Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Melanocortin-4 Receptor in Fish: A Review

The melanocortin-4 receptor (MC4R) belongs to the melanocortin system, has been well investigated in mammals. Which plays important roles in several physiological processes, such as regulating energy homeostasis, cachexia, cardiovascular function, glucose and lipid homeostasis, reproduction and sexual function, drug abuse, pain perception, brain infl ammation, and anxiety.
Bullying Among Pregnant Teens: A Pilot Study

Victims of bullying are more likely to experience negative health outcomes. The relationship between bullying and teen pregnancy is understudied. This pilot study surveyed pregnant adolescents (12-21 years) at a clinic about bullying related behaviors. The survey asked about the frequency of fighting, peer victimization and bullying behaviors in the last 30 days. Participants (N=78) reported fighting by “hitting back” (62.8%) and bullying by “being mean” (45.5%). Participants reported victimization by being made fun of (35.9%), being called names (38.5%) and being picked on (37.2%). Many (48.5%) reported a decrease in the behaviors since becoming pregnant; however, some (36.4%) indicated no change. This pilot study reveals bullying is common in this group of adolescents and typically occurred before pregnancy.
Inhibitory Effect of Alpha-Crystallins on VEGF-Induced Proliferation of Retinal Microvascular Endothelial Cells

Purpose: Lens extraction surgery with ischemic retinopathy may trigger neovascularization, suggesting that lens removal alters the ocular concentrations of angiogenesis regulatory factors. This study aims to identify angiogenic or anti-angiogenic factors exhibiting altered expression in the vitreous after lens extraction in rabbits. Methods: Vitreous samples after lens extraction were analyzed by two dimensional fluorescence difference gel electrophoresis (2D-DIGE) followed by mass spectrometry to identify candidate factors indicating expression changes. Western blotting and real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were performed to semi-quantify protein and gene expression changes. The identified factors were tested by assessing effects on vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-induced proliferation of human retinal microvascular endothelial cells (HRMECs). Results: Three spots with reduced expression were identified as αA-crystallin by 2D-DIGE and mass spectrometry. Western blotting revealed that the protein levels in vitreous of αA- and αB-crystallin were significantly lower after lens extraction. αB-crystallin suppressed the proliferation of VEGF-stimulated HRMECs, and the combination of αA- and αB-crystallin was more effective than αB-crystallin alone. Conclusion: The depletion of vitreal α-crystallins after lens extraction may increase VEGF-induced angiogenesis, thereby contributing to adverse outcomes such as vitreous hemorrhage, proliferative membrane, and vision loss after cataract surgery for ischemic retinopathy patients.
Hybrid Quantum System with Nitrogen-Vacancy Centers in Diamond Coupled to Surface-Phonon Polaritons in Piezomagnetic Superlattices

In spin-based hybrid quantum systems, the spatial modes of collective spin excitations can be used to encode a register of qubits. However, in superconducting circuits the wavelengths of microwave photons are much larger than the dimensions of the spin ensembles, which complicates direct coupling and limits information processing. This problem could be solved by exploiting the subwavelength nature of surface phonon-polaritons in a piezomagnetic superlattice, via coupling them to an ensemble of N-$V$ spins in diamond. Considering the excellent tenability and scalability of piezoactive superlattices, this approach opens routes to innovative hybrid quantum devices.
Relationship between Usefulness Assessments and Perceptions of Work Task Complexity and Search Topic Specificity: An Exploratory Study

This research investigates the relations between the usefulness assessments of retrieved documents and the perceptions of task complexity and search topic specificity. Twenty-three academic researchers submitted 65 real task-based information search topics. These task topics were searched in an integrated document collection consisting of full text research articles in PDFs, abstracts, and bibliographic records (the i Search Test Collection in Physics). The search results were provided to the researchers who, as task performers, made assessments of usefulness using a four-point sale (highly, fairly, marginally, or not useful). In addition, they also assessed the perceived task complexity (highly, fairly, and routine/low) and the perceived specificity of the search topic (highly, fairly, and generic/low). It is found that highly specific topics associate with all degrees of task complexity, whereas highly complex tasks tend to associate with search topics of high specificity. Although bibliographic records show better precisions than full text PDF documents, the latter contributed more useful documents. Suggestions are made for further studies in naturalist IR experiments.
Heat and Mass Transfer on the Unsteady MHD Flow of Chemically Reacting Micropolar Fluid with Radiation and Joule Heating

