Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Intermittent fasting promotes adult hippocampal neuronal differentiation by activating GSK‐3β in 3xTg‐AD mice

Moderate dietary restriction can ameliorate age‐related chronic diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (AD) by increasing the expression of neurotrophic factors and promoting neurogenesis in the brain. Glycogen synthase kinase‐3β (GSK‐3β) signaling is essential for the coordination of progenitor cell proliferation and differentiation during brain development. The mechanisms by which GSK‐3β is involved in dietary restriction‐induced neurogenesis and cognitive improvement remain unclear. Six‐month‐old male 3xTg‐AD and wild‐type mice were fed on alternate days (intermittent fasting, IF) or ad libitum (AL) for 3 months. GSK‐3β activity was regulated by bilaterally infusing lentiviral vectors carrying siRNA targeting GSK‐3β into the dentate gyrus region of the hippocampus. Intermittent fasting promoted neuronal differentiation and maturation in the dentate gyrus and ameliorated recognized dysfunction in 3xTg‐AD mice. These effects were reversed by siRNA targeting GSK‐3β. After intermittent fasting, the insulin and protein kinase A signaling pathways were inhibited, while the adenosine monophosphate‐activated protein kinase and brain‐derived neurotrophic factor pathways were activated. These findings suggest that intermittent fasting can promote neuronal differentiation and maturation in the hippocampus by activating GSK‐3β, thus improving learning and memory.
Assessing executive functions in Brazilian children: A critical review of available tools

Abstract The goal of this review is to perform a critical analysis of the instruments used to assess executive functions (EFs) in preschool and school-age children in Brazil. We identified 37 assessment measures through a systematic review. Some performance-based tests for assessing working memory and inhibition were identified. However, there is a lack of rating measures and instruments to assess flexibility and planning in clinical practice. We observed regional differences in the performance of EFs measures. One possible explanation may be the use of normative samples from more highly-developed regions to characterize performance in less-developed regions. However, there may be alternative explanations, such as variations in the exposure to testing and the adequacy of test materials in different regions. Joint efforts among research groups should be encouraged in order to obtain normative references that are more representative of the socio-cultural diversity of the country. This improvement is essential to better understand the typical and atypical development of EFs and how the peculiarities of each country’s context and culture can impact its trajectory.
Slot-consistent NLG for Task-oriented Dialogue Systems with Iterative Rectification Network

Data-driven approaches using neural networks have achieved promising performances in natural language generation (NLG). However, neural generators are prone to make mistakes, e.g., neglecting an input slot value and generating a redundant slot value. Prior works refer this to hallucination phenomenon. In this paper, we study slot consistency for building reliable NLG systems with all slot values of input dialogue act (DA) properly generated in output sentences. We propose Iterative Rectification Network (IRN) for improving general NLG systems to produce both correct and fluent responses. It applies a bootstrapping algorithm to sample training candidates and uses reinforcement learning to incorporate discrete reward related to slot inconsistency into training. Comprehensive studies have been conducted on multiple benchmark datasets, showing that the proposed methods have significantly reduced the slot error rate (ERR) for all strong baselines. Human evaluations also have confirmed its effectiveness.
Title: A novel synthetic peptide provides neuroprotection and rescues rat cortical neurons

25 Anesthetics, although necessary for many modern procedures, exert neurotoxic 26 effects in various experimental models; the underlying mechanisms, however, remain 27 unknown. In the absence of this information, any in vivo mitigation strategy would be 28 challenging. To help address these gaps, we sought to determine whether preserving 29 mitochondrial network integrity with a non-toxic, short-life synthetic peptide, P110, could 30 protect cortical neurons against both inhalational and intravenous anesthetic-induced 31 neurotoxicity. This study provides the first direct comparative account of three key general 32 anesthetics (desflurane, propofol, and ketamine) under identical conditions and 33 demonstrates their impact on cellular viability, neurite outgrowth, and synaptic network 34 assembly on neonatal rat cortical neurons. Further, we discovered that the inhibition of Fis1 35 receptor-mediated fission reverses anesthetic-induced aberrations in an agent-specific 36 manner. Our data thus underscore the importance of a reductionist approach, offering 37 unique opportunities to explore non-toxic, mitochondria-based therapeutic tools for 38 mitigating anesthetic-induced harm to the developing brain. 39
KEANEKARAGAMAN JENIS - JENIS JAMUR PADA DAUN SUKU ARACEAE YANG TERDAPAT DI BEBERAPA DAERAH DI INDONESIA

