Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Imaging Review of the Lung Parenchymal Complications in Patients with IPF

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a chronic, pulmonary-limited, interstitial lung disease with a poor prognosis. This condition is characterized by different clinical scenarios, ranging from the most typical slow and progressive deterioration of symptoms to a rapid and abrupt decline of lung function. Rapid worsening of clinical course is due to superimposed complications and comorbidities that can develop in IPF patients, with a higher incidence rate compared to the general population. These conditions may require a different management of the patient and a therapy adjustment, and thus it is fundamental to recognize them. High Resolution Computed Tomography (HRCT) is sensitive, but not specific, in detecting these complications, and can evaluate the presence of radiological variations when previous examinations are available; it recognizes ground glass opacities or consolidation that can be related to a large spectrum of comorbidities, such as infection, lung cancer, or acute exacerbation. To reach the final diagnosis, a multidisciplinary discussion is required, particularly when the clinical context is related to imaging findings.
Robust Adaptive Fault-Tolerant Tracking Control for Nonaffine Stochastic Nonlinear Systems With Full-State Constraints

In this article, the adaptive fault-tolerant tracking control problem of nonaffine stochastic nonlinear systems with actuator failures and full-state constraints is studied. To surmount the design difficulty from nonaffine nonlinear term with multi-input and single-output (MISO) faulty modes, a novel nonlinear fault compensation function with adjustable parameter factor is first introduced to establish a standard adaptive fault-tolerant control (AFTC) strategy based on the mean-value theorem. Then, the remaining nonlinear function, including the partial loss of effectiveness, outage, and stuck cases, together with the constructed compound nonlinear function can be approximated by using the suitable fuzzy-logic system (FLS). Moreover, it is shown that all the states of nonaffine stochastic nonlinear systems are not violating the preset constraint bounds by employing the barrier Lyapunov functions (BLFs). Also, the given adaptive controller can guarantee all the closed-loop signals are uniformly ultimately bounded (UUB) in probability in the sense of fourth-moment within the appropriate compact sets. Finally, two simulation examples are given to demonstrate the validity of the proposed method.
Current Progress of Avian Vaccines Against West Nile Virus

Birds are the main natural host of West Nile virus (WNV), the worldwide most distributed mosquito-borne flavivirus, but humans and equids can also be sporadic hosts. Many avian species have been reported as susceptible to WNV, particularly corvids. In the case that clinical disease develops in birds, this is due to virus invasion of different organs: liver, spleen, kidney, heart, and mainly the central nervous system, which can lead to death 24–48 h later. Nowadays, vaccines have only been licensed for use in equids; thus, the availability of avian vaccines would benefit bird populations, both domestic and wild ones. Such vaccines could be used in endangered species housed in rehabilitation and wildlife reserves, and in animals located at zoos and other recreational installations, but also in farm birds, and in those that are grown for hunting and restocking activities. Even more, controlling WNV infection in birds can also be useful to prevent its spread and limit outbreaks. So far, different commercial and experimental vaccines (inactivated, attenuated, and recombinant viruses, and subunits and DNA-based candidates) have been evaluated, with various regimens, both in domestic and wild avian species. However, there are still disadvantages that must be overcome before avian vaccination can be implemented, such as its cost-effectiveness for domestic birds since in many species the pathogenicity is low or zero, or the viability of being able to achieve collective immunity in wild birds in freedom. Here, a comprehensive review of what has been done until now in the field of avian vaccines against WNV is presented and discussed.
Actinomycete-Derived Polyketides as a Source of Antibiotics and Lead Structures for the Development of New Antimicrobial Drugs

