Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of a New Venoactive Micronized Flavonoid Fraction (S 5682) in Symptomatic Disturbances of the Venolymphatic Circulation of the Lower Limb: A Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study

Objective: To determine the effect of a new venoactive flavonoid fraction (S 5682) in the treatment of symptomatic disturbances of the venolymphatic system. Design: Double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, Parallel group trial conducted in two centres. Setting: Department of Internal Medicine, La Palmosa Hospital, Menton, France, and Department of Vascular Surgery, Kremlin-Bicêtre University Hospital, Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, France. Patients: One hundred and sixty patients with symptomatic disturbances of the venolymphatic system, including chronic venous insufficiency, were included in the study. Interventions: Treatment lasted 8 weeks and consisted of the daily administration of two tablets of either S 5682 (n = 80) or placebo (n = 80). Main outcome measures: The primary end-point was the evolution of eight symptoms of disturbance of the venolymphatic system over the 2-month observation Period. The secondary end-point was the change of circumference of each affected leg over the same observation period. Results: When compared with placebo, S 5682 led to a significant improvement in four symptoms (functional discomfort, sensation of heaviness, nocturnal cramps, sensation of swelling) at week 4 and in two additional symptoms (pain and sensation of heat or burning) at week 8. Similarly, S 5682 was associated with a significant decrease in calf muscle and supramalleolar circumferences at week 4 (p < 0.001) and week 8 (p < 0.001) reflecting a reduction of oedema. The decrease of the supramalleolar circumference correlated well with the improvement of the swelling sensation (r < 0.56; p < 0.001). The clinical and biological acceptability of S 5682 was good. Conclusions: These results indicate that S 5682 shows early and prolonged efficacy in the treatment of symptomatic disturbances of the venolymphatic system, including chronic venous insufficiency, without significant side-effects.
Male infertility: diagnostic and epidemiological aspect concerning 96 cases in a teaching university hospital of cotonou, benin republic

Objectives: The goal of this study is to describe the epidemiological and diagnostic aspect of male infertility in the Department of Urology and Andrology of the Hospital mentioned above. Methods: This was a retrospective descriptive study of 6 months duration at the Academic Clinic of Urology and Andrology of a Teaching Hospital in Cotonou. A total of 96 medical records of patients were retrieved for the study. Results: The average age of the patients was 37.2 ± 6.7 years old. About 59.4% of the cases were primary infertility. The average duration of the infertility was 51 months. From the patients past medical histories; 44.9% suffered from gonorrhea. On clinical examination, the findings were: Varicocele in 23% of the cases, testicular hypotrophy in 9.3% and epididymal cyst in 4.6%. The seminal fluid analysis revealed hypospermia in 30.1% of cases, azoospermia in 33.7%, asthenozoospermia in 75.5% and teratozoospermia in 61.5%. The pH was basic in 46.4% of the cases. Follicular stimulating hormone and testosterone levels were high in 48.1% and 12.5% of cases, respectively. About 31.6% of the cases had the positive chlamydial serological test. Semen culture was positive in 25% of the cases and the main organism isolated was Staphylococcus aureus in 66.6% of the cases. Conclusion: Male infertility is the cause of couple infertility in around a third of the cases. In this study, we have found various etiologies of causes of male infertility. However, idiopathic causes could be found.
Cloning, expression, and characterization of a novel heparinase I from Bacteroides eggerthii

Abstract Heparinase I (Hep I) specifically degrades heparin to oligosaccharide or unsaturated disaccharide and has been widely used in preparation of low molecular weight heparin (LMWH). In this work, a novel Hep I from Bacteroides eggerthii VPI T5-42B-1 was cloned and overexpressed in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3). The enzyme has specific activity of 480 IU·mg−1 at the optimal temperature and pH of 30 °C and pH 7.5, and the Km and Vmax were 3.6 mg·mL−1 and 647.93 U·mg−1, respectively. The Hep I has good stability with t1/2 values of 350 and 60 min at 30 and 37 °C, respectively. And it showed a residual relative activity of 70.8% after 21 days incubation at 4 °C. Substrate docking study revealed that Lys99, Arg101, Gln241, Lys270, Asn275, and Lys292 were mainly involved in the substrate binding of Hep I. The shorter hydrogen bonds formed between heparin and these residues suggested the higher specific activity of BeHep I. And the minimum conformational entropy value of 756 J·K−1 provides an evidence for the improved stability of this enzyme. This Hep I could be of interest in the industrial preparation of LMWH for its high specific activity and good stability.
Cystic fibrosis in the year 2020: A disease with a new face