Research of microfungsi on leaves of Araceae in some region in Indonesia is rare, therefore information on its diversity is limited. The purpose of this research are to know the diversity of microfungi on Araceae leaves and to assist future related studies. The method of this research follows Hawksworth (1974) with the general steps such as specimen collection, observation of specimen, herbarium preservation and determination.The Araceae leaves were collected at different periods and different places from Lampung, Tangerang, Jakarta, Bogor, Kuningan, Yogyakarta, Mataram, Kupang and Irian Jaya from April 2000 to April 2001. Twelve genera of microfungi have been found on leaves of Araceae during this research, one Zygomycetes (Choanephora) and eleven Deuteromycetes. Nine of eleven genera of Deuteromycetes were included in Hyphomycetes (Alternaria, Cladosporium, Corynespora, Curvularia, Drechslera, Johnstonia, Pithomyces, Pseudocercospora (Cercospora) and Zygosporium), and the other 2 genera were included in Coelomycetes (Colletotrichum and Lasiodiplodia). The total number of microfungi on leaves of Araceae are 20 species. Keywords : Araceae, microfungi, Dematiaceous species
Eastern Andalusian Mid-Vowels: An Initial Look at Cordoban Spanish

Although the vocalic space in Spanish has been traditionally conceived as simple (Hualde 2014), researchers have demonstrated that there are some fluctuations depending on the dialect (e.g. Willis 2005) and the phonetic context (e.g. Alarcos 1958; Quilis 1999; RAE 2011). Most of the projects that have dealt with vowel opening in Spanish have coincided in two aspects: (i) they have developed a methodology based on perception tasks (e.g. Bishop 2007; Figueroa 2000) or production tasks (e.g. Sanders 1994), and (ii) of those studying Andalusian Spanish, they have been mostly focused on the province of Granada (Bishop 2007; Hualde & Sanders 1995, amongst others). Therefore, the aim of this present project is to document this phenomenon of vowel doubling at a new region of Eastern Andalusian Spanish, namely Cordoba. Moreover, the methodology of spontaneous recordings W contributes to the analysis of vernacular output of those sounds. The findings yielded that the quality of mid-vowels in Cordoba are affected by the phonetic context, especially when there is an /s/ in coda position. Not only are these vowels longer, but their height and frontness change. This initial study of the mid-vowels in Cordoban Spanish sets the point of departure for more thorough investigation of this matter.
Metamodel Based Forward and Inverse Design for Passive Vibration Suppression

Aperiodic metamaterials represent a class of structural systems that are composed of different building blocks (cells), instead of a self-repeating chain of the same unit cells. Optimizing aperiodic cellular structural systems thus presents high-dimensional design problems, that become intractable to solve using purely high-fidelity structural analysis coupled with optimization. Specialized analytical modeling along with metamodel based optimization can provide a more tractable alternative to designing such aperiodic metamaterials. To explore this concept, this paper presents an initial design automation framework applied to a case study representative of a simple 1D metamaterial system. The case under consideration is a drill string, where vibration suppression is of utmost importance. The drill string comprises a set of nonuniform rings attached to the outer surface of a longitudinal rod. As such, the resultant system can now be perceived as an aperiodic 1D metamaterial with each ring/gap representing a cell. Despite being a 1D system, the simultaneous consideration of multiple degrees of freedom (associated with torsional, axial, and lateral motions) poses significant computational challenges. To deal with these challenges, a transfer matrix method (TMM) is employed to analytically determine the frequency response of the drill string. However, due to the minute scale cost of the TMM method, the optimization remains computationally burdensome. This latter challenge is addressed by training a suite of neural networks on a set of TMM samples, with each network providing the response w.r. t. a specific frequency. Optimization is then performed to minimize mass subject to constraints on the gap between consecutive resonance peaks in one case, and minimizing this gap in the second case. Crucial improvements are accomplished over the initial baselines in both cases. Further novel contributions occur through the development of an inverse modeling approach that can learn optimal inverse designs with minimum mass and a desirable non-resonant frequency range, which partially mimics band gap behavior in perfectly periodic dispersive structures. To this end, we introduce the use of an emerging modeling formalism called in-vertible neural nets. Our study indicates that the inverse model is able to generate constraint satisfying designs with slightly higher mass.
Neurodegenerative disorder detection based on Bodily Fluids

Early diagnosis and detection could limit the progression of several neurodegenerative diseases. However, clinical diagnosis and management have been a daunting challenge, due to the complex nature and manifestations of these diseases. Current diagnostic tests involve using invasive and painful tests including lumbar puncture or genetic analysis. Intense research efforts are underway to seek biomarkers that could allow early and easy detection of the neuro-disorders [1]. In this article, we discuss several promising bodily fluid candidates including Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), Blood, Urine, Saliva and Tears for early diagnosis of several neurodegenerative disorders.
Determining Inductor Interactions with a Design of Experiment

