cigarette use. Results A multinomial logistic regression model was used. Eight use perceptions were related to susceptibility or use of e-cigarettes. The benefit-related use perception “feel relaxed” was the only item associated with greater odds of being both susceptible (vs. non-susceptible, p <.001) and an ever-user (vs. susceptible; p <.05). Two other benefit-related use perceptions were related to higher odds of being susceptible to e-cigarette use (“control your weight”; AOR = 1.82, p <.05; “look cool”; AOR = 3.13, p <.05). Results also identified key risk-related use perceptions that related to lower odds of either being susceptible to e-cigarette use (“have a heart attack”; AOR =.43, p <.001) or of ever-use (“have bad breath”; AOR =.28, p <.001; “get lung cancer”; AOR =.58, p <.05). Conclusion E-cigarette use perceptions among youth differ by e-cigarette use and susceptibility status. Findings could help identify youth who are vulnerable to e-cigarette use and inform prevention, for example by developing counter-messaging for benefit perceptions associated with susceptibility and ever-use.
Deciphering the heterogeneity of myeloid cells during neuroinflammation in the single‐cell era

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a disabling neuroinflammatory disease, which is little understood and lacks a sufficient therapeutic regimen. Myeloid cells have repeatedly shown to play a pivotal role in the disease progression. During homeostasis, only the CNS‐resident microglia and CNS‐associated macrophages are present in the CNS. Neuroinflammation causes peripheral immune cells to infiltrate the CNS contributing to disease progression and neurological sequelae. The differential involvement of the diverse peripheral and resident myeloid cell subsets to the disease pathogenesis and outcome are highly debated and difficult to assess. However, novel technological advances (new mouse models, single‐cell RNA‐Sequencing, and CYTOF) have improved the depth of immune profiling, which allows the characterization of distinct myeloid subsets. This review provides an overview of current knowledge on the phenotypes and roles of these different myeloid subsets in neuroinflammatory disease and their therapeutic relevance.
Growth studies on Mycobacterium BCG: oxygen preference.

: Growth of Mycobacterium BCG, (BCG), in semi-solid Dubos medium (containing glucose) was microaerophilic; the organisms were less microaerophilic in semi-solid glycerol-free medium (containing only amino acid nutrients). In Marks medium (containing glycerol) BCG grew aerobically at the air/liquid interface. Non-mycobacterial species showed changes from microaerophilic to aerobic growth much more readily than did BCG. Aeration characteristics of culture media were evaluated by measuring the oxygen transfer rates (OTR). OTR values were affected by the concentration of carbohydrates in the medium and varied inversely with volume. The growth of BCG in both static shaken liquid cultures substantiated the results of the oxygen preference experiments.
Prevention of Adolescent Pregnancy in Anglophone Sub-Saharan Africa: A Scoping Review of National Policies

Background: Despite the existence of preventive policies across sub-Saharan Africa, countries within the sub-region lead global rankings for rates of adolescent pregnancy. The aim of this scoping review was to identify and review national policies on the prevention of adolescent pregnancy in Anglophone sub-Saharan Africa. Methods: Relevant policies were identified from searches of national government websites and the search engine Google. Recognised screening and data extraction processes were used; data were subjected to content analysis using a published Framework for Evaluating Program and Policy Design on Adolescent Reproductive Health. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) extension for scoping reviews guidelines was used in reporting the review. Results:In line with the inclusion criteria that guided the selection of relevant policies in this study, 17 of 75 national policies were suitable for the analysis. All were backed by political recognition, were government and public initiatives, acknowledged a range of determinants of adolescent pregnancy and allocated human resources to policy activities. Few specified financial resourcing. Most policies acknowledged the importance of coordination and collaboration among public and private actors. All policies had objectives that addressed adolescent pregnancy but none were measurable or included timeframes. Provision of comprehensive sexuality education and adolescent reproductive health services were the most common recommendations. Monitoring and evaluation plans were present in all the policies. However, youth involvement in policy formulation, and plans for implementation, monitoring and evaluation was scarce. Conclusion: Overall, national policy strengths were seen in relation to their political recognition, and all aspects of policy formulation. Policy implementation strengths and weaknesses were identified, the latter in relation to clear descriptions of financial resources. Importantly, the absence of measurable and time-bound objectives or formal evaluation of policy effectiveness confounds demonstration of what has been delivered and achieved. Youth involvement was notably absent in many policies. For future policy-setting, governments and policy-makers should make efforts to engage young people in policy development and to be transparent, realistic and address the necessary financial resourcing. They should set quantifiable policy objectives that provide a basis for assessing the adoption, uptake and effectiveness of policies in relation to measurable objectives.
eHealth Literacy of German Physicians in the Pre–COVID-19 Era: Questionnaire Study

