Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Salivary cortisol testing: preanalytic and analytic aspects.

Salivary cortisol assay, described for the first time almost forty years ago, has not been expanding until the last decade. Its simplicity, non-invasiveness and the easy repetition of sampling make it an analytical matrix of interest. Since the publication of the recommendations of the American endocrinology society in 2008, salivary cortisol is recognized as one of the three main tests to screen for Cushing's syndrome. In addition, salivary cortisone, the major metabolite of salivary cortisol, still represents a severe potential interferent but could also be a complementary analyte for indications where evaluation of cortisol secretion is sought. Moreover, in the current context of practices and methods harmonization, the problem of lack of standardization presents also for salivary cortisol. This review briefly develops the three main tests of Cushing's syndrome screening to explain the reasons for integrating the saliva test into this screening. Then we will develop the variables that can influence salivary cortisol from a pre-analytic, physiopathological and finally analytical point of view.
Seamless assembly of recombinant adenoviral genomes from high-copy plasmids

The adenoviruses are essential tools for basic research and therapeutic development. Robust methods for the generation of mutant and recombinant viruses are crucial for these diverse applications. Here we describe a simple plasmid-based method that permits highly efficient modification of the adenoviral genome and rapid production of high-titer virus stocks. The 36-kilobase genome of adenovirus serotype 5 was divided into seven tractable blocks that could be individually modified in a single step and reassembled in vitro. Because the system is composed of compact modules, modifications at different loci can be readily recombined. Viral assemblies were delivered to packaging cells by electroporation, a strategy that consistently resulted in the de novo production of 108 infectious units in 3–5 days. In principle, a similar strategy could be applied to any other adenovirus serotype or to other double-strand DNA viruses.
Evaluating Red-cockaded Woodpeckers for Exposure to West Nile Virus and Blood Parasites

Abstract A marked decline in the Picoides borealis (Red-cockaded Woodpecker [RCW]) population at Noxubee National Wildlife Refuge, MS, was observed in 2002. Demographic changes—including absence of hatch-year birds, decreases in size of known groups, and loss of known groups—were identified during annual fall surveys and are uncharacteristic of RCW populations. In 2003, a serosurvey of 28 adult RCWs was conducted to investigate the presence of West Nile virus (WNV) exposure in the population, possibly providing insight into whether WNV may have been responsible for this decline. Blood smears were also examined from these birds for blood parasites. We found no evidence of West Nile virus exposure or blood parasites in any of the RCWs sampled. Further monitoring of the RCW population and WNV activity in other species at Noxubee NWR is recommended to further evaluate the potential role of WNV and blood parasites in their decline.
Wearable E-Textile Technologies: A Review on Sensors, Actuators and Control Elements

Wearable e-textiles are able to perform electronic functions and are perceived as a way to add features into common wearable textiles, building competitive market advantages. The e-textile production has become not only a research effort but also an industrial production challenge. It is important to know how to use existing industrial processes or to develop new ones that are able to scale up production, ensuring the behavior and performance of prototypes. Despite the technical challenges, there are already some examples of wearable e-textiles where sensors, actuators, and production techniques were used to seamlessly embed electronic features into traditional wearable textiles, which allow for daily use without a bionic stigma.
Prediction of Suicidal Ideation in Twitter Data using Machine Learning algorithms

The rise of social network and the large amount of data generated by them, has led researchers to study the possibility of their operation in order to identify the hidden knowledge. Suicide is a serious mental health problem that demands our attention, and to control and prevent it is not an easy task. In this paper, we propose a suicidal ideation detection system, for predicting the suicidal acts using Twitter data that can automatically analyze the sentiments of these tweets. Then we investigate a tool of data mining to extract useful information for classification of tweets collected from Twitter based on machine learning classification algorithms.Experimental results show that our method for detecting the suicidal acts using Twitter data and the machine learning algorithms verify the effectiveness of performance in term of recall, precision and accuracy on sentiment analysis.
Linoleic Acid Attenuates the Toxic Dose of Bupivacaine-Mediated Reduction of Vasodilation Evoked by the Activation of Adenosine Triphosphate-Sensitive Potassium Channels