To explore numerical simulation of transport in rheological materials processing, in the current paper, a finite element computational solution is presented for magnetohydrodynamic (MHD), incompressible, radiative and chemically-reacting micropolar fluid flow, heat and mass transfer adjacent to a vertical porous plate embedded in a saturated homogenous porous medium. Rosseland’s diffusion approximation is used to describe the radiative heat flux in the energy equation. A Darcy model is employed for the porous medium. The homogeneous chemical reaction of first order is accounted for in the mass diffusion equation. The numerical solutions of the system of non-linear partial differential equations which are rendered into non-dimensional form are obtained using a Galerkin formulation with a weighted residual scheme. The impact of Eringen coupling number, radiation-conduction number, chemical reaction parameter, plate moving velocity parameter, magnetic parameter, thermal Grashof number, species (solutal) Grashof number, permeability parameter, Eckert number on linear velocity, micro-rotation, temperature and concentration profiles. Furthermore, the influence of selected thermo-physical parameters on friction factor, surface heat transfer and mass transfer rate is also tabulated. The finite element solutions are verified with solutions from several limiting cases in the literature. Interesting features in the flow are identified and interpreted.
Mitochondrial and microsatellite DNA analyses of harbour seal population structure in the northeast Pacific Ocean

The genetic diversity and population structure of harbour seals ( Phoca vitulina richardsi) along the coasts of British Columbia and parts of Alaska were investigated using both mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and nuclear DNA. A 475-bp fragment of the mitochondrial control region was amplified and sequenced from 128 animals. Sixty variable sites defined 72 mtDNA haplotypes with pairwise nucleotide differences as high as 5%. Fifty-eight haplotypes were represented by a single individual, and shared haplotypes were generally restricted to a small geographic range. Phylogenetic reconstruction revealed two distinct populations comprising (i) southern British Columbia and (ii) northern British Columbia - southeast Alaska. Furthermore, the order of the clades suggests that the Pacific Ocean was colonized at least twice, 670 000 and 380 000 years ago. Haplotypes from the first invasion are restricted to a small number of seals around southern Vancouver Island. Analyses of five polymorphic microsatellite loci showed significant differences between the populations of southern British Columbia and northern British Columbia - Alaska. Migration rates for males based on microsatellite data (3-22 seals/generation) were higher than those obtained for females from mtDNA data (0.3 females/generation). Combining all the DNA data collected to date suggests that there are at least three populations of harbour seals in the Pacific composed of seals from ( i) Japan, Russia, Alaska, and northern British Columbia, (ii) southern British Columbia and Puget Sound, Washington, and (iii) the outer coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California. The data do not support the existence of two subspecies of harbour seals in the Pacific Ocean.
Emotion-sensitive automation of air traffic control

A human being is more flexible and adaptive than any technology. Nevertheless, the right support systems at the right time can bring large benefits. But how can we know when someone could benefit from technological support? The StayCentered project is working on the idea of collecting physiological data to assess the mental state of an air traffic controller. Information about the controller’s mental state would allow for adaptive assistance and additional measures in cases where work overload is anticipated. Such measures could, for example, limit the number of aircraft in the airspace being controlled or provide relief using adjacent sectors.
Serum Lipid Profiles in Hypertensive Diabetes Mellitus Type 2 Patients

