Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Surface Molecularly Imprinted Polymer Core–Shell Particles

Core–shell molecularly imprinted polymers (CS‐MIPs) have been prepared by aqueous emulsion polymerization using water‐soluble template molecules. An amphiphilic binding monomer, oleyl phenyl hydrogen phosphate and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate were used in the formation of highly crosslinked surfaces around divinyl benzene crosslinked polystyrene core colloids. Evidence was obtained by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) for a change in surface morphology when the polymer shell was formed in the presence of a template. The caffeine‐imprinted polymers were shown to bind caffeine in preference to theophylline from an equimolar mixture of the compounds in aqueous solution at pH 7.0, whilst concentration–binding (Scatchard) curves revealed the presence of two populations of binding sites in aqueous phosphate buffer at pH 8.0 for caffeine and theophylline. Similar studies were also carried out for (S)‐propranolol and (S)‐atenolol at pH 5.5, which also revealed the presence of two populations of binding sites for core–shell particles imprinted with these compounds. (S)‐Propranolol was selectively removed from a solution of (S)‐propranolol and (S)‐atenolol by both of the CS‐MIPs, whereas the non‐imprinted particle showed no selectivity for either component.
Pneumomediastinum and subcutaneous emphysema as complication in COVID-19 patient with high CT severity score: Two case reports

Abstract Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused due to infection by severe acute respiratory syndrome virus coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). It is highly infective virus resulting in recent on-going pandemic and causing multisystem involvement predominantly affecting respiratory system. The most common presenting symptoms are fever, dry cough and breathlessness. The role of Computerized tomography (CT) is crucial especially in those patient having negative (rRT-PCR) but with high clinical suspicion, for prognosis and follow up. CT imaging findings mainly consists of multiple patchy bilateral ground-glass opacity (GGO) with or without consolidation and interlobular septal thickening with a peripheral or posterior distribution, mainly involving the lower lobes, depending upon the stage of disease. We present two case report of high CT severity score COVID-19 infection on non-invasive ventilation (NIV) having rare complication of pneumomediastinum and subcutaneous emphysema apart from typical COVID pattern lung findings during their course of admission in the hospital.
Case Management on the Front Lines of COVID-19

Purpose: Since the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), and the disease known as COVID-19, case management has emerged as a critical intervention in the treatment of cases, particularly for patients with severe symptoms and medical complications. In addition, case managers have been on the front lines of the response across the health care spectrum to reduce risks of contagion, including among health care workers. The purpose of this article is to discuss the case management response, highlighting the importance of individual care plans to provide access to the right care and treatment at the right time to address both the consequences of the disease and patient comorbidities. Primary Practice Settings: The COVID-19 response spans the full continuum of health and human services, including acute care, subacute care, workers' compensation (especially catastrophic case management), home health, primary care, and community-based care. Implications for Case Management Practice: From the earliest days of the pandemic, case managers have assumed an important role on the front lines of the medical response to COVID-19, ensuring that procedures are in place for managing a range of patients: those who were symptomatic but able to self-isolate and care for themselves at home; those who had serious symptoms and needed to be hospitalized; and those who were asymptomatic and needed to be educated about the importance of self-isolating. Across the care spectrum, individualized responses to the clinical and psychosocial needs of patients with COVID-19 in acute care, subacute care, home health, and other outpatient settings have been guided by the well-established case management process of screening, assessing, planning, implementing, following up, transitioning, and evaluating. In addition, professional case managers are guided by values such as advocacy, ensuring access to the right care and treatment at the right time; autonomy, respecting the right to self-determination; and justice, promoting fairness and equity in access to resources and treatment. The value of justice also addresses the sobering reality that people from racial and ethnic minority groups are at an increased risk of getting sick and dying from COVID-19. Going forward, case management will continue to play a major role in supporting patients with COVID-19, in both inpatient and outpatient settings, with telephonic follow-up and greater use of telehealth.
TRPV4 channel activation induces the transition of venous and arterial endothelial cells toward a pro‐inflammatory phenotype