The autosomal recessive disease cystic fibrosis (CF) was once untreatable and deadly in childhood, but now most patients survive to adulthood. Many countries have instituted CF newborn screening because early diagnosis improves outcome. CF research has greatly intensified following the discovery of the CF transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene, which has more than 2000 different mutations. For patients with common mutations like F508del, CFTR modulators are life transforming and may even prevent major complications if started early in childhood. For some patients with rare CFTR mutations, a treatment path still needs to be developed. Conclusion: This review provides a general update on CF, including screening and current and future treatment.
Forecasting stock prices with long-short term memory neural network based on attention mechanism

The stock market is known for its extreme complexity and volatility, and people are always looking for an accurate and effective way to guide stock trading. Long short-term memory (LSTM) neural networks are developed by recurrent neural networks (RNN) and have significant application value in many fields. In addition, LSTM avoids long-term dependence issues due to its unique storage unit structure, and it helps predict financial time series. Based on LSTM and an attention mechanism, a wavelet transform is used to denoise historical stock data, extract and train its features, and establish the prediction model of a stock price. We compared the results with the other three models, including the LSTM model, the LSTM model with wavelet denoising and the gated recurrent unit(GRU) neural network model on S&P 500, DJIA, HSI datasets. Results from experiments on the S&P 500 and DJIA datasets show that the coefficient of determination of the attention-based LSTM model is both higher than 0.94, and the mean square error of our model is both lower than 0.05.
Effect of Andrographis paniculata and Phyllanthus amarus leaf extracts on selected biochemical indices in Drosophila melanogaster model of neurotoxicity

Abstract Aluminum (Al)-induced toxicity in fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) is one of the established models for studying neurotoxicity and neurodegenerative diseases. Alkaloid phytochemicals have been reported to exhibit neuroprotective effects. Therefore, the aim of this study is to determine the effect of alkaloid extracts of Andrographis paniculata and Phyllanthus amarus leaves on Al-induced toxicity in wild type Drosophila melanogaster. The flies were exposed to diets containing 40 mM AlCl3, and the alkaloid extracts (0.1 and 1 mg/ml). Thereafter, the flies were assessed for learning and memory, as well as locomotor performance 14 days post-treatment. This was followed by homogenizing the flies and the homogenates were assayed for acetylcholinesterase, monoamine oxidase and catalase activities, as well as the malondialdehyde content. The results showed that the alkaloid extracts of both leaves could ameliorate the aluminum-induced behavioral and biochemical impairments in the flies. The HPLC analysis of the alkaloid contents revealed that there is an abundance of Amaryllidaceae alkaloids, caffeine and carpaine. Thus, alkaloid extracts from these leaves could serve as promising therapeutic candidates for the management of neurodegenerative disease.
The clock gene Bmal1 inhibits macrophage motility, phagocytosis, and impairs defense against pneumonia