Background Digitalization is a disruptive technology that changes the way we deliver diagnostic procedures and treatments in medicine. Different stakeholders have varying interests in and expectations of the digitalization of modern medicine. Many recent digital advances in the medical field, such as the implementation of electronic health records, telemedical services, and mobile health apps, are increasingly used by medical professionals and patients. During the current pandemic outbreak of a novel coronavirus-caused respiratory disease (COVID-19), many modern information and communication technologies (ICT) have been used to overcome the physical barriers and limitations caused by government-issued curfews and workforce shortages. Therefore, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a surge in the usage of modern ICT in medicine. At the same time, the eHealth literacy of physicians working with these technologies has probably not improved since our study. Objective This paper describes a representative cohort of German physicians before the COVID-19 pandemic and their eHealth literacy and attitude towards modern ICT. Methods A structured, self-developed questionnaire about user behavior and attitudes towards eHealth applications was administered to a representative cohort of 93 German physicians. Results Of the 93 German physicians who participated in the study, 97% (90/93) use a mobile phone. Medical apps are used by 42% (39/93). Half of the surveyed physicians (47/93, 50%) use their private mobile phones for official purposes on a daily basis. Telemedicine is part of the daily routine for more than one-third (31/93, 33%) of all participants. More than 80% (76/93, 82%) of the trial participants state that their knowledge regarding the legal aspects and data safety of medical apps and cloud computing is insufficient. Conclusions Modern ICT is frequently used and mostly welcomed by German physicians. However, there is a tremendous lack of eHealth literacy and knowledge about the safe and secure implementation of these technologies in routine clinical practice.
The Negative Effects of Wildlife Tourism on Wildlife

THIS report is one of 23 in the Wildlife Tourism's Report Series, Edited by Dr Karen Higginbottom and targeted to industry, government users, and tourism researchers. Dr Green is both a research ecologist and an ecotour operator, with research interests in frugivorous seed dispersal and habitat modification. Dr Higginbottom is a lecturer at Griffith University where she teaches wildlife management, vertebrate biology, and nature based tourism.
Phaleria macrocarpa Suppresses Oxidative Stress in Alloxan-induced Diabetic Rats by Enhancing Hepatic Antioxidant Enzyme Activity

Oxidative stress is caused by an imbalance between the production of reactive oxygen and an ability of a biological system, to readily detoxify the reactive intermediates or easily repair the resulting damage. It has been suggested that developmental alloxan-induced liver damage is mediated through increases in oxidative stress. The anti-diabetic effect and antioxidant activity of Phaleria macrocarpa (PM) fractions were investigated in alloxan-induced diabetic rats. After two weeks administration of PM, the liver antioxidant enzyme and hyperglycemic state were evaluated. The results showed that oral administration of PM treatments reduced blood glucose levels in diabetic rats by oral administration (P -glutamylcysteine synthase (GCS) were also reduced in alloxan-induced diabetic rats. PM fractions could restore the GR and GST activities, but the GCS activity was not affected in rat livers. From the results of the present study, the diabetic effect of the butanol fraction of PM against alloxan-induced diabetic rats was concluded to be mediated either by preventing the decline of hepatic antioxidant status or due to its indirect radical scavenging capacity.
Use of the ORBEYETM Exoscope in General Surgery: The Advent of Video-Assisted Open Surgery

Background. Microsurgery has quickly become the “gold standard” approach for vascular surgical steps during neurosurgery. However, despite its advantages, the microscope has not been widely adopted in general surgery. A new 3D‐surgical exoscope, the ORBEYETM, has been developed and introduced to some surgical specialties. Herein, we present our preliminary experience with the ORBEYETM exoscope as applied to a number of general surgical procedures. Method. Throughout February 2020, 7 patients had undergone varying surgical procedures at our institute utilizing the ORBEYETM in some of specific procedural steps where the surgeons felt that the surgery would benefit from more enhanced magnification. Upon completion, all the surgeons who had taken part in the procedure were asked if they had experienced any nausea, dizziness, or eyestrain during its use. Results. The ORBEYETM was employed in a number of surgical steps for the following procedures: throughout an inguinal hernia repair, during a duodeno-cephalo-pancreatectomy, for a subtotal gastrectomy, during para-aortic mass dissection, and during Ivor Lewis procedure. None of the surgeons involved in the procedures reported experiencing any nausea, dizziness nor eyestrain, nor any other physical discomforts. Conclusion. To the best of our knowledge, ours is the very first report on the employment of the ORBEYE exoscope during general surgery. Our experience assures us that this highly ergonomic technology with its high-resolution 4K 3D optical system allows the surgeon to perform safe and precise surgery in several dedicated steps in which adequate magnification is required with no adverse effects to the surgeon or the surgical procedure itself.
Factors of Risk Survey of the Nosocomial Infection in the Hospital Inert Environment

