Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Innate Immune Evasion by Human Respiratory RNA Viruses

The impact of respiratory virus infections on the health of children and adults can be very significant. Yet, in contrast to most other childhood infections as well as other viral and bacterial diseases, prophylactic vaccines or effective antiviral treatments against viral respiratory infections are either still not available, or provide only limited protection. Given the widespread prevalence, a general lack of natural sterilizing immunity, and/or high morbidity and lethality rates of diseases caused by influenza, respiratory syncytial virus, coronaviruses, and rhinoviruses, this difficult situation is a genuine societal challenge. A thorough understanding of the virus-host interactions during these respiratory infections will most probably be pivotal to ultimately meet these challenges. This review attempts to provide a comparative overview of the knowledge about an important part of the interaction between respiratory viruses and their host: the arms race between host innate immunity and viral innate immune evasion. Many, if not all, viruses, including the respiratory viruses listed above, suppress innate immune responses to gain a window of opportunity for efficient virus replication and setting-up of the infection. The consequences for the host’s immune response are that it is often incomplete, delayed or diminished, or displays overly strong induction (after the delay) that may cause tissue damage. The affected innate immune response also impacts subsequent adaptive responses, and therefore viral innate immune evasion often undermines fully protective immunity. In this review, innate immune responses relevant for respiratory viruses with an RNA genome will briefly be summarized, and viral innate immune evasion based on shielding viral RNA species away from cellular innate immune sensors will be discussed from different angles. Subsequently, viral enzymatic activities that suppress innate immune responses will be discussed, including activities causing host shut-off and manipulation of stress granule formation. Furthermore, viral protease-mediated immune evasion and viral manipulation of the ubiquitin system will be addressed. Finally, perspectives for use of the reviewed knowledge for the development of novel antiviral strategies will be sketched.
Incidence and characteristics of metabolic syndrome in patients of the National Cancer Institute of Mexico.

OBJECTIVE the exact prevalence of obesity in Mexico is not well known and varies between sources, but more than 30% of Mexico's population are obese. Obesity is associated with several diseases such as metabolic syndrome; the latter, along with cancer, have become public health concerns worldwide, and their association has been widely studied in developed countries. The aim of this study was to identify the overall prevalence of metabolic syndrome and to describe its characteristics among first-time cancer patients at a referral center in Mexico. METHODS a prospective, observational, cohort study of first-time patients of the National Cancer Institute of Mexico in the period of September 2016-2017. We identified 1,165 first-time patients, and 316 patients with known or recently diagnosed metabolic syndrome were included. RESULTS median age was 55 years old and most were female (81%). The most frequent tumors were breast, gynecological, and hematological growths. Obesity (class 1-3) and abnormal glucose and/or previous DM diagnosis were mostly observed in patients with skin and soft tissue tumors; dyslipidemia, high triglycerides, and/or low HDL-cholesterol were mostly observed in patients with gastrointestinal tumors. CONCLUSION the prevalence of metabolic syndrome among first-time cancer patients was 27%. As obesity and cancer are of public concern in Mexico, the implementation of preventive strategies for MS patients, focusing on the first level of care during early stages in order to reduce the risk of cancer, is needed.
The Potential Role of Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy as a Clinical Biomarker in Schizophrenia.

Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a recently developed technique that can measure hemoglobin changes in the cerebral cortex, and fNIRS-based research in psychiatry has been progressing rapidly. fNIRS is advantageous in its noninvasiveness, ease of administering, tolerance of small movements, inexpensiveness, strong signal correlations with fMRI signals, and in providing imaging with excellent time resolution and moderate spatial resolution. However, fNIRS has several disadvantages such as low spatial resolution and shallower measurements in brain regions compared with other functional neuroimaging techniques (e.g. functional magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission tomography). Therefore, fNIRS may be a candidate instrument for clinical use in psychiatry, as it can measure brain activity in a clinical setting. Moreover, previous studies have demonstrated that altered brain activity in the prefrontal cortex is associated with clinical symptoms and functional outcomes in patients with schizophrenia, suggesting fNIRS could be used as a potential biomarker. Future studies aimed at exploring fNIRS differences in different clinical stages, longitudinal changes, medication effects, variations during different cognitive task paradigms, cross-cultural comparisons, and applying more delicate statistical analytic methodologies are warranted to develop more accurate biomarkers that can be applied in clinical practice for differential diagnosis, monitoring symptoms, predicting functional outcomes, and the personalized decision regarding treatment options in patients with schizophrenia.
Elucidating the neurophysiology of local vibration: changes in neuromodulatory drive rather than presynaptic inhibition?