This study was designed to determine the relationship between the levels of lipid profile in diabetes mellitus type 2 and hypertension. Blood samples were collected from patients under 40 years old with diabetes type 2 and suffering from hypertension. Lipid profile was determined enzymaticlly by using kits. Results revealed that the level of cholesterol was significantly increased in diabetic patients with hypertension more than diabetic patients only. Also the level of triglyceride (TG) was significantly higher in patients suffering from diabetes with hypertension than patients suffering from diabetes only. A significant decrease in the level of high density lipoprotein was recorded in diabetes patients who are suffering from hypertension than patients with diabetes only. There was asignificant increase in the level of triglyceride (TG), low density lipoprotein (LDL) and very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) in male than female patients.
Tracing the star stream through M31 using planetary nebula kinematics

We present a possible orbit for the Southern Stream of stars in M31, which connects it to the Northern Spur. Support for this model comes from the dynamics of planetary nebulae (PNe) in the disc of M31: analysis of a new sample of 2611 PNe obtained using the Planetary Nebula Spectrograph reveals ∼20 objects with kinematics inconsistent with the normal components of the galaxy, but which lie at the right positions and velocities to connect the two photometric features via this orbit. The satellite galaxy M32 is coincident with the stream both in position and velocity, adding weight to the hypothesis that the stream comprises its tidal debris.
Avaliação automática de respostas textuais curtas por similaridades de n -gramas: refinamentos por regressão linear

In distance education, the need for intelligent virtual environments has been growing, where one of the components is a system of automatic assessment for conceptual open-ended questions. We work with answers to entrance examination questions using n-grams text-like similarity techniques and the linear regression method. The accuracy of the system was contrasted with that of the human evaluators, which resulted in 0.82 against 0.94, Biology test, and 0.86 against 0.85 Geography test. This study shows that this technology is reaching maturity to be used with great advantages in these virtual teaching environments: low cost, instant feedback, frees the teacher from the work of correction and attends large classes. Resumo. No ensino a distância cresce a necessidade de ambientes virtuais inteligentes, onde um dos componentes é um sistema de avaliação automática de questões conceituais discursivas. Trabalhamos com respostas de questões do vestibular utilizando técnicas de similaridade de textos baseadas em ngramas e o método de regressão linear. A acurácia do sistema foi contrastada com a dos avaliadores humanos, que resultou em 0.82 contra 0.94, prova Biologia, e 0.86 contra 0.85 prova Geografia. Este estudo mostra que esta tecnologia está alcançando maturidade para ser utilizadas com grandes vantagens nestes ambientes virtuais de ensino: baixo custo, feedback imediato, libera o professor do trabalho de correção e atende grandes turmas.
Application Note ANCZT-2 Rev . 3 Charge Trapping in XR-100 T-CdTe and-CZT Detectors

The XR-100T-CdTe and –CdTe-Stack detectors are high performance X-ray and γ-ray detection systems. They are based upon planar semiconductor radiation detectors, mounted on a thermoelectric cooler inside a small hybrid package. Thermoelectric cooling permits very high energy resolution without cryogenic cooling. This system is well-suited for X-ray and γ-ray spectroscopy applications requiring high energy resolution where the use of liquid nitrogen is inconvenient or impossible. They are finding increasing applications in fields as diverse as chemical analyses using X-Ray Fluorescence under field conditions, isotopic measurements for environmental remediation and for homeland security, medical uses, and many research uses.
Functionalized graphene - poly(vinyl alcohol) nanocomposites: Physical and dielectric properties

Chemically derivatized graphene/poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) nanocomposites were successfully fabricated by combination of solution processing and compression molding. SEM imaging combined with XRD measurements revealed that graphene platelets were fully incorporated into the polymer matrix after their chemical modification through adsorption of amphiphilic copolymer. The chemical functionalities onto the graphitic surface prevented particle aggregation and pro- vided compatibility with the polymer matrix. Thermogravimetric analysis demonstrated enhanced thermal stability for the composites containing modified graphenes at loading above 1 wt%. Differential scanning calorimetry thermograms showed that graphene nanoplatelets induced the crystallization of matrix with optimum loading at 2 wt%. Dielectric spectroscopy measurements showed enhanced electrical permittivity for the graphene oxide/PVA system, compared to the one of graphene/copolymer/PVA. This could be attributed to the formation of an insulating coating between graphite inclusions and PVA because of the presence of the copolymer.
Perceptual restoration in children versus adults