The goal of this study was to investigate the effect of lipid emulsion on a toxic dose of local anesthetic-mediated reduction of vasodilation evoked by the ATP-sensitive potassium (KATP) channel agonist levcromakalim. The effect of lipid emulsion (LE) and linoleic acid on the local anesthetic-mediated reduction of vasodilation and membrane hyperpolarization evoked by levcromakalim was assessed in isolated endothelium-denuded vessels (rat aorta and mesenteric artery) and aortic vascular smooth muscle cells. The effect of LE and linoleic acid on KATP channel activity in transfected HEK-293 cells was investigated, as was the effect of LE on bupivacaine concentration. The efficacy of LE in attenuating the local anesthetic-mediated reduction of vasodilation evoked by levcromakalim was correlated with the lipid solubility of the local anesthetic. Linoleic acid attenuated the bupivacaine-mediated reduction of vasodilation evoked by levcromakalim. LE decreased the bupivacaine-mediated reduction of membrane hyperpolarization evoked by levcromakalim but did not significantly alter the mepivacaine-mediated reduction. LE and linoleic acid both reversed the bupivacaine-mediated decrease of KATP activity and enhanced KATP activity. LE decreased the bupivacaine concentration. Linoleic acid may be the major contributor to LE-induced attenuation of bupivacaine-mediated reduction of vasodilation evoked by levcromakalim via the direct activation of KATP channels and indirect effects.
The importance of mesophyll conductance in regulating forest ecosystem productivity during drought periods

Water availability is the most limiting factor to global plant productivity, yet photosynthetic responses to seasonal drought cycles are poorly understood, with conflicting reports on which limiting process is the most important during drought. We address the problem using a model‐data synthesis approach to look at canopy level fluxes, integrating twenty years of half hour data gathered by the FLUXNET network across six Mediterranean sites. The measured canopy level, water and carbon fluxes were used, together with an inverse canopy ecophysiological model, to estimate the bulk canopy conductance, bulk mesophyll conductance, and the canopy scale carbon pools in both the intercellular spaces and at the site of carboxylation in the chloroplasts. Thus the roles of stomatal and mesophyll conductance in the regulation of internal carbon pools and photosynthesis could be separated. A quantitative limitation analysis allowed for the relative seasonal responses of stomatal, mesophyll, and biochemical limitations to be gauged. The concentration of carbon in the chloroplast was shown to be a potentially more reliable estimator of assimilation rates than the intercellular carbon concentration. Both stomatal conductance limitations and mesophyll conductance limitations were observed to regulate the response of photosynthesis to water stress in each of the six species studied. The results suggest that mesophyll conductance could bridge the gap between conflicting reports on plant responses to soil water stress, and that the inclusion of mesophyll conductance in biosphere–atmosphere transfer models may improve their performance, in particular their ability to accurately capture the response of terrestrial vegetation productivity to drought.
The study of history aging model in network trust evaluation

The history aging model, followed trust natural quality of attenuation and dynamic, utilized time quantity to quantify the important degree of historical reference value. Combined with trust assessment and its history occurred moments, it gave the objective description on history trust evaluation by the methods of threshold space and induce ordered weighted averaging (IOWA) operators. History aging model transparentized trust evaluation content, and calculated the value of dynamic degree to network objects. It also improved the trust assessment accuracy of network security applications. Through historical aging model’s design rules, method, and experimental analysis, it pointed its limitation, flaws and future research direction.
Terahertz scattering: comparison of a novel theoretical approach with experiment

At the present time the interaction of Terahertz (THz) radiation with random structures is not well understood. Scattering effects are particularly relevant in this spectral regime, where the wavelength, and the size and separation of scattering centres are often commensurable. This phenomenon can both be used to advantage in imaging and sensing, but conversely can have adverse effects on the interpretation of a "fingerprint" spectrum. A new mathematical method, the Phase Distribution Model, is reported here for the calculation of attenuation and scattering of THz radiation in random materials. This uses a Phase Distribution Function to describe the effect of the non-absorbing scatterers within the media. Experimental measurements undertaken using previously published results, data obtained from specially constructed phantoms and from everyday textiles have been compared with the theory. These experimental results encompass both cylindrical and spherical scattering situations. The model has also been compared with exact calculations using the Pendry code.
Treatment of Nanocellulose by Submerged Liquid Plasma for Surface Functionalization

Tailoring the surface properties of nanocellulose to improve the compatibility of components in polymer nanocomposites is of great interest. In this work, dispersions of nanocellulose in water and acetonitrile were functionalized by submerged plasmas, with the aim of increasing the quality of this reinforcing agent in biopolymer composite materials. Both the morphology and surface chemistry of nanocellulose were influenced by the application of a plasma torch and filamentary jet plasma in a liquid suspension of nanocellulose. Depending on the type of plasma source and gas mixture the surface chemistry was modified by the incorporation of oxygen and nitrogen containing functional groups. The treatment conditions which lead to nanocellulose based polymer nanocomposites with superior mechanical properties were identified. This work provides a new eco-friendly method for the surface functionalization of nanocellulose directly in water suspension, thus overcoming the disadvantages of chemical treatments.
Physical frailty and cognitive impairment is associated with diabetes and adversely impact functional status and mortality