Jakob Škarabot , Ricardo N. O. Mesquita and Paul Ansdell School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Loughborough University, Loughborough, UK Centre for Exercise and Sport Science Research (CESSR), School of Medical and Health Sciences, Edith Cowan University, Joondalup, Australia Department of Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Health & Life Sciences, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
Deep learning for stage prediction in neuroblastoma using gene expression data

Neuroblastoma is a major cause of cancer death in early childhood, and its timely and correct diagnosis is critical. Gene expression datasets have recently been considered as a powerful tool for cancer diagnosis and subtype classification. However, no attempts have yet been made to apply deep learning using gene expression to neuroblastoma classification, although deep learning has been applied to cancer diagnosis using image data. Taking the International Neuroblastoma Staging System stages as multiple classes, we designed a deep neural network using the gene expression patterns and stages of neuroblastoma patients. Despite a small patient population (n = 280), stage 1 and 4 patients were well distinguished. If it is possible to replicate this approach in a larger population, deep learning could play an important role in neuroblastoma staging.
Costs of alternative treatments for incomplete abortion

Unsafely performed abortion is one of the five leading causes of maternal deaths worldwide. Many women who have undergone unsafe abortions enter the healthcare system to seek help for the resulting complications, including incomplete abortion. This human and financial cost of this health problem is tremendous, especially in the developing world. This study examined the potential for reducing costs to healthcare systems by changing the standard method of treatment for incomplete abortion. Vacuum aspiration (VA) has been shown to be safer than dilation and curettage (DC the World Health Organization includes VA as an essential service at the first referral level. The technique most commonly used for treating first-trimester incomplete abortion in developing countries, however, is D&C. This study examined the hypothesis that use of manual vacuum aspiration (MVA) - a variation of VA - would be less costly than D&C and thus advantageous to healthcare systems with limited resources. The purpose of the study was to identify and, where possible, to explain the factors that contributed to cost differences between MVA and D&C for treatment of first-trimester incomplete abortion. To achieve this objective, researchers observed patient management and documented resource use at hospital sites in Ecuador, Kenya, and Mexico. In most cases, treatment with MVA required a shorter patient stay and fewer hospital resources than D&C, as the two techniques were practiced at the various study sites. The policy decision to adopt MVA, supported by procurement of instruments and incorporation of training in its use, is the chief prerequisite for achieving these improvements. But the full advantages of MVA are realized only if it is introduced in conjunction with certain changes in patient-management practices, such as offering outpatient treatment of incomplete abortion. Further, decentralizing MVA services can maximize the benefits of the technique, facilitating (hospitals'and) healthcare systems'efforts to decrease the cost of delivery service and improve the quality of care.
The effect of a hiding box on stress levels and body weight in Dutch shelter cats; a randomized controlled trial

While staying in an animal shelter, cats may suffer from chronic stress which impairs their health and welfare. Providing opportunities to hide can significantly reduce behavioural stress in cats, but confirmation with physical parameters is needed. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the effect of a hiding box on behavioural stress levels (scored by means of the Cat-Stress-Score) and a physical parameter, namely body weight, during the first 12 days in quarantine for cats newly arrived cats at a Dutch animal shelter. Twenty-three cats between 1 and 10 years of age were randomly divided between the experimental (N = 12) and control group (N = 11) with and without a hiding box. Stress levels were assessed on days 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 9 and 12 according to the non-invasive Cat-Stress-Score (CSS). Body weights were measured on days 0, 7 and 12. Finally, adoption rates and length of stay (LOS) were determined. Major findings of the study are: (1) the mean Cat-Stress-Score decreased with time for all cats, but cats with a hiding box showed a significant faster decrease in the CSS, reaching a lower CSS-steady state seven days earlier than the control group; (2) nearly all cats in both groups lost significant body weight during the first two weeks; (3) hiding boxes did not significantly influence weight loss; (4) no differences were found in the adoption rates and the LOS between both groups. Hiding enrichment reduces behavioural stress in shelter cats during quarantine situations and can therefore be a relatively simple aid to shelter adaptation. It offers no prevention however against feline weight loss, which indicates a serious health risk for shelter cats.
Profiling miRNA expression in photo-thermo-sensitive male genic sterility line (PTGMS) PA64S under high and low temperature