Actinomycetes are remarkable producers of compounds essential for human and veterinary medicine as well as for agriculture. The genomes of those microorganisms possess several sets of genes (biosynthetic gene cluster (BGC)) encoding pathways for the production of the valuable secondary metabolites. A significant proportion of the identified BGCs in actinomycetes encode pathways for the biosynthesis of polyketide compounds, nonribosomal peptides, or hybrid products resulting from the combination of both polyketide synthases (PKSs) and nonribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPSs). The potency of these molecules, in terms of bioactivity, was recognized in the 1940s, and started the “Golden Age” of antimicrobial drug discovery. Since then, several valuable polyketide drugs, such as erythromycin A, tylosin, monensin A, rifamycin, tetracyclines, amphotericin B, and many others were isolated from actinomycetes. This review covers the most relevant actinomycetes-derived polyketide drugs with antimicrobial activity, including anti-fungal agents. We provide an overview of the source of the compounds, structure of the molecules, the biosynthetic principle, bioactivity and mechanisms of action, and the current stage of development. This review emphasizes the importance of actinomycetes-derived antimicrobial polyketides and should serve as a “lexicon”, not only to scientists from the Natural Products field, but also to clinicians and others interested in this topic.
A Survey of Vaccine-Induced Measles IgG Antibody Titer to Verify Temporal Changes in Response to Measles Vaccination in Young Adults

In Japan, sporadic measles cases increased rapidly in 2019 compared to the past six years. To clarify the persistence of immunity against measles in young adults, this study explored the persistence of immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibody titers against the measles virus in 17- to 24-year-old young participants who reside in the Chiba prefecture of Japan. Measles-specific IgG antibody titers, determined by enzyme immunoassay in serum samples collected from 506 participants, were assessed through statistical analyses. Multivariable regression analysis revealed that the distribution of measles IgG antibody titers was significantly correlated with a medical history of measles (P < 0.05), while there was no significant correlation between the number of vaccinations related to measles IgG titers. Furthermore, measles IgG titers tended to decrease, as revealed by the temporal change in IgG titers, during the elapsed period after the last vaccination (P = 0.08). These results indicate that periodic vaccination against measles is required to prevent sporadic measles infection in young and older adults.
Immunomodulatory Effects by Bifidobacterium longum KACC 91563 in Mouse Splenocytes and Macrophages.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the immunomodulatory effect of Bifidobacterium longum KACC 91563 in murine primary splenocytes and macrophages. B. longum KACC 91563 regulated T and B-cell proliferation and inhibited the Th1 (IL-2, IFN-γ)/Th2 (IL-4, IL-10) cytokine imbalance and immune cytokine production. Moreover, immunoglobulin E (IgE) levels were significantly lower after treatment with B. longum KACC 91563. These findings suggest that B. longum KACC 91563 could modulate the systemic immune system toward both IgE production and regulation of the Th1/Th2 balance.
Mechanical, Thermal, and Electrical Properties of BN–Epoxy Composites Modified with Carboxyl-Terminated Butadiene Nitrile Liquid Rubber

Filled high thermal conductivity epoxy composite solves the problem of the low thermal conductivity of the epoxy resin itself, but the addition of the thermal conductive filler reduces the mechanical properties of the composite, which limits its application in the field of high voltage insulation. In this work, carboxyl-terminated butadiene nitrile liquid rubber (CTBN) was used to toughen the boron nitride-epoxy hybrid system, and the effects of different contents of CTBN on the mechanical properties, thermal conductivity, glass transition temperature, thermal stability, and dielectric properties of the composites were investigated. The results showed that when the content of CTBN was 5–15 wt. %, the CTBN formed a dispersed island structure in the epoxy resin matrix. The toughness of the composite increased by about 32%, the breakdown strength was improved, and the thermal conductivity was about 160% higher than that of pure epoxy resin. As the CTBN content increased, the glass transition temperature and thermal stability of the composite decreased and the dielectric constant and the dielectric loss increased. When the CTBN content is 10–15 wt. %, a toughened epoxy composite material with better comprehensive properties is obtained.
Biocompatible and Biodegradable Magnesium Oxide Nanoparticles with In Vitro Photostable Near-Infrared Emission: Short-Term Fluorescent Markers