Significance The circadian clock extensively regulates physiology, with an emerging role in immunity. Bacterial infection development, progression, and resolution depend on the time of day, but through an unknown mechanism. Here, we show that time of day regulates macrophage phagocytosis, and that the core clock protein BMAL1 is responsible. BMAL1 regulates RhoA-dependent macrophage motility and bacterial engulfment, and loss of BMAL1 enhances antibacterial immunity. We identify a genetic circuit linking BMAL1 binding to motility, cytoskeletal gene expression, and RhoA activation. With the rise in antimicrobial resistance, finding new ways to enhance immunity, by targeting clock components, offers new therapeutic opportunities. The circadian clock regulates many aspects of immunity. Bacterial infections are affected by time of day, but the mechanisms involved remain undefined. Here we show that loss of the core clock protein BMAL1 in macrophages confers protection against pneumococcal pneumonia. Infected mice show both reduced weight loss and lower bacterial burden in circulating blood. In vivo studies of macrophage phagocytosis reveal increased bacterial ingestion following Bmal1 deletion, which was also seen in vitro. BMAL1−/− macrophages exhibited marked differences in actin cytoskeletal organization, a phosphoproteome enriched for cytoskeletal changes, with reduced phosphocofilin and increased active RhoA. Further analysis of the BMAL1−/− macrophages identified altered cell morphology and increased motility. Mechanistically, BMAL1 regulated a network of cell movement genes, 148 of which were within 100 kb of high-confidence BMAL1 binding sites. Links to RhoA function were identified, with 29 genes impacting RhoA expression or activation. RhoA inhibition restored the phagocytic phenotype to that seen in control macrophages. In summary, we identify a surprising gain of antibacterial function due to loss of BMAL1 in macrophages, associated with a RhoA-dependent cytoskeletal change, an increase in cell motility, and gain of phagocytic function.
Specialization for rapid excitation in fast squid tentacle muscle involves action potentials absent in slow arm muscle

ABSTRACT An important aspect of the performance of many fast muscle fiber types is rapid excitation. Previous research on the cross-striated muscle fibers responsible for the rapid tentacle strike in squid has revealed the specializations responsible for high shortening velocity, but little is known about excitation of these fibers. Conventional whole-cell patch recordings were made from tentacle fibers and the slower obliquely striated muscle fibers of the arms. The fast-contracting tentacle fibers show an approximately 10-fold greater sodium conductance than that of the arm fibers and, unlike the arm fibers, the tentacle muscle fibers produce action potentials. In situ hybridization using an antisense probe to the voltage-dependent sodium channel present in this squid genus shows prominent expression of sodium channel mRNA in tentacle fibers but undetectable expression in arm fibers. Production of action potentials by tentacle muscle fibers and their absence in arm fibers is likely responsible for the previously reported greater twitch–tetanus ratio in the tentacle versus the arm fibers. During the rapid tentacle strike, a few closely spaced action potentials would result in maximal activation of transverse tentacle muscle. Activation of the slower transverse muscle fibers in the arms would require summation of excitatory postsynaptic potentials over a longer time, allowing the precise modulation of force required for supporting slower movements of the arms. Summary: Cross-striated muscle fibers of squid tentacles generate explosive elongation for prey capture through excitation by sodium-based action potentials; the slower obliquely striated arm muscle fibers do not produce action potentials or elongation.
Persistent ozone depletion in the tropical stratosphere: identifying possible reasons

The importance of stratospheric ozone layer has been widely discussed by many authors. Playing a key role in the radiative budget of the Earth’s atmosphere the stratospheric ozone also protects the biosphere from the harmful UV radiation and is closely related to stratospheric circulation and meteorology. After the anthropogenic emission of several strong ozone depleting substances has been ruled out by Montreal Protocol and its amendments the severe ozone decline discovered in early eighties of the last century (widely known as Antarctic ozone hole) began to slow down and even some indications of the ozone recovery have been inferred from observations [8–11]. In the resent time the vertical distribution of stratospheric ozone trends has been moved into the focus [3,4,6]. Analyzing the vertically resolved time series of ozone in tropics all authors agree in their conclusions that a strong ozone recovery is seen in the middle to lower stratosphere (below about 30 km) while a significant ozone depletion is observed at altitudes about 35 km. Being vertically integrated these opposite trends result in a slightly positive contribution which explains the signatures of a recovery seen in the observations of the ozone total column. This project utilizes measurements in limb viewing geometry from the Scanning Imaging Absorption spectroMeter for Atmospheric CHartographY (SCIAMACHY) [1,2] instrument launched on board the European Envisat satellite on March 1st, 2002 and operated until the sudden lost of the connection to Envisat on April 8th, 2012. Figure 1 shows stratospheric ozone trend as a function of the altitude and latitude as observed by the SCIAMACHY instrument during the time period from 2004 to 2012. One clearly sees a strong sharply localized peak at altitudes 30 38 km in the tropical region. In relation to the expected impact of the Montreal Protocol and its amendments these negative trends are quite surprising and a discussion if this phenomenon has purely dynamic or also chemical reasons is currently ongoing in the scientific community.
Sexual risk classes among youth experiencing homelessness: Relation to childhood adversities, current mental symptoms, substance use, and HIV testing