ABSTRACT Objectives: We investigated whether there was a higher prevalence of cognitive impairment (CI) and/or physical frailty (PF) in persons with diabetes compared to their non-diabetic counterparts, and the individual and combined impact of CI and PF on functional and mortality outcomes among diabetic older persons. Method: Community-living diabetic and non-diabetic participants (N = 2696) aged 55 and above were assessed on CI (MMSE) and PF (CHS criteria) status. Among 486 diabetic persons, we estimated the odds ratio and 95% confidence intervals (OR, 95% CI) of association of CI and/or PF with prevalent IADL and ADL disability and mortality from 11 years of follow up. Results: Diabetes was associated with significantly higher prevalence of CI and/or PF. Adjusted for sex, age, education, smoking, alcohol intake, physical activity, and BMI, diabetes was associated with higher prevalence of PF alone (OR = 2.24, 1.16–4.34) and PF with CI (OR = 2.01, 1.12–3.60), but not with CI alone (OR = 1.02, 0.73–1.44). In multivariable analyses of 486 diabetic older adults, compared to non-frail (NF) and cognitive normal (CN), CI alone was not significantly associated with IADL (OR = 1.06, 0.53–2.10), but PF alone was associated with considerably higher prevalence of IADL (OR = 6.72, 1.84–24.5). PF with CI was associated with the highest prevalence of IADL (OR = 17.8, 3.66–8.68) and ADL disability (OR = 93.8, 23.6–372.4). Whether singly or in combination, PF and/or CI were associated with worse hazard (HR) ratio for mortality outcomes: CI alone (HR = 2.72, 1.48–5.01), PF alone (HR = 4.30, 1.88–9.82) and CI with PF (HR = 8.41, 3.95–17.9). Conclusion: Cognitive impairment and/or physical frailty are powerful prognostic factors identifying people with diabetes at high risk of mortality.
Effect of ionic strength on rheological behavior of polymer-like cetyltrimethylammonium tosylate micellar solutions

The influence of ionic strength on the rheological properties of polymer-like aqueous micellar solutions of cetyltrimethylammonium tosylate (CTAT) containing different salts (KCl, KBr, (COONa)2, K2SO4 or K3PO4) is investigated. The rheological behavior of the solutions is analyzed above the concentration where a micellar entanglement network is formed, varying surfactant and salt concentration, salt counterion valency and temperature. A master curve of the linear viscoelastic properties is obtained by multiple superposition of time, temperature, salt type, and surfactant and salt concentration. Application of the existent kinetic theory provides information suggesting that the micellar solutions are in the fast breaking regime (i.e., the relaxation is kinetically controlled) regardless of salt type and concentration. Moreover, these solutions exhibit shear-banding flow with a reduced stress plateau (σ/G0, being σ and G0 the shear stress and the plateau modulus, respectively) that increases with salt content and counterion valency. The zero-shear viscosity (η0) and the main relaxation time (τC) diminish with increasing salt content according to a step-like function, in which the number of steps increases with the salt counterion valence. In contrast, G0 only increases slightly with increasing salt content for the five salts employed. These results are discussed in terms of ionic strength and screening of the electrostatic-interactions caused by the addition of salt. In addition, it was found that the influence of anions on the viscoelastic properties of the polymer-like micelles follows the Hofmeister series commonly encountered in macromolecular and biological systems. This finding opens a challenge for scientists in the experimental and theoretical fields.
Alternative Method to Detect Neuronal Degeneration and Amyloid β Accumulation in Free-Floating Brain Sections With Fluoro-Jade

Fluoro-Jade is a fluorescein-derived fluorochrome which specifically binds to damaged neurons. Due to this characteristic, it is commonly used for the histochemical detection and quantification of neurodegeneration in mounted brain sections. Here, we describe an alternative and simpler histochemistry protocol based on the use of free-floating brain sections. For this purpose, we have used brain slices from wild-type and 5xFAD mice as well as from mice that received an intracerebral injection of oligomeric amyloid beta peptides. We observed that our histochemistry staining procedure allows for a well-defined labeling of degenerating neurons providing a better signal-to-noise ratio staining than the commonly used one. In addition, our modified protocol demonstrates the ability of Fluoro-Jade C to also fluorescently label amyloid beta plaques.
Evolution of genomic imprinting in the Capsella genus