The Transient Receptor Potential Vanilloid 4 (TRPV4) of endothelial cells contributes to many important functions including the regulation of Ca2+ homeostasis, cell volume, endothelial barrier permeability, and smooth muscle tone. However, its role in the transition of endothelial cells toward a pro‐inflammatory phenotype has not been studied so far. Using both arterial and venous endothelial cells, we first show that the pharmacological activation of TRPV4 channels with GSK1016790A, a potent TRPV4 agonist, triggers robust and sustained Ca2+ increases, which are blocked by both TRPV4 antagonists HC067047 and RN9893. TRPV4 activation also triggers the actin cytoskeleton and adherens junction (VE‐Cadherin) rearrangement in both arterial and venous endothelial cells and leads to rapid decreases of trans‐endothelial electrical resistance. In addition to its effect on endothelial barrier integrity, TRPV4 activation selectively increases ICAM‐1 surface expression in arterial and venous endothelial cells, due to the stimulation of ICAM‐1 gene expression through the NF‐κB transcription factor. TRPV4 channel activation also induced apoptosis of venous and arterial endothelial cells, while TRPV4 blockade reduced apoptosis, even in the absence of TRPV4 activation. As altered barrier integrity, increased adhesion molecule expression and apoptosis are hallmarks of the pro‐inflammatory state of endothelial cells, our results indicate that TRPV4 channel activity can induce the transition of both venous and arterial endothelial cells toward a pro‐inflammatory phenotype.
Single-cell visualization of mir-9a and Senseless co-expression during Drosophila melanogaster embryonic and larval peripheral nervous system development

Abstract The Drosophila melanogaster peripheral nervous system (PNS) comprises the sensory organs that allow the fly to detect environmental factors such as temperature and pressure. PNS development is a highly specified process where each sensilla originates from a single sensory organ precursor (SOP) cell. One of the major genetic orchestrators of PNS development is Senseless, which encodes a zinc finger transcription factor (Sens). Sens is both necessary and sufficient for SOP differentiation. Senseless expression and SOP number are regulated by the microRNA miR-9a. However, the reciprocal dynamics of Senseless and miR-9a are still obscure. By coupling single-molecule FISH with immunofluorescence, we are able to visualize transcription of the mir-9a locus and expression of Sens simultaneously. During embryogenesis, we show that the expression of mir-9a in SOP cells is rapidly lost as Senseless expression increases. However, this mutually exclusive expression pattern is not observed in the third instar imaginal wing disc, where some Senseless-expressing cells show active sites of mir-9a transcription. These data challenge and extend previous models of Senseless regulation and show complex co-expression dynamics between mir-9a and Senseless. The differences in this dynamic relationship between embryonic and larval PNS development suggest a possible switch in miR-9a function. Our work brings single-cell resolution to the understanding of dynamic regulation of PNS development by Senseless and miR-9a.
Comparative Studies on Oils from Some Common Plant Seeds in Nigeria

Oil were extracted from seeds of Nigerian plants Pentaclethra macrophylla, Treculia africana, persea gratesima and Telferia occidentalis using n-hexane and their physicochemical properties compared with oils from seed of Cocos nucifera. Percentage oil yield were 20.80, 18.00, 14.00, 18.00 for P. macrophylla. T. africana, P. gratesima and T. occidentalis respectively while the value for C. nucifera seed oil is 32.00. All the five seed oil were odourless and at room temperature liquids. Specific gravity of the seed oils ranged from 0.81-0.90 while peroxide value for all the oil seed were less than 6.00. Saponification values were as low as 106.60 in P. gratesima and as high as 246.00 in C. nucifera seed oils. Iodine values were between 9.60 and 52.40 in the extracts. These results suggest that oil seeds examined may be viable source of oil going by their oil yield. The studied characteristics of all oil extracts in most cases compared favourably with C. nucifera seed oil which is presently used for both domestic and industrial purposes in Nigeria.
Structure of Caribbean Ciguatoxin Isolated from Caranx latus