A method of designing higher quality (Q) factor inductors is demonstrated in this paper. The method is based on optimizing the fab process for a certain device design. The method can be applied to any IC process. The optimization method shows where the process limits are with respect to a certain device. The analysis shows where process improvements can be made to achieve the desired inductor. Introduction Passive devices in transmit modules for mobile wireless devices have many uses including impedance matching and filters. As these modules decrease in size, the need for passive integration becomes more important. Also, passive integration on the GaAs substrate allows for more control of the critical dimensions through thin film deposition and fine lithography. Passive devices include capacitors, resistors, and inductors. The focus here will be on inductors. A method to identify the aspects of GaAs IC backend processes which influence quality factor (Q) (1.9 GHZ) will be shown. The definition for Q is given by
The Multimodal Representational Characteristics of Mandarin Children’s Disagreement —— A Case Study Based on Diachronic Videos

Based on a case study, this research collects naturally happened videos of one mandarin-speaking child during the period of her 1.5-3.5 years old, and makes a thorough study of the multimodal representational characteristics of disagreement of this child from the perspective of Multimodal Discourse Analysis. Within a data corpus constituted by 80 hours’ video-recorded life traces of a pre-school child, a corpus of 114 cases of disagreement was selected for a qualitative analysis through the Elan software. It is shown that mandarin-speaking children of this age period usually conduct multimodal communicative behaviors when they are expressing disagreement, the modal forms of which include verbal disagreement, nonverbal disagreement, verbal-nonverbal disagreement. To be more specific, verbal-nonverbal disagreement involves two kinds of modal interactional relationships: equivalent and complementary with the latter containing reinforced and non-reinforced cases. Through this research, parents and early educational staffs are suggested to pay more attention on children’s multimodal expressions on the one hand and to employ more non-verbal resources in interacting with young children on the other hand. What’s more, the point of individual differences of children is a time-consuming but simultaneously a noteworthy one for both parents and preschool teachers. The results of this study bring further light on the knowledge of early education and parental involvement.
Estimation of genetic and environmental risk factors associated with pre-weaning mortality in piglets using generalized linear mixed models.

Risk factors and variance components of pre-weaning mortality were estimated using generalized linear mixed models. Data were from 12 727 piglets born alive from 1338 litters recorded at the pig breeding farm of the University of Kiel from 1989 to 1994. Deviances due to risk factors were estimated by generalized linear model and their odds-ratios by generalized linear mixed model both with binomial errors and a logistic link. Variance components of sire, dam and litter were estimated using a logit or probit link function as well as a linear model for which estimates were transformed to the underlying continuous scale. Highest increase in deviance, indicating the risk factor, which accounts for the greatest amount of unexplained variation of pre-weaning mortality was obtained after exclusion of individual birth weight (1206) from the model, followed by year-season (217), parity-farrowing age or interval (58), genotype of piglets (56), sex (39), total number of piglets born (18) and gestation length (16). Substitution of individual birth weight successively by average piglet birth weight per litter, litter birth weight and standard deviation of birth weight within litter resulted in models with substantially lower explained variation of pre-weaning mortality. Odds of pre-weaning mortality was 1·5 times higher for males than for females and 2·0 times higher in piglets from German Landrace dams than from Large White dams. Odds increased to the fifth parity by 2·2 times the odds of the first parity or increased for the age group of dams between 850 and 949 days by 2·3 times the odds of the age group with less than 350 days. When the continuous risk factors of individual birth weight, average piglet birth weight and litter birth weight decreased or standard deviation of birth weight within litter increased by one standard deviation from the mean, the odds ratios increased by 6·0, 1·6, 0·8 and 0·4, respectively. Piglets with individual birth weights of 1·8, 1·5, 1·2 and 1·0 kg showed a rapid increase in odds ratios of pre-weaning mortality of 1·4, 2·7, 7·0 and 16·1, respectively, relative to piglets with 2·1 kg. Estimates of direct heritability for pre-weaning mortality on the linear observed, transformed underlying, logit and probit scale were 0·02, 0·06, 0·07 and 0·07, respectively. Low estimates of heritability for pre-weaning mortality, even on the underlying continuous scale, suggested low potential for improvement by selection. Therefore, selection for individual birth weight phenotypically closely associated with pre-weaning mortality was recommended to improve survival of piglets during the nursing period.
The Redescription and Phylogenetic Position of Steleucoela kieffer, 1908, a Remarkable Genus of Neotropical Ganaspini (Hymenoptera: Figitidae: Eucoilinae)