In this survey, we analyzed by means of the inert environment withdrawals at the Resuscitation service, Neonatalogy and Operative Block in the Center Hospital University of Fianarantsoa (Madagascar). The bacteria identification has been done by biomedical laboratory usual technique. The results showed that different bacterial species contaminate the inert environment of these three services. Two bacterial species: Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli are frequently isolated on these different samples. The antibiogram on disk method showed the presence of oxacillin and vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus ; vancomycin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus andoxacillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. For Escherichia coli, there are species cefoxitin and augmentin-sensitive Escherichia coli and cefoxitin and augmentin-resistant Escherichia coli . These results shows that the risks of nosocomial infections from the inert environment at the hospital is raised. The future perspective of this survey is to identify these two bacterial species isolated by molecular technique and to look for the new antibacterial products.
Metabolism and biological effects of nitropyrene and related compounds.

The aim of this project was to compare the carcinogenicities of 1,3-, 1,6-, and 1,8-dinitropyrene, 1-nitropyrene, and the metabolic phenolic derivatives of 1-nitropyrene. The biochemical goal was to establish how these inert compounds are converted metabolically, by target tissues, to reactive species that can alter the DNA of the susceptible cell. The comparative tumorigenicities were assessed by the use of female CD rats. Control groups consisted of animals that had been given only the solvent, dimethylsulfoxide, which has a low toxicity, to maximize solubility. Equimolar doses (1.7 mumole/ml; 10 mumole/kg body weight) of the compounds were administered to weanling rats by intraperitoneal injection, or by intragastric intubation, three times each week for four weeks, for a total dose of 16 mumoles. Newborn animals were treated by subcutaneous injection of the 1,3-, 1,6-, or 1,8-dinitropyrene or 1-nitropyrene within 24 hours of birth, and at seven weekly intervals, for a total dose of 6.3 mumoles. The possible carcinogenicities of phenolic metabolites of 1-nitropyrene were examined by subcutaneous treatment of newborn animals, and at seven weekly intervals, with 1-nitropyrene, 3-hydroxy-1-nitropyrene, or a mixture of 6-hydroxy-1-nitropyrene and 8-hydroxy-1-nitropyrene (70 mumoles/ml; 100 mumoles/kg body weight; total dose, 63 mumoles). The relative carcinogenicity of 1-nitropyrene in the female Fischer 344 rats was established by the concurrent treatment of appropriate animals. The smaller, inbred Fischer rats received a total dose of 40 mumoles. Subcutaneous and intraperitoneal treatments of weanling female CD rats (70 mumoles/ml; 100 mumoles/kg body weight; 5 weekly injections) with 1-nitropyrene were carried out to explore possible differences because of the different routes of administration in animals of the same age. Dinitropyrenes are much more carcinogenic than 1-nitropyrene (1,6- greater than 1,8- greater than 1,3-dinitropyrene greater than 1-nitropyrene). Phenolic derivatives of 1-nitropyrene are no more carcinogenic than the parent compound. The most likely tumors to be induced in this animal model are malignant fibrous histiocytomas (MFHs), mammary gland tumors, and leukemias. Animals treated with 1,6- or 1,8-dinitropyrene by subcutaneous injection yielded MFHs at the site within 15 weeks of the first injection (i.e., at 15 weeks of age), and this did not permit them to survive more than 20 to 25 weeks. Leukemia developed in these animals within this brief period, but mammary gland tumors were observed only when survival of the animal was not limited by the formation of the more aggressive MFHs. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
What Helps and Hinders Students’ Intervening in Incidents of Dating Violence On Campus? an Exploratory Study Using Focus Groups