The aim of this study was to determine whether there are meaningful subgroups with different types of sexual risk behaviors among youth experiencing homelessness and examine the associations between potential classes and other risk variables. A latent class analysis was used to identify classes of youth according to sexual risk behaviors and sexual assault. A two-class solution was found to be the best fit for the data–Lower and Higher Risk groups. The Higher Risk class had significantly higher levels of synthetic marijuana and alcohol use, mental health diagnoses, and were more likely to have been tested for HIV than the Lower Risk group. Youth were more likely to be in the Higher Risk group if they were cisgender female or lesbian, gay, bisexual, or questioning (LGBQ). Nearly all youth (10/11) who reported having HIV infection were in the Higher Risk group. The Lower Risk group were sexually active but had lower rates of risk behaviors and sexual assault. Youth who were not sexually active had the lowest rates of marijuana and alcohol use as well as HIV testing. Health and social service providers should be aware of the added risks for stress, mental distress, mental health diagnoses, and substance use among youth who also report higher risk sexual behaviors and treat as needed.
The effects of titanium nanoparticles on enzymatic and non-enzymatic biomarkers in female Wistar rats

Abstract Titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles (NPs) are widely used in industry, pharmacy, medicine, and food sectors. Therefore, this study deals with the effects of TiO2 NPs in female rats following oral administration in differing doses for 14 days (0, 0.5, 5, and 50 mg/kg b.w./d). The response of enzymatic biomarkers (Na,K-ATPase, Mg-ATPase, and AChE) was measured in the brain, kidney, and small intestine, while non-enzymatic biomarker levels, such as different forms of glutathione (GSH) and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARSs) were measured in the liver. The images of the tissues were obtained using a transmission electron microscope (TEM) to demonstrate TiO2 NP accumulation. Data showed that brain AChE activity decreased at all TiO2 NP doses, though brain ATPase activities increased. However, ATPase activities in the intestine and kidney did not change significantly. Levels of GSH forms did not change significantly, though there was a significant decrease in TBARS level at the highest NP dose. TEM images demonstrated that TiO2 NPs accumulated in a dose-dependent manner in the tissues. Data emphasized that the brain was the most sensitive organ against the effects of TiO2 NPs. This study suggests the need for further studies to evaluate better the toxic effects of TiO2 NPs.
Development of Debris Flow Impact Force Models Based on Flume Experiments for Design Criteria of Soil Erosion Control Dam

Soil erosion control dams are widely used as part of measures to reduce damage caused by debris flow all over the world. Engineering considerations are needed for proper design of erosion control dams, but in the Republic of Korea, the impact force of debris flow is not fully reflected in the current design criteria of the dam. Against this backdrop, this study was conducted to estimate the impact force of debris flow for the practical purpose of designing erosion control dam. Simulated flume experiments were performed to develop the relationship to estimate the flow velocity as well as the impact force of debris flow. Experimental results showed that increases both in sediment mixture volume and flume slope gradient led to an increase in flow velocity. Especially, it was found that as clay content increased gradually, the flume slope gradient had greater impact on the increase of flow velocity. Also, it was proved that the impact force of debris flow was well fitted to the hydrodynamic model as it showed linear correlation with the flow velocity. Then, the debris-flow velocity model was established based on the factor related to the debris-flow velocity. Finally, the dynamic model to estimate the impact force of debris flow was introduced utilizing correlations between the established debris-flow velocity model and Froude number. Both models which were developed with using statistically significant watershed characteristics succeeded in explaining the experiment results in a more accurate way compared to existing models. Therefore, it is highly expected that these models can be fully utilized to estimate impact force of debris flow which will be required to design erosion control dams in practical use through overcoming their identified limitations.
Financial Contagion in the Recent Financial Crisis: Evidence from the Romanian Capital Market