Imaging of biological matter by using fluorescent nanoparticles (NPs) is becoming a widespread method for in vitro imaging. However, currently there is no fluorescent NP that satisfies all necessary criteria for short-term in vivo imaging: biocompatibility, biodegradability, photostability, suitable wavelengths of absorbance and fluorescence that differ from tissue auto-fluorescence, and near infrared (NIR) emission. In this paper, we report on the photoluminescent properties of magnesium oxide (MgO) NPs that meet all these criteria. The optical defects, attributed to vanadium and chromium ion substitutional defects, emitting in the NIR, are observed at room temperature in NPs of commercial and in-house ball-milled MgO nanoparticles, respectively. As such, the NPs have been successfully integrated into cultured cells and photostable bright in vitro emission from NPs was recorded and analyzed. We expect that numerous biotechnological and medical applications will emerge as this nanomaterial satisfies all criteria for short-term in vivo imaging.
Modulating Shrimp Tropomyosin-Mediated Allergy: Hypoallergen DNA Vaccines Induce Regulatory T Cells to Reduce Hypersensitivity in Mouse Model

Shellfish allergy is one of the most common food allergies, with tropomyosin as the major cross-reactive allergen. However, no allergen-specific immunotherapy is clinically available. Recently, we designed two shrimp hypoallergens MEM49 and MED171. This study aimed to examine and compare the efficacy of the MEM49- and MED171-based DNA vaccines (pMEM49 and pMED171) in modulating shrimp allergy in a murine model of shrimp tropomyosin sensitivity. Intradermal immunization of BALB/c mice with pMEM49 or pMED171 effectively down-modulated allergic symptoms, tropomyosin-specific IgE levels, intestinal Th2 cytokines expression, and inflammatory cell infiltration. Both pMEM49 and pMED171 increased the frequency of regulatory T cells, but to a greater extent by pMED171 with upregulation of gut-homing molecules integrin-α4β7. The functionality of the pMED171-induced Treg cells was further illustrated by anti-CD25-mediated depletion of Treg cells and the adoptive transfer of CD4+CD25+Foxp3+Treg cells. Collectively, the data demonstrate that intradermal administration of pMED171 leads to the priming, activation, and migration of dermal dendritic cells which subsequently induce Treg cells, both locally and systemically, to downregulate the allergic responses to tropomyosin. This study is the first to demonstrate the potency of hypoallergen-encoding DNA vaccines as a therapeutic strategy for human shellfish allergy via the vigorous induction of functional Treg cells.
A Policy for Optimizing Sub-Band Selection Sequences in Wideband Spectrum Sensing

With the development of wireless communication technology, cognitive radio needs to solve the spectrum sensing problem of wideband wireless signals. Due to performance limitation of electronic components, it is difficult to complete spectrum sensing of wideband wireless signals at once. Therefore, it is required that the wideband wireless signal has to be split into a set of sub-bands before the further signal processing. However, the sequence of sub-band perception has become one of the important factors, which deeply-impact wideband spectrum sensing performance. In this paper, we develop a novel approach for sub-band selection through the non-stationary multi-arm bandit (NS-MAB) model. This approach is based on a well-known order optimal policy for NS-MAB mode called discounted upper confidence bound (D-UCB) policy. In this paper, according to different application requirements, various discount functions and exploration bonuses of D-UCB are designed, which are taken as the parameters of the policy proposed in this paper. Our simulation result demonstrates that the proposed policy can provide lower cumulative regret than other existing state-of-the-art policies for sub-band selection of wideband spectrum sensing.
Association of (cid:2) 308G/A TNF- a gene polymorphism and spontaneous preterm birth in Acehnese ethnic group, Indonesia: This polymorphism is not associated with preterm birth The Egyptian Journal of Medical Human Genetics

Background: Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) within tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF- a ) gene promoter ( (cid:2) 308G/A TNFA ) is associated with higher gene expression. The role of this SNP as a risk factor for spontaneous preterm birth has been assessed in some regions and the ﬁndings were signiﬁcantly different between race and ethnic groups. Aim: To provide the scientiﬁc evidence whether allele A within SNP (cid:2) 308G/A TNFA promoter is a risk factor for spontaneous preterm birth among Acehnese ethnic or not. Subjects and methods: In this case–control study, the genotypes of SNP (cid:2) 308G/A TNFA among 40 patients with spontaneous preterm birth and 40 patients with term birth were determined by real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The concentrations of TNF- a from blood were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The differences in genotype distributions, dominant and recessive models, and allele frequencies Results: This study found that the concentration of TNF- a between preterm and control groups was not statistically different, 5.5 ± 2.9 mg/dL vs . 10.1 ± 17.9 mg/dL, p = 0.112. The level of TNF- a had no strong association with either genotype distribution or allele frequency of SNP (cid:2) 308G/A TNFA. Furthermore, there was no association between mutant genotypes and spontaneous preterm birth (OR: 0.32; 95%CI: 0.08–1.33, p = 0.096) and between mutant allele and spontaneous preterm birth (OR: 0.35; 95%CI: 0.09–1.37, p = 0.105). Conclusion: SNP (cid:2) 308G/A TNFA is not associated with spontaneous preterm birth in Acehnese ethnic group. (cid:2) 2015 The Authors. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Ain Shams University. Thisis anopenaccessarticleundertheCCBY-NC-NDlicense(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
The interplay between aging‐associated loss of protein homeostasis and extracellular vesicles in neurodegeneration

The finding of an effective cure or treatment for neurodegenerative diseases is one of the biggest challenges for this century. Although these diseases show different clinical manifestations, the presence of toxic protein aggregates in the brain of patients is a common feature to all of them, suggesting a loss of protein homeostasis. Aging, the primary risk factor for the majority of neurodegenerative disorders, is linked to the impairment of degradative compartments such as lysosomes and autophagosomes. Besides, many genetic factors for Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, or frontotemporal dementia, as examples of frequent neurodegenerative diseases, are causative of endo‐lysosomal and autophagosomal dysfunctions. There is scientific evidence suggesting that neurons can counteract the accumulation of undegraded cellular material by the secretion of extracellular vesicles (EVs), which are vesicles with a size ranging from 50 to 100 nm generated in a type of endosomal compartment named multivesicular body. EVs play a crucial role in removing cellular waste, promoting protein aggregation, and spreading toxic protein aggregates in the brain of patients. In this review, the interplay between the impairment of degradative compartments, the secretion of EVs, and their pathological/beneficial role in neurodegeneration is described.
Diagnostic Performance and Prognostic Value of PET/CT with Different Tracers for Brain Tumors: A Systematic Review of Published Meta-Analyses

Background: Several meta-analyses reporting data on the diagnostic performance or prognostic value of positron emission tomography (PET) with different tracers in detecting brain tumors have been published so far. This review article was written to summarize the evidence-based data in these settings. Methods: We have performed a comprehensive literature search of meta-analyses published in the Cochrane library and PubMed/Medline databases (from inception through July 2019) about the diagnostic performance or prognostic value of PET with different tracers in patients with brain tumors. Results: We have summarized the results of 24 retrieved meta-analyses on the use of PET or PET/computed tomography (CT) with different tracers in brain tumors. The tracers included were: fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG), carbon-11 methionine (11C-methionine), fluorine-18 fluoroethyltyrosine (18F-FET), fluorine-18 dihydroxyphenylalanine (18F-FDOPA), fluorine-18 fluorothymidine (18F-FLT), and carbon-11 choline (11C-choline). Evidence-based data demonstrated good diagnostic performance of PET with different tracers in detecting brain tumors, in particular, radiolabelled amino acid tracers showed the highest diagnostic performance values. All the PET tracers evaluated had significant prognostic value in patients with glioma. Conclusions: Evidence-based data showed a good diagnostic performance for some PET tracers in specific indications and significant prognostic value in brain tumors.
Monolayer HfTeSe4: A promising two-dimensional photovoltaic material for solar cells with high efficiency.

Currently, atomically thin materials with high photovoltaic performance are urgently needed for applications in solar cells. Herein, by using first-principles calculations, we propose an excellent two-dimensional photovoltaic material, monolayer HfTeSe4, which can be exfoliated feasibly from its layered bulk. It behaves the semiconductor character with a moderate direct gap of 1.48 eV and exhibits remarkable absorbance coefficient of ~105 cm-1 in visible-light region. Meanwhile, monolayer HfTeSe4 shows ultrahigh photocurrent and a long carrier recombination life-time. And strain engineering can further modulate the recombination time of carriers. Moreover, the heterostructure between HfTeSe4 and Bi2WO6 is proposed as potential solar cells with the solar conversion efficiency up to ~20.8%. These extraordinary properties combined with its experimental feasibility makes monolayer HfTeSe4 particularly promising for photovoltaic device applications.
The Mycotoxin Deoxynivalenol Significantly Alters the Function and Metabolism of Bovine Kidney Epithelial Cells In Vitro

Bovine mycotoxicosis is a disorder caused by the ingestion of fungal toxins. It is associated with chronic signs, such as reduced growth rate and milk yield, and causes significant economic cost to the dairy industry. The mycotoxins deoxynivalenol (DON), zearalenone (ZEN), and fumonisin B1 (FB1) are commonly found in grain fed to cattle. Patulin (PA) is a common grass silage contaminant but is also found in grain. The effects of these mycotoxins on cellular function at low concentrations are not well understood. Using Madin–Darby bovine kidney cells we evaluated the cellular response to these mycotoxins, measuring cytotoxicity, de novo protein synthesis, cell proliferation, cell cycle analysis, and also metabolic profiling by 1H NMR spectroscopy. DON, ZEN, and PA induced cytotoxicity, and PA and FB1 induced a decrease in metabolic activity in surviving cells. DON was the only mycotoxin found to have a significant effect on the metabolic profile, with exposed cells showing increased cellular amino acids, lactate, 2-oxoglutarate, 3-hydroxybutyrate, and UDP-N-acetylglucosamine and decreased β-alanine, choline, creatine, taurine, and myo-inositol. Cells exposed to DON also showed reductions in protein synthesis. DON has previously been documented as being a ribotoxin; the results here suggest that exposure of bovine cells to DON causes a decrease in protein synthesis with corresponding cellular accumulation of precursors. Cell proliferation was also arrested without causing apoptosis. It is likely that exposure triggers hypoxic, hypertonic, and ribotoxic responses in bovine cells, and that these responses contribute to reduced productivity in exposed cattle.
Fine control of aerenchyma and lateral root development through AUX/IAA- and ARF-dependent auxin signaling

Significance Aerenchyma formation has a crucial role in conferring abiotic stress tolerance to plants, including agronomically important crops. In rice, root aerenchyma constitutively forms under aerobic conditions and is further induced under oxygen deficiency. Although ethylene is involved in inducible aerenchyma formation, the factors involved in constitutive aerenchyma formation remain unclear. Here we show that AUX/IAA-ARF-dependent auxin signaling is required for constitutive aerenchyma formation in rice roots. We identify a LBD transcription factor whose expression is regulated by an AUX/IAA-ARF complex as a key regulator of both constitutive aerenchyma and lateral root formation. However, their formation is differently controlled during root development. Our findings reveal a previously unreported role of auxin in plant development and plant responses to abiotic stresses. Lateral roots (LRs) are derived from a parental root and contribute to water and nutrient uptake from the soil. Auxin/indole-3-acetic acid protein (AUX/IAA; IAA) and auxin response factor (ARF)-mediated signaling are essential for LR formation. Lysigenous aerenchyma, a gas space created by cortical cell death, aids internal oxygen transport within plants. Rice (Oryza sativa) forms lysigenous aerenchyma constitutively under aerobic conditions and increases its formation under oxygen-deficient conditions; however, the molecular mechanisms regulating constitutive aerenchyma (CA) formation remain unclear. LR number is reduced by the dominant-negative effect of a mutated AUX/IAA protein in the iaa13 mutant. We found that CA formation is also reduced in iaa13. We have identified ARF19 as an interactor of IAA13 and identified a lateral organ boundary domain (LBD)-containing protein (LBD1-8) as a target of ARF19. IAA13, ARF19, and LBD1-8 were highly expressed in the cortex and LR primordia, suggesting that these genes function in the initiation of CA and LR formation. Restoration of LBD1-8 expression recovered aerenchyma formation and partly recovered LR formation in the iaa13 background, in which LBD1-8 expression was reduced. An auxin transport inhibitor suppressed CA and LR formation, and a natural auxin stimulated CA formation in the presence of the auxin transport inhibitor. Our findings suggest that CA and LR formation are both regulated through AUX/IAA- and ARF-dependent auxin signaling. The initiation of CA formation lagged that of LR formation, which indicates that the formation of CA and LR are regulated differently by auxin signaling during root development in rice.