Dating violence is a problem occurring on college campuses that requires unique prevention and intervention needs. Despite the widespread prevalence and pervasive impact of dating violence victimization, formal disclosure and utilization of on-campus support services for student survivors remain low and often survivors who do tell someone disclose to an informal source of support, most often a friend. Many current educational efforts on college campuses regarding dating violence, including bystander intervention programming, fail to increase students’ understanding of how to safely address a situation where a peer is experiencing an abusive relationship or to provide students with information about their role as potential responders to disclosures of violence from friends. In the present exploratory study, a series of qualitative focus groups were conducted to better understand students’ perspectives on dating violence on campus. Data were analyzed according to processes of thematic analysis to examine how students’ understanding and knowledge of dating violence impact their decision about whether to intervene as prosocial bystanders within their social networks using focus groups. Emergent findings reveal that students undergo a multistage process of intervening that relies heavily on their existing knowledge and attitudes toward dating violence. The findings from this article are consistent with Banyard’s Action Coils model. Suggestions for future research are also discussed.
Role of oospores in the overwintering and year-on-year development of the late blight pathogen on tomato en potato [Conference poster].

The role of oospores as a source for the regular late blight renewal has been studied in a longterm experiment using tomato strains of P. infestans and two tomato cultivars. The obtained results showed that oospores, generated after the mating of strains of different mating types (A1 and A2), maintained their infection ability after their overwintering in the soil. The presence of the infectious agent in the soil causes the spreading of the late blight to the above ground parts of plants, manifesting itself on the bottom and other parts of the stem. Therefore, at least in the course of the next vegetation season, P. infestans oospores can be an important source of infection, causing the appearance of first late blight lesions on plants.
Machine learning prediction of axillary lymph node metastasis in breast cancer: 2D versus 3D radiomic features.

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to distinguish axillary lymph node (ALN) status using preoperative breast DCE-MRI radiomics and compare the effects of 2D and 3D analysis. METHODS A retrospective study including 154 breast cancer patients all confirmed by pathology; 80 with ALN metastasis and 74 without. All MRI scans were achieved at 3.0 Tesla scanner with 7 post-contrast MR phases sequentially acquired with a temporal resolution of 60 seconds. MRI radiomic features were extracted separately from a 2D single slice (i.e., the representative slice) and the 3D tumor volume. Several machine learning classifiers were built and compared using 2D or 3D analysis to distinguish positive vs negative ALN status. We performed independent test and 10-fold cross validation with multiple repetitions, and used bootstrap test, least absolute shrinkage selection operator, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis as statistical tests. RESULTS The highest area under the ROC curve (AUC) was 0.81 (95% Confident intervals [CI]: 0.80-0.83) and 0.82 (95% CI: 0.81-0.82) for 2D and 3D analysis, respectively; the corresponding accuracy was 79% and 80%. The Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA) classifier achieved the highest classification performance. None of the AUC differences between 2D and 3D analysis was statistically significant for the several tested machine learning classifiers (all p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS Radiomic features from segmented tumor region in breast MRI were associated with ALN status. The separate radiomic analysis on 3D tumor volume showed a similar effect to the 2D analysis on the single representative slice in the tested machine learning classifiers.
Electrochemical Control of Metabolic Flux of Weissella kimchii sk10: Neutral Red Immobilized in Cytoplasmic Membrane as Electron Channel

Electrochemical control of the metabolic flux of W. kimchii sk10 on glucose and pyruvate was studied. The growing cell of W. kimchii sk10 produced 87.4 mM lactate, 69.3 mM ethanol, and 4.9 mM lactate from 83.1 mM glucose under oxidation condition of the anode compartment, but 98.9 mM lactate, 84.3 mM ethanol, and 0.2 mM acetate were produced from 90.8 mM glucose under reduction condition of the cathode compartment for 24 h, respectively. The resting cell of W. kimchii sk10 produced 15.9 mM lactate and 15.2 mM acetate from 32.1 mM pyruvate under oxidation condition of the anode compartment, and 71.3 mM lactate and 3.8 mM acetate from 79.8 mM pyruvate under reduction condition of the cathode compartment. The redox balance (NADH/NAD + ) of metabolites electrochemically produced from pyruvate was 1.05 and 18.76 under oxidation and reduction conditions, respectively. On the basis of these results, we suggest that the neutral red (NR) immobilized in bacterial membrane can function as an electron channel for the electron transfer between electrode and cytoplasm without dissipation of membrane potential, and that the bacterial fermentation of W kimchii sk10 can be shifted to oxidized or reduced pathways by the electrochemical oxidation or reduction, respectively.