ABSTRACT Peiai64S (PA64S) is a photo-thermo-sensitive genic male sterile line (PTGMS), with wide application in hybrid seed production in rice (Oryza sativa L.). Micro-RNAs are 21–24 nt, endogenously expressed small RNAs that have been characterized in various developmental stages of rice, but none have been studied with respect to the regulation of TGMS in rice. Here, we employed high-throughput sequencing to identify expression profiles of miRNAs in the anthers of PA64S at high (PA64S-H) and low temperature (PA64S-L). Two small RNA libraries from PA64S-H and PA64-L anthers were sequenced, and 263 known and 321 novel candidate miRNAs were identified. Based on the number of sequencing reads, a total of 133 known miRNAs were found to be differentially expressed between PA64S-H and PA64S-L. Target prediction showed that the target genes encode MYB and TCP transcription factors, and bHLH proteins. These target genes are related to pollen development and male sterility, suggesting that miRNA/targets may play roles in regulating TGMS in rice. Further, starch and sucrose metabolism pathways, sphingolipid metabolism, arginine and proline metabolism, and plant hormone signal transduction pathways were enriched by KEGG pathway annotation. These findings contribute to our understanding of the role of miRNAs during anther development and TGMS occurrence in rice.
When Do People Verify and Share Health Rumors on Social Media? The Effects of Message Importance, Health Anxiety, and Health Literacy

This study explores the roles of perceived message importance, health anxiety, and health literacy in the relationship between message factors (message label and message valence) and behavioral intentions for rumor verification and sharing. 660 Twitter users responded to unverified information regarding the influenza vaccine. A 3 (label: none vs. news vs. rumor) × 2 (valence: positive vs. negative) online semi-experiment, with a survey to measure health anxiety and health literacy, showed the following results: First, perceived message importance mediated the relationship between message factors and behavioral intentions: only in the condition of the negative message, participants considered a news-labeled message more important than a rumor–labeled or a no-label message. Perceived message importance was associated with intentions to verify and share the message. Second, health anxiety interacted with perceived message importance only when predicting an intention to share the message. Last, healthy literacy interacted with perceived message importance when predicting intentions to both verify and share the message. The results will provide implications for health communication research and practices, especially on managing and controlling rumor dissemination on social media.
Predictive values of body mass index and waist circumference for risk factors of certain related diseases in Chinese adults: study on optimal cut‐off points of body mass index and waist circumference in Chinese adults

For prevention of obesity in the Chinese population, it is necessary to define the optimal range of healthy weight and the appropriate cut-off points of body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference for Chinese adults. The Working Group on Obesity in China under the support of the International Life Sciences Institute Focal Point in China organized a meta-analysis on the relationship between BMI, waist circumference and risk factors of related chronic diseases (e.g., high diabetes, diabetes mellitus, and lipoprotein disorders). Thirteen population studies in all met the criteria for enrolment, with data of 239 972 adults (20−70 years of age) surveyed in the 1990s. Data on waist circumference was available for 111 411 persons, and data on serum lipids and glucose were available for more than 80 000. The study populations were located in 21 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions in mainland China as well as in Taiwan. Each enrolled study provided data according to a common protocol and uniform format. The Center for Data Management in the Department of Epidemiology, Fu Wai Hospital, was responsible for the statistical analysis. The prevalence of hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia and clustering of risk factors all increased with increasing levels of BMI or waist circumference. A BMI of 24 with best sensitivity and specificity for identification of the risk factors was recommended as the cut-off point for overweight; a BMI of 28, which may identify the risk factors with specificity around 90%, was recommended as the cut-off point for obesity. A waist circumference over 85 cm for men and over 80 cm for women were recommended as the cut-off points for central obesity. Analysis of a population-attributable risk percentage illustrated that reducing the BMI to the normal range (<24) could prevent 45−50% of the clustering of risk factors. Treatment of obese persons (BMI = 28) with drugs could prevent 15−17% of clustering of risk factors. When waist circumference is controlled at under 85 cm for men and under 80 cm for women, it could prevent 47−58% of clustering of risk factors. Based on these guidelines, a classification of overweight and obesity for Chinese adults is recommended.
New prospects in the analysis of inequalities in health: a measurement of health encompassing several dimensions of health

This paper develops an innovative method of constructing a concrete measure of health by taking into account individual health information. Using individual survey data from the 2002 IRDES Health and Health Insurance Survey, we propose a measurement of health based on the number of diseases and their respective severity level. The construction relies on a latent variable regression model explaining self-assessed health and controlling various social and health individual characteristics. We compare this construction to other methods proposed in literature for the measurement of health. Moreover, we show how the health index allows to compare distributions of health among di®erent populations and to evaluate inequalities in health in France by using stochastic dominance at first-order.
Design Oriented Analysis of Discrete-Time Current Regulator Design for Low Carrier Ratio Sensorless High-Speed Permanent Magnet Synchronous Machine Drives

High speed permanent magnet synchronous machines (HSPMSMs) are evolving rapidly due to their high-power density, high efficiency and wide speed range. However, the rated frequency often exceeds 1kHz while the switching frequency of conventional Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT) is generally around 10kHz, resulting in a low carrier ratio (carrier frequency/operating frequency), even < 10 with significant control delay. This leads to severe inverter output voltage phase error, reducing the dynamic performance of the system. It also exacerbates dq-axis cross coupling, making standard current regulators ineffective. In general, low carrier ratio can degrade the performance and stability of the motor drive system. This paper investigates these issues with different design methods and current regulator configurations. The discrete-time domain HSPMSM model is developed that includes the delay effects associated with digital implementation and pulse width modulation (PWM). This model is then used to design a discrete-time domain deadbeat controller that demonstrates improved response compared with other regulators studied. Simulation and experimental results using a 380V, 14krpm HSPMSM and 9kHz switching frequency are provided to compare performance, stability, and robustness of the current regulators analyzed. It is demonstrated that the steady-state angle error is nearly zero and the error under high-speed transient dynamics is within 1°, showing good parameters robustness under ±30% stator inductance and ±50% stator resistance variations.
The Impact of Inhaled Ambient Ultrafine Particulate Matter on Developing Brain: Potential Importance of Elemental Contaminants

Epidemiological studies report associations between air pollution (AP) exposures and several neurodevelopmental disorders including autism, attention deficit disorder, and cognitive delays. Our studies in mice of postnatal (human third trimester brain equivalent) exposures to concentrated ambient ultrafine particles (CAPs) provide biological plausibility for these associations, producing numerous neuropathological and behavioral features of these disorders, including male-biased vulnerability. These findings raise questions about the specific components of AP that underlie its neurotoxicity, which our studies suggest could involve trace elements as candidate neurotoxicants. X-ray fluorescence analyses of CAP chamber filters confirm contamination of AP exposures by multiple elements, including iron (Fe) and sulfur (S). Correspondingly, laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry of brains of male mice indicates marked postexposure elevations of Fe and S and other elements. Elevations of brain Fe and S in particular are consistent with potential ferroptotic, oxidative stress, and altered antioxidant capacity-based mechanisms of CAPs-induced neurotoxicity, supported by observations of increased serum oxidized glutathione and increased neuronal cell death in nucleus accumbens with no corresponding significant increase in caspase-3, in male brains following postnatal CAP exposures. Understanding the role of trace element contaminants of particulate matter AP as a source of neurotoxicity is critical for public health protection.
Functional Loss of ATRX and TERC Activates Alternative Lengthening of Telomeres (ALT) in LAPC4 Prostate Cancer Cells

A key hallmark of cancer, unlimited replication, requires cancer cells to evade both replicative senescence and potentially lethal chromosomal instability induced by telomere dysfunction. The majority of cancers overcome these critical barriers by upregulating telomerase, a telomere-specific reverse transcriptase. However, a subset of cancers maintains telomere lengths by the telomerase-independent Alternative Lengthening of Telomeres (ALT) pathway. The presence of ALT is strongly associated with recurrent cancer-specific somatic inactivating mutations in the ATRX-DAXX chromatin-remodeling complex. Here, we generate an ALT-positive adenocarcinoma cell line following functional inactivation of ATRX and telomerase in a telomerase-positive adenocarcinoma cell line. Inactivating mutations in ATRX were introduced using CRISPR-cas9 nickase into two prostate cancer cell lines, LAPC-4 (derived from a lymph node metastasis) and CWR22Rv1 (sourced from a xenograft established from a primary prostate cancer). In LAPC-4, but not CWR22Rv1, abolishing ATRX was sufficient to induce multiple ALT-associated hallmarks, including the presence of ALT-associated promyelocytic leukemia bodies (APB), extrachromosomal telomere C-circles, and dramatic telomere length heterogeneity. However, telomerase activity was still present in these ATRXKO cells. Telomerase activity was subsequently crippled in these LAPC-4 ATRXKO cells by introducing mutations in the TERC locus, the essential RNA component of telomerase. These LAPC-4 ATRXKO TERCmut cells continued to proliferate long-term and retained ALT-associated hallmarks, thereby demonstrating their reliance on the ALT mechanism for telomere maintenance. Implications: These prostate cancer cell line models provide a unique system to explore the distinct molecular alterations that occur upon induction of ALT, and may be useful tools to screen for ALT-specific therapies.