Caribbean ciguatoxins (C-CTXs) are responsible for the widespread occurrence of ciguatera in the Caribbean Sea. The structure and configuration of C-CTX-1 (1), the major ciguatoxin isolated from the horse-eye jack (Caranx latus), has been determined from DQF-COSY, E-COSY, TOCSY, NOESY, ROESY, ge-HSQC, and HMQC experiments performed at 750 MHz and 500 MHz on a 0.13 μmol sample. C-CTX-1 ([M + H]+ m/z 1141.6 Da, molecular formula C62H92O19) has a ciguatoxin/brevetoxin ladder structure comprising 14 trans-fused, ether-linked rings (7/6/6/7/8/9/7/6/8/6/7/6/7/6) assembled from 6 protonated fragments. The relative stereochemistry and ring configuration of 1 was determined from an analysis of coupling constant and NOE data. Like ciguatoxins in the Pacific Ocean (P-CTX), C-CTX-1 possesses a flexible nine-membered ring which may be a conserved feature among ciguatoxins. However, C-CTX-1 has a longer contiguous carbon backbone (57 vs 55 carbons for P-CTX-1), one extra ring, and a hemiketal in ring N but no spiroketa.
Brain-derived CCR5 Contributes to Neuroprotection and Brain Repair after Experimental Stroke

Chemokine (C-C motif) receptor 5 (CCR5) is expressed not only in the immune cells but also in cerebral cells such as neurons, glia, and vascular cells. Stroke triggers high expression of CCR5 in the brain. However, the role of CCR5 in stroke remains unclear. In this study, using bone marrow chimeras we have determined the involvement of brain-derived or bone marrow-derived CCR5 in neuroprotection and brain repair after experimental stroke. CCR5-/- mice that received either wild-type (WT) or CCR5-/- bone marrow transplantation showed larger infarction sizes than the WT mice that received either WT or CCR5-/- bone marrow transplantation in both the acute (48h) and subacute (2 months) phases after cerebral cortical ischemia, suggesting that the lack of CCR5 in the brain leads to severe brain damage after stroke. However, the lack of CCR5 in the bone marrow-derived cells did not affect infarction size. The impairments of somatosensory-motor function and motor coordination were exacerbated in the mice lacking CCR5 in the brain. At 2 months post-stroke, increased degenerative neurons, decreased dendrites and synapses, decreased Iba1+ microglia/ macrophages, reduced myelination and CNPase+ oligodendrocytes in the peri-infarct cortex were observed in the mice lacking CCR5 in the brain. These pathological changes are significantly correlated with the increased infarction size and exacerbated neurological deficits. These data suggest that brain-derived CCR5 plays a key role in neuroprotection and brain repair in the subacute phase of stroke. This study reveals a novel role of CCR5 in stroke, which sheds new light on post-stroke pathomechanism.
Oligodendrocyte precursor cell maturation: role of adenosine receptors

Oligodendrocyte-formed myelin sheaths allow fast synaptic transmission in the brain and their degeneration leads to demyelinating diseases such as multiple sclerosis. Remyelination requires the differentiation of oligodendrocyte progenitor cells into mature oligodendrocytes but, in chronic neurodegenerative disorders, remyelination fails due to adverse environment. Therefore, a strategy to prompt oligodendrocyte progenitor cell differentiation towards myelinating oligodendrocytes is required. The neuromodulator adenosine, and its receptors (A1, A2A, A2B and A3 receptors: A1R, A2AR, A2BR and A3R), are crucial mediators in remyelination processes. It is known that A1Rs facilitate oligodendrocyte progenitor cell maturation and migration whereas the A3Rs initiates apoptosis in oligodendrocyte progenitor cells. Our group of research contributed to the field by demonstrating that A2AR and A2BR inhibit oligodendrocyte progenitor cell maturation by reducing voltage-dependent K+ currents necessary for cell differentiation. The present review summarizes the possible role of adenosine receptor ligands as potential therapeutic targets in demyelinating pathologies such as multiple sclerosis.
Association Between Complete Blood Count Components and Intrahepatic Cholestasis of Pregnancy

Objective Some components of the routine complete blood count (CBC) and their ratios, such as neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) have been found to be sensitive biomarkers of preeclampsia and other inflammatory obstetric conditions. We wanted to evaluate whether they can be associated with intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP). Materials and Methods We conducted a retrospective case-control study between May 1, 2015 and July 1, 2018. Cases were considered pregnancies with ICP and control healthy pregnancies. Cases and controls were matched for age, parity, and race. We compared the levels of white blood cells (WBC), hemoglobin, neutrophils, lymphocytes, NLR, PLR, platelets, red cell distribution width (RDW), and mean platelet volume (MPV) in the first and third trimesters between cases and controls. In addition, we compared the same components in the third trimester between patients with mild (serum total bile acid (TBA) of 10 - 40 µmols/L) and severe (TBA > 40 µmols/L) ICP. Results There were 33 patients with ICP and 33 controls. There were no significant differences between the two groups in the first trimester. WBC, neutrophil count, and NLR were decreased in women with ICP in the third trimester compared to controls. MPV was significantly higher in the third trimester of patients with ICP compared to controls. RDW was lower in mild ICP compared to severe ICP in the third trimester. Conclusion Decreased WBC, neutrophil, NLR, and MPV values are associated with ICP and may be useful additions to the diagnostic algorithm for ICP. Larger studies are needed to assess the responsible underlying molecular pathogenic mechanisms.
Yangxue Jiedu Fang Ameliorates Psoriasis by Regulating Vascular Regression via Survivin/PI3K/Akt Pathway

Background Psoriasis (PA) is a chronic autoimmune disease of the skin that adversely affects patients' quality of life. Yangxue Jiedu Fang (YXJD) has been used for decades to treat psoriasis in China. However, its antipsoriatic mechanisms are still poorly understood. In this study, we explored the effects of YXJD on angiogenesis and apoptosis of microvessels in PA, the underlying mechanisms in HUVEC cells transfected by Survivin overexpression plasmid and in a mouse model of imiquimod-induced psoriasis and the relationship between VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor) and Survivin. Methods A BALB/c mouse model of imiquimod- (IMQ-) induced PA was established, and the mice were treated with YXJD. Cell viability was assessed by CCK8 assay. Apoptosis was detected by annexin V–FITC/PI double-staining and caspase-3 assays. The PI3K/Akt/β-catenin pathway was analyzed by western blotting, ELISA, and immunochemical analysis. Results YXJD ameliorated symptoms and psoriasis area and severity index (PASI) scores and also reduced the number of microvessels, as determined by the microvessel density (MVD). The expression of apoptotic protein Survivin in endothelial cells, autophagy-related proteins p62, and angiogenic proteins VEGF was inhibited by YXJD, and the repressed expression of LC3II/I increased by YXJD. The proteins related to the PI3K/Akt pathway and β-catenin expression and the nuclear entry of β-catenin were reduced in IMQ-induced PA mice treated with YXJD. In HUVEC cells transfected by Survivin overexpression plasmid, we observed YXJD regulated the expression of Survivin, LC3II/I, and p62, VEGF, and PI3K/Akt pathway-relative proteins and the nuclear entry of β-catenin. Conclusions YXJD inhibited the expression of Survivin via PI3K/Akt pathway to adjust apoptosis, autophagy, and angiogenesis of microvessels and thus improve the vascular sustainability in psoriasis. YXJD may represent a new direction of drug research and development for immunomodulatory therapy for psoriasis.
Enhancing Electricity Meters with Smart Functionality Using Metering System with Optical Sensors

—The article presents on-going work on a system, called OneMeter 2.0, that uses energy-efﬁcient beacons with optical sensors to create an advanced metering infrastructure. The system allows the use of the current, non-smart electricity meters with IEC 65056-21 optical ports to create an intelligent metering system. The core components of the system are described, such as a beacon with an optical sensor, a mobile application, and a data platform. The status of the project is presented, including the number of test installations and initial assessment of the beacon’s energy efﬁciency. Sample visualizations originating from the data analytics platform are shown and explained.
Cell-Free Synthesis of a High Molecular Weight Protein Using ExiProgen™ Automated Protein Synthesis System

Introduction Cell-free protein synthesis (in vitro protein transcription and translation) is a common method to synthesize a desired protein in a rapid and efficient manner. It is accomplished by adding template DNA (containing the coding region of the protein of interest) into a single tube which contains cell extracts and other ingredients essential for protein synthesis. Because this method does not require a separate cell line selection step, it is able to yield diverse types of protein in a very short period of time when compared to in vivo protein expression. Hence, cell-free protein synthesis has potential advantages in the high-throughput synthesis of proteins (1-3). ExiProgen protein synthesis system applies automation to in vitro protein expression and magnetic bead-based His-Tag affinity purification and yields highly-pure proteins. In vitro protein synthesis using ExiProgen (Bioneer, Cat. No. A-5041) has a simple workflow; template DNA preparation, loading template DNA into ExiProgen EC1 protein synthesis kit (Bioneer, Cat. No. K-7300), loading the kit components onto the deck of ExiProgen, and starting the system. ExiProgen EC1 protein synthesis kit contains optimized E. coli extract which has T7 RNA polymerase and ribosomes, all other required components such as amino acids and an energy source for effective and efficient in vitro transcription and translation. The kit also contains Ni-NTA magnetic beads for purification of expressed his-tagged proteins. ExiProgen EC1 protein synthesis kit has 16 reaction wells so that up to 16 different kinds of highly pure proteins can be obtained at the same time within 6 hours of adding template DNA which can be in the form of a plasmid or linear PCR products. In this study, we synthesized Bacillus megaterium BM3 protein in vitro using ExiProgen protein synthesis system to demonstrate ExiProgen’s capability to automatically express and purify proteins as large as 117 kDa.
Addressing Fall Risk From the Emergency Department

The Research to Practice column focuses on improving the research critique skills of emergency nurses and advanced practice providers to assist with the translation of research into practice. In this issue, we discuss the findings of a secondary data analysis conducted by K. Davenport, M. Alazemi, J. Sri-On, and S. Liu (2020) that examined emergency department provider identification of modifiable risk factors when assessing older adults who present after a fall. The results found that providers frequently miss identifying and intervening in modifiable risk factors that contribute to adverse outcomes and readmissions following discharge. The results suggest future research needs and have implications for emergency nurse practitioner educational preparation.
CoBigICP: Robust and Precise Point Set Registration using Correntropy Metrics and Bidirectional Correspondence

In this paper, we propose a novel probabilistic variant of iterative closest point (ICP) dubbed as CoBigICP. The method leverages both local geometrical information and global noise characteristics. Locally, the 3D structure of both target and source clouds are incorporated into the objective function through bidirectional correspondence. Globally, error metric of correntropy is introduced as noise model to resist outliers. Importantly, the close resemblance between normal-distributions transform (NDT) and correntropy is revealed. To ease the minimization step, an on-manifold parameterization of the special Euclidean group is proposed. Extensive experiments validate that CoBigICP outperforms several well-known and state-of-the-art methods.
Prevalence of knee osteoarthritis, its determinants, and impact on the quality of life in elderly persons in rural Ballabgarh, Haryana

Background: Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common type of arthritis and a very common disease of elderly. It is one of the leading causes of disability. The present study was conducted to estimate the burden of the knee OA among rural elderly. Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 500 randomly selected elderly resident of rural Ballabgarh, Haryana. A semi-structured interview schedule was used by a trained investigator for face-to-face interview, clinical examination of knee using American College of Rheumatology criteria, and quality of life assessment using WHOQOL-BREF. Results: Almost two-third of the participants among 454 elderly recruited, suffered from knee OA (292, 64.3%) had knee OA. History of a knee injury, a family history of knee pain, current physical activity and smoking status were found to be significantly associated with knee OA, in multivariate logistic regression model. Elderly suffering from knee OA had significantly lower quality-of-life scores contrasted to those not (p-value < 0.001). The scores were significantly lower for all the domains (P-value <0.001) among elderly suffering with the knee OA, with the maximum effect seen in psychological, and physical domain. Conclusion: Rural elderly of Ballabgarh, Haryana, had a high burden of knee OA. Elderly suffering from knee OA had significantly lower perception of their quality of life most affected is the psychological and physical domains of quality of life.