Abstract. The eucoiline genus Steleucoela Kieffer is redescribed and illustrated, as well as the two species S. brasiliensis Diaz and S. piriformis Kieffer. Updated distribution data are provided, and include the new country records from Colombia and Costa Rica for S. piriformis. DNA sequence data are here combined with a morphological phylogenetic matrix to examine the phylogenetic placement of Stelecuoela. While morphologically rather apomorphic, Stelecuoela was recovered nested within Ganaspini. This study is a product of the NESH Project of Espírito Santo, and we discuss the future of Hymenoptera taxonomy within the state.
Does Software Structures Quality Improve over Software Evolution? Evidences from Open-Source Projects

Throughout the software evolution, several maintenance actions such as adding new features, fixing problems, improving the design might negatively or positively affect the software design quality. Quality degradation, if not handled in the right time, can accumulate and cause serious problems for future maintenance effort. Several researchers considered modularity as one of the success factors of Open Source Software (OSS) Projects. The modularity of these systems is influenced by some software metrics such as size, complexity, cohesion, and coupling. In this work, we study the modularity evolution of four open-source systems by answering two main research questions namely: what measures can be used to measure the modularity level of software and secondly, did the modularity level for the selected open source software improves over time. By investigating the modularity measures, we have identified the main measures that can be used to measure software modularity. Based on our analysis, the modularity of these two systems is not improving over time. However, the defect density is improving over time.
Cyanobacteria of a Tropical Lagoon, Nigeria .

Investigations for the first time into the blue green algae of Lekki lagoon were carried out for 24 months (June 2003- May 2005) at monthly intervals using standard plankton net of mesh size 55µm. One hundred and seventy nine species belonging to thirty genera were observed. The filamentous blue green algae Oscillatoria formed the most abundant genus making up twenty three species followed by Phormidium eighteen species. Anabaena and Chroococcus recorded thirteen species each while the genera, Gleocapsa, Merismopedia and Microcystis recorded ten, eight and twelve species respectively. Only one genus each of Cyanosarcina, Calothrix and Scytonema were encountered. Bloom forming species identified were Microcystis aeruginosa, M. flos-aquae, M. wesenbergii and Anabaena flos-aquae. In this study, thirty-nine new species were recorded for Lagos lagoon complex in which Lekki lagoon is one of it while Cyanosarcina hueberliorum is new record for Nigeria. (Journal of American Science 2010;6(4):193-199). (ISSN: 1545-1003).
An Enzymatic Analysis of Loblolly Pine and Sitka Spruce Auxin Conjugate Hydrolases and Evolutionary Implications

We have examined how the ILR1-like auxin conjugate hydrolase gene family has functionally evolved in the gymnosperm species Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis) and Loblolly pine (Pinus taeda). We have isolated and cloned two orthologues from spruce (PsIAR31, PsIAR32) and one from pine (PtIAR31) that are homologous to the Arabidopsis thaliana AtIAR3 auxin amidohydrolase. We have previously examined the enzymatic activity of PsIAR31 using a thin layer chromatography method. Using more sensitive HPLC methods, we have re-investigated the hydrolytic activity and substrate recognition of both PsIAR31 and PsIAR32. Neither PsIAR31 nor PsIAR32 appears to hydrolyze indole butyric acid (IBA) or indole proprionic acid (IPA) conjugates. Additionally, we have found that PsIAR31 and -32 recognize several IAA conjugates (including IAA-ala, IAA-asp, IAA-gluc, and IAA-isoleu). The PtIAR31 enzyme seems to primarily recognize IBA-alanine as a substrate. Using phylogenetic analysis, we also found a family of five putative paralogue hydrolases in both the pine (PtIAR31-35) and the spruce (PsIAR31-35) genomes. This result supports the hypothesis that multiple copies of auxin conjugate hydrolase genes have been present since gymnosperms evolved, and that this redundancy did not arise later in angiosperms.
Application of PCR for detection of Leishmania genus and complexes in different types of biological samples

Leishmaniasis is a disease caused by several species of Leishmania protozoan that are grouped in complexes and transmitted by sandflies, presenting a variety of clinical symptoms. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) allows the amplification of specific target regions for Leishmania genus and Leishmania donovani and Leishmania braziliensis complexes directly in biological samples without previous in vitro culture. In this study, a descriptive evaluation was carried out between 2001 and 2006 by analyzing 169 biopsy samples (skin and mucous membranes) and 31 bone marrow aspirates from patients with clinical suspicion of leishmaniasis as well as 44 spleen samples from canine. The samples came from different endemic areas of the country. Leishmania was detected in 71% of the biopsies (skin and mucous membranes), in 68% of the bone marrow aspirates and in 82% of the dog spleen samples. L. braziliensis complex was identified in patients with