According to the biological species concept, species are defined as groups of interbreeding populations reproductively isolated from other such groups. Hybrid seed lethality is a common reproductive barrier between plant species. Most frequently its developmental cause lies in the endosperm, but its molecular basis is not well understood. Hybrid seed defects differ depending on the cross direction, suggesting parent-of-origin-specific effects at work. Therefore, genomic imprinting, leading to the parent-of-origin-specific expression of genes in the endosperm, has been proposed to underlie hybrid seed lethality. Nevertheless, this hypothesis remains to be thoroughly tested. Therefore, the main goal of this thesis was to explore the link between genomic imprinting and hybrid seed lethality in Capsella. The first part of this work aimed at characterizing the imprintome (the set of imprinted genes) of Capsella rubella and to compare it with the imprintome of the closely related species Arabidopsis thaliana (10-14 million years apart). This revealed that the imprintomes of both species are poorly conserved. Nevertheless, the pathways regulating genomic imprinting target transposable elements (TEs) in both species. Furthermore, studying the imprintomes of three Capsella species supported the notion of poor imprinting conservation between related species. This work also revealed that imprintome divergence between Capsella species is based on the divergence of TE insertions and consequent silencing mechanisms. Furthermore, this work discovered that hybrid seed lethality is widespread between each of the Capsella species. This phenomenon originates in the endosperm and exhibits a parent-of-origin pattern. Importantly, this work revealed that endosperm-based hybridization barriers in Capsella correlate with the number and expression of paternally-expressed imprinted genes (PEGs). In addition, the mating system strongly impacts on the number of PEGs, which suggests that transitions of mating systems fuel the establishment of postzygotic hybridization barriers. Altogether, this thesis proposes a molecular and evolutionary explanation for the arising of endosperm-based hybridization barriers, in connection with genomic imprinting, TE dynamics and mating system. These data are expected to have a strong impact on plant breeding strategies and to promote further studies in this direction of research.
Choroidal Thickness in Chinese Children Aged 8 to 11 Years with Mild and Moderate Myopia

Purpose To investigate macular choroidal thickness (CT), topographical variation, and associations between subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) and age, gender, spherical equivalent (SE), and axial length (AL) in Chinese healthy mild and moderate myopia children aged 8 to 11 years. Methods One hundred twenty eyes from 120 healthy children were studied. Children were divided into mild and moderate myopia groups. AL and CT were evaluated. CTs were measured at the fovea, and 1 mm, 2 mm, and 3 mm nasal, temporal, superior, and inferior to the fovea. Results SFCT was 252.80 ± 46.95 µm in the whole population. AL was shorter in the mild myopia group (24.18 ± 0.69 mm) than in the moderate myopia group (24.97 ± 0.68 mm, P < 0.001), and SFCT was thicker in the mild myopia group (262.00 ± 40.57 µm) than in the moderate myopia group (236.00 ± 55.08 µm, P=0.005). The topographical variation was similar in refraction groups. CTs nasal to the fovea thinned gradually and were all significantly thinner than SFCT. CTs in the other three directions gradually thickened and peaked at locations of 2 mm to the fovea. Then, CTs thinned at 3 mm to the fovea. The thickest choroid is located temporal to the fovea. There were significant negative correlations between AL and SFCT in the mild myopia group and the whole population. No other correlations were found. Conclusions The topographical variations of choroidal thickness were similar in mild and moderate myopia groups with the thickest locations temporal to the fovea. SFCT was relatively stable in children in narrow range of age and refractive error.
Laboratory diagnostics of Brachyspira species

Bacteria of the genus Brachyspira are intestinal spirochaetes that can cause diarrhoea and mortality in pigs. Laboratory diagnostics of Brachyspira species is essential for confirming clinical diagnosis, for providing data for optimal treatment and for surveillance of the bacteria in individual animals or herds. The aims of the present thesis were to evaluate presently used, and develop new, laboratory diagnostic techniques for Brachyspira species, to describe the pathogenic and epidemiological features and antimicrobial susceptibility of selected Brachyspira isolates, and to evaluate DNA-based epidemiological and phylogenetic tools. In study I, seeded samples were sent to laboratories in northern Europe to assess their ability to detect and identify Brachyspira species and test antimicrobial susceptibility. In study II, a PCR system was set up and compared with traditional culture and biochemical tests; and in study III, well-described Brachyspira isolates were analysed by five molecular typing methods. In the last two studies Brachyspira isolates from animals other than pigs were included. An atypical isolate detected in study II was further characterised together with identical or similar isolates (study IV) and a new genetic typing method for the entire genus of Brachyspira species was tested and evaluated (study V). Overall, the results indicated that laboratory diagnostics of Brachyspira species is difficult. Of the tested genetic typing methods, the nox gene and MLST sequence analyses showed the highest taxonomic resolutions, and randomly amplified polymorphic DNA showed the highest discriminatory power for the isolates studied. A high genetic variability was observed within the Brachyspira genus. This genetic variability could make it difficult to rely solely on DNA-based methods for detection and identification of brachyspiras. A new unique group of isolates pathogenic to pigs was detectable only by the combined use of culture, biochemical tests and PCR. The provisional name "B. suanatina" was suggested for this type of isolates, of which some were found in mallards. By MLST data analysed by e-BURST, a close evolutionary relationship was identified for "B. suanatina" and B. hyodysenteriae isolates recovered from pigs and mallards. In conclusion, these studies show that the most reliable method for laboratory diagnostics of Brachyspira species is culture and biochemical tests, used together with at least one DNA-based method.