Children often listen to speech in noisy environments, where they must use prior knowledge to help them interpret the intended signal. The present experiment compares school-aged children's and adults' use of one such form of prior knowledge, as demonstrated in the perceptual restoration effect. Children, like adults, perform better when speech is intermittently replaced with noise than when it is replaced with silence, suggesting that children are able to make use of prior knowledge to help them restore interrupted signals. Despite this fact, children appear to be more affected by acoustic signal disruptions than are adult listeners, suggesting they will experience greater difficulty in noisy environments.
Synthesisand Characterization of Guanidine derivatives of Benzothiazole and their Cobalt ( II ) , Nickel ( II ) , Zinc ( II ) , Copper ( II ) and Iron ( II ) Complexes

Guanidine and phosphonate derivatives of Benzothiazole, guanidinobenzothiazole, (GBT), guanidinophosphonatebenzothiazole, (GPBT)were synthesized alongwith their metal complexes, Fe(II), Co(II), Ni(II) Cu(II) and Zn(II). They werecharacterized by 1 H NMR, 13 C NMR, C.H. N analysis, percentage metal composition, FT-Infrared spectra analysis, UV–Visible electronic spectroscopy and magnetic susceptibility measurements. The results from the percentage composition of the metals in the complexes suggest that ratio of the metal to ligands is 1: 2 (M: L) where M = Fe(II), Co(II), Ni(II), Cu(II) and Zn(II). Thus, the prepared complexes have the general formulae [ML2]. Spectral analyses revealed that the nitrogen in the imidazolic, exocyclic and the terminal end of the ligands are the coordination sites.The electronic spectral data and the values of the magnetic moments suggest octahedral geometry for all the complexes except copper(II) complexes with a distorted octahedral geometry.
Antimicrobial activities of the crude methanol extract of Acorus calamus Linn.

Phongpaichit, S. , Pujenjob, N. , Rukachaisirikul, V. and Ongsakul, M. Antimicrobial activities of the crude methanol extract of Acorus calamus Linn. A partially-purified fraction obtained from column chromatographic preparation of the crude methanol extract of Acorus calamus Linn. rhizomes was investigated for its antimicrobial activities on various microorganisms including bacteria, yeasts and filamentous fungi. It exhibited high activity against filamentous fungi: Trichophyton rubrum, Microsporum gypseum, and Penicillium marneffei with IC 50 values of 0.2, 0.2 and 0.4 mg/ml, respectively. However, it showed moderate activity against yeasts: Candida albicans, Cryptococcus neoformans and Saccharomyces cerevisiae (MIC 0.1-1 mg/ml) and low activity against bacteria (MIC 5->10 mg/ml). Scanning electron microscopic observation revealed that hyphae and conidia treated with this fraction were shrunken and collapsed, which might be due to cell fluid leakage.
Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope trophic enrichment factors for Steller sea lion vibrissae relative to milk and fish/invertebrate diets

: Nutritional constraints have been proposed as a contributor to population declines in the endangered Steller sea lion Eumetopias jubatus in some regions of the North Pacific. Isotopic analysis of vibrissae (whiskers) is a potentially useful approach to resolving the nutritional ecology of this species because long-term (up to 8 yr) dietary information is sequentially recorded and metabolically inert once formed. Additionally, vibrissae are grown in utero , potentially offering indirect inference on maternal diet. However, diet reconstruction using isotopic techniques requires a priori knowledge of trophic enrichment factors (TEFs), which can vary relative to diet quality and among animal species. In this study, we provide new TEF estimates for (1) maternal relative to pup vibrissae during both gestation and nursing and (2) adult vibrissae relative to a complex diet. Further, we refine vibrissa−milk TEFs based on an additional 76 animals with an age distribution ranging from 1 to 20 mo. Mother−pup vibrissae TEF values during gestation and nursing were near zero for δ 13 C and averaged 0.8 and 1.6‰, respectively, for δ 15 N. In contrast, vib-rissa−fish/invertebrate TEFs averaged 3.3 (± 0.3 SD) and 3.7‰ (±0.3) for lipid-free δ 13 C and δ 15 N, respectively. Average lipid-free δ 13 C and δ 15 N vibrissa−milk TEFs were 2.5 (±0.9) and 1.8‰ (±0.8), respectively, and did not differ among metapopulations. Empirically determined TEFs are critical for accurate retrospective diet modeling, particularly for evaluating the hypothesis of nutritional deficiency contributing to the lack of Steller sea lion population recovery in some regions of Alaska.
Secondary instability and tertiary states in rotating plane Couette flow

Abstract Recent experimental studies have shown rich transition behaviour in rotating plane Couette flow (RPCF). In this paper we study the transition in supercritical RPCF theoretically by determination of equilibrium and periodic orbit tertiary states via Floquet analysis on secondary Taylor vortex solutions. Two new tertiary states are discovered which we name oscillatory wavy vortex flow (oWVF) and skewed vortex flow (SVF). We present the bifurcation routes and stability properties of these new tertiary states and, in addition, we describe a bifurcation procedure whereby a set of defected wavy twist vortices is approached. Further to this, transition scenarios at flow parameters relevant to experimental works are investigated by computation of the set of stable attractors which exist on a large domain. The physically observed flow states are shown to share features with states in our set of attractors.
Are slot and sub-wavelength grating waveguides better than strip waveguides for sensing?

The unique ability of slot and sub-wavelength grating (SWG) waveguides to confine light outside of the waveguide core material has attracted significant interest in their application to chemical and biological sensing. However, high sensitivity to sidewall roughness induced scattering loss in these structures compared to strip waveguides casts doubt on their efficacy. In this article, we seek to settle the controversy by quantitatively comparing the sensing performance of various waveguide geometries through figures of merit that we derive for each mode of sensing. These methods take into account both modal confinement and roughness scattering loss, the latter of which is computed using a volume-current (Green's-function) method with a first Born approximation. For devices based on the standard 220 nm silicon-on-insulator (SOI) platform whose propagation loss is predominantly limited by random line-edge sidewall roughness scattering, our model predicts that properly engineered TM-polarized strip waveguides claim the best performance for refractometry and absorption spectroscopy, while optimized slot waveguides demonstrate >5x performance enhancement over the other waveguide geometries for waveguide-enhanced Raman spectroscopy.
Laboratory validation and field usability assessment of a point-of-care test for serum bilirubin levels in neonates in a tropical setting

Background: Screening and monitoring serum bilirubin (SBR) in neonates is crucial to prevent neonatal hyperbilirubinemia (NH)-associated morbidity and mortality worldwide. A lack of resources is often a barrier for measuring SBR in developing countries. Reliable, cost-effective, easy to use point-of-care (POC) SBR tests are needed. This study aimed to evaluate the technical accuracy and usability of the Bilistick System (BS), a new bilirubin POC test, in a tropical setting. Methods: This was a mixed-methods study, including laboratory validation of the BS, direct observation of technical procedures as performed by the midwives and midwives’ assessment of the device’s easiness of use through focus group discussions (FGD) and a self-administered questionnaire. The study was conducted in a field clinic of the Shoklo Malaria Research Unit along the Thailand-Myanmar border between January and December 2017. Results: A total of 173 samples were tested at a median age of 4 days. BS generated an error message—providing no SBR readout—in 48.6% of the tests performed. For the tests that yielded a result, the correlation coefficient (95% CI) between BS and routine laboratory bilirubinometer SBR was 0.87 (0.77-0.93). The accuracy decreased with increasing haematocrit and at higher humidity (≥75%). Direct observation of the operators using the device and analysis of the focus group discussions and questionnaires indicated that the BS was considered easy to use and required limited training. Conclusions: This evaluation showed that the BS, in its current formulation, does not provide reliable results for measuring SBR in a tropical, low-resource setting but has acceptable usability features.