We use the wavelet analysis in order to investigate if financial contagion occurred between the US and the Romanian capital market in the beginning of the recent economic crisis. Moreover, we test presence of pure and fundamental contagion between the two markets using wavelet coherency analysis and maximal overlap discrete wavelet transform methodology. We find evidence of pure financial contagion between the two markets: during the sub-primes crisis period, the Lehman Brothers collapse and at the beginning of sovereign debt crisis. Furthermore, we find a general short-term increase in interdependence between the two markets in the ex-ante and ex-post Lehman brothers period. Meanwhile, the capital market from Romania and US were in perfect sync during 2007-2009 for high trading time-windows. This implies that the Romanian market was sensitive to short-term shock from the US market, which lead to a long-term fundamental contagion.
Effects of two debittering processes on the alkaloid content and quality characteristics of lupin (Lupinus mutabilis Sweet).

BACKGROUND The presence of quinolizidine alkaloids (QAs) in the species Lupinus mutabilis Sweet limits the expansion of its consumption and use, despite its high protein content. Therefore, the objective of this research was to determine the effect of two thermal treatments, aqueous (ATT) and saline (STT) on QAs and total protein contents, as well as on the texture (fracturability and hardness), the attributes of the visual perception Hue (H*), Luminosity (L*) and chromatism (C*) and grain size in three lupin varieties (INIAP-450, INIAP-451 and Criollo). In addition, the water consumption of each treatment was measured. RESULTS The debittering process with the ATT helped to concentrate the total nitrogen by 560 g kg-1 and decreased the grain hardness to 2037gf in the Criollo variety, while the chromatic parameters H* and C* increased in the three varieties. The STT was more efficient than the ATT in terms of the time required and the volume of water used to reduce the QAs to safe levels for consumption (2.5-3.5 g kg-1 ). The size of the grain increased to 4 times its original size; the luminosity L* decreased during cooking to a value of 41.49 in the Criollo variety and then increased to 57.42 during grain washing. CONCLUSIONS the STT was advisable for lupin debittering, although the extent of the effect was dependent on the variety. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Morphological and immunohistochemical characterization of angiogenic and apoptotic factors and the expression of thyroid receptors in the ovary of tilapia Oreochromis niloticus in captivity1

Santos F.C. , Silva J.F. , Boeloni J.N. , Teixeira E. , Turra E.M. , Serakides R. & Ocarino N.M. 2015. Morphological and immunohistochemical characterization of angiogenic and apoptotic factors and the expression of thyroid receptors in the ovary of tilapia Oreochromis niloticus in captivity. Pesquisa Veterinária Brasileira 35(4):371-376. Escola de Veterinária, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Av. Pres. Antônio Carlos 6627, Belo Horizonte, MG 31270-901, Brazil. E-mail: nataliaocarino@gmail.com Morphological and immunohistochemical characterization of angiogenic and apoptotic factors and the expression of thyroid receptors in the ovary of tilapia Oreochromis niloticus in captivity were studied. The morphological evaluation of the ovaries was performed by histological paraffin embedded and stained with HE. The immunohistochemical expressions of CDC47, VEGF, Flk-1, angiopoietin, Tie-2 and thyroid receptor (TRα) were performed by the technique of streptavidein-biotin-peroxidase. Apoptosis was assessed using the TUNEL kit. The relative expression of thyroid hormone receptors (TRα and TRβ) was assessed by RT-PCR real time. The nuclear expression of CDC47 increased with the stage of maturation of the oocyte and was observed in the follicle cells. Apoptotic bodies were observed in the follicular cells of atretic follicles and postovulatory follicles from the ovaries of 150g and 350g fish. Expression of VEGF and its receptor Flk-1 was also observed in the follicular cells, and the expression of both increased with the maturity of the oocyte, with a higher intensity observed in the full-grown follicle. The expression of angiopoietin and of its receptor (Tie 2) was discrete and moderate respectively. TRα expression was independent of follicular development. However, the 350 g tilapia exhibited higher expression of TRβ compared with the 50 g tilapia. We conclude that the proliferative activity and the expression of VEGF and its receptor increase with follicular maturation and that the TRs expression increases with ovarian maturity in tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus).