Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of amino acids on the fermentation of inulin or glucose to produce R,R‐2,3‐butanediol using Paenibacillus polymyxa ZJ‐9

This study investigated the effects of different amino acids on the fermentation of pure inulin and glucose using Paenibacillus polymyxa ZJ‐9 in order to improve the production of R,R‐2,3‐butanediol (R,R‐2,3‐BD) respectively. The inulin extract from Jerusalem artichoke tubers contained 19 common amino acids, which were detected by HPLC. Arg featured the highest content (1290 mg l−1). A single add‐back experiment of 20 common amino acids indicated that Asn, Ser, His and Arg are key amino acids in R,R‐2,3‐BD synthesis during inulin fermentation using P. polymyxa ZJ‐9. The corresponding yields of R,R‐2,3‐BD reached 24·32, 22·32, 22·03 and 21·04 g l−1 after the four key amino acids (1·5 g l−1 each) and glucose were evaluated in this fermentation. The yields were considerably higher than that of the control group (12·11 g l−1). With the addition of the mixture of four amino acids (1·5 g l−1 each), the highest yields of R,R‐2,3‐BD (25·07 and 17·47 g l−1) were obtained with the increase of 107·0 and 89·1% during the fermentation of glucose and pure inulin respectively.
Event marker compliance in actigraphy

Actigraphy is a versatile tool for evaluating sleep−wake cycles over time in the home‐environment. Patients using the Phillips Actiwatch place an event marker when going to sleep and upon awakening. We investigate compliance in pressing the Actiwatch event marker button for patients referred for insomnia, hypersomnia and disorders of circadian rhythm. We retrospectively analysed event markers from 150 patients undergoing actigraphy for 2,117 nights combined. Compliance was evaluated from inspection of actigraphy records, and coded as full or partial. From patient records, a construct called the C‐factor, designed to describe poor social resources and chronic unemployment, was used together with age and sex to predict compliance. We found a mean compliance between 54.0% and 76.3% for a median monitoring duration of 14 days. There was an overall insignificant effect of age (p = .081), but when analysed only for females there was a significant effect of 0.56% pr. year (p = .0038). Compliance was higher for women, Cohen’s d = 0.65 (p = .01). The C‐factor predicts 18.3% (confidence interval 9%–27.5%) lower compliance. Morning and evening compliance are correlated at r = . 65. In conclusion, actigraphy event marker compliance is generally moderate or high, with older women exhibiting the highest compliance. C‐factor predicts lower compliance, and this pattern may further translate to other circumstances. If compliance is important, clinicians may want to consider the effects of age, sex and C‐factor.
Silencing Fc Domains in T cell–Engaging Bispecific Antibodies Improves T-cell Trafficking and Antitumor Potency

Silencing Fc domains of bispecific antibodies (BsAbs) improves T-cell trafficking and antitumor effects in GD2+ and HER2+ tumor systems and two mouse models. Future BsAb designs that inactivate Fc domains could improve antitumor efficacy and limit organ toxicities. Bispecific antibodies (BsAb) that engage T cells bind to tumor cells via a tumor-associated antigen and to T cells through surface CD3. BsAbs have promising antitumor properties in vivo. Here, we describe the effects of Fc silencing on BsAb-driven T-cell trafficking to solid tumors. We used BsAbs specific for disialoganglioside GD2 or oncoprotein ErbB2 (HER2) and built on the IgG(L)-scFv platform with or without Fc silencing. We studied the kinetics of T-cell infiltration from blood into solid tumor masses when driven by these BsAbs. We also investigated the therapeutic efficacy of these BsAbs in two mouse models: immunodeficient mice xenografted with patient-derived GD2+ neuroblastoma or HER2+ breast cancer, and human CD3ϵ transgenic mice implanted with a GD2+ murine tumor. BsAbs built with intact Fc domain were unable to drive T cells to tumor, thereby failing to achieve an antitumor effect in mice. T cells became sequestered in lungs by myeloid cells or depleted in circulation. In contrast, when Fc function was silenced by N297A ± K322A mutations, T cells were able to infiltrate into subcutaneous solid tumors, a prerequisite for successful therapy outcome.
Aeromonas hydrophila, an Emerging Causative Agent of Freshwater-Farmed Whiteleg shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei

Aeromonas hydrophila is a well-known bacterial pathogen associated with mass mortalities in aquaculture. Yet, few reports are available on whiteleg shrimp-pathogenic A. hydrophila. In the present study, a virulent isolate WS05 was confirmed as a causative agent of diseased freshwater-cultured whiteleg shrimp and showed a mean lethal dose (LD50) value of 4.8 × 104 CFU mL−1. It was identified phenotypically and molecularly as an A. hydrophila strain, and exhibited susceptibility to several veterinary antibiotics extensively used in aquaculture, including cotrimoxazole, doxycycline, florfenicol, neomycin, and tetracycline. In view of the strongest inhibition zone of florfenicol against isolate WS05, the synergistic effect of the combinations of florfenicol and herb extracts was further evaluated, and the result indicated that Punica granatum extract was a potential synergist of florfenicol against isolate WS05 and the fractional inhibitory concentration index (FICI) for the florfenicol-P. granatum extract was calculated as 0.31. When combined with 7.81 mg mL−1 P. granatum extract, the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of florfenicol against isolate WS05 was reduced from 0.50 to 0.03 mg L−1, and its activity against isolate WS05 was also enhanced with a significant reduction of ≥3.61 log in cell density after 24 h of treatment compared with that in the single drug treatment. In addition, the protective effect was potentiated by the combination of florfenicol and P. granatum extract, with a cumulative mortality of 36.66% (p < 0.05) and 33.33% (p < 0.05) lower than that in the single treatment with florfenicol and P. granatum extract after the challenge with isolate WS05 for seven days. As far as we know, this is the first study to describe whiteleg shrimp-pathogenic A. hydrophila and suggest P. granatum extract as a potential synergist of florfenicol against the A. hydrophila pathogen.
CMOS Image Sensor Design and Image Processing Algorithm Implementation for Total Hip Arthroplasty Surgery

As the average age of the population goes higher, the people undergo hip arthroplasty surgery to replace their stiff and painful damaged hip joints. To reduce the risk factor after the surgery we developed a visual aided system in previous works. In order to solve the integration problems of commercial camera with other sensors into the femoral head and to minimize the area and power consumption, in this paper we propose a CMOS image sensor of resolution 200 × 200 specially designed for the application in which each individual pixel measures around 15 μm × 15 μm in size and the image sensor chip size measures about 3.5 mm × 3.5 mm. The proposed sensor is simulated with the input current variations from 2 pA to 100 pA for the individual pixels and the corresponding measurements for each pixel range from 2 mV to 855 mV. Besides, we put forward a new method of pattern detection and recognition in the blood-covered situation, which provides an accurate segmentation of patterns from the blood. All the detected patterns are recognized by generating its right 9-bit binary ID required for the pose estimation calculation. Furthermore, to reduce system power consumption, we implement algorithms on FPGA to process the image data pixel by pixel and transmit it directly to the computer for post-processing. Experimental results show that the pattern detection rate goes as high as 99%, which is 5% better in accuracy compared to the top hat algorithm. The power consumption of the system is 213 mW, which is a 70% decrease compared to our previous work.
Evaluation of date palm pollen (Phoenix dactylifera L.) encapsulation, impact on the nutritional and functional properties of fortified yoghurt

The aim of this study was to evaluate Egyptian date palm pollen (DPP) grains composition, physical and functional potentials in comparing with two forms; 80% ethanol extract, and nanoencapsulated form. Functional yoghurt fortified with DPP in three forms was prepared and their physicochemical, microstructure, texture and sensory characteristics were assessed. The micro morphology was explored via Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy was employed for functional groups detection. Phenolic compounds were detected by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) while fatty acids were identified via Gas Liquid Chromatography (GLC). Cytotoxicity of DPP nanocapsules was evaluated against RPE1 cell line (BJ1). The Egyptian date palm pollen grains evaluation revealed its rich content of protein and carbohydrate (36.28 and 17.14 g/ 100g), high content of Fe, Zn and Mg (226.5, 124.4 and 318 mg/100g), unsaturated fatty acids ω-3, ω-6 and ω-9 (8.76, 20.26 and 7.11 g/100g, which was increased by ethanol extraction) and phenolic compounds especially catechin (191.73 μg/mL) which was pronounced in DPP antioxidant potentials (IC50 35.54 mg/g). The FTIR analyses indicated the presence of soluble amides (proteins) and polysaccharides (fibers) functional groups in DPP. Fortification with nanoencapsulated DPP proved to be safe and the recommended form due to the announced positive characteristics. Yoghurt fortification with DPP forms enhanced viscosity, syneresis and Water Holding Capacity (WHC), which can be considered a symbiotic functional product as it contained both probiotics (106 CFU/g) and prebiotics represented in DPP forms.
Eco-Friendly β-cyclodextrin and Linecaps Polymers for the Removal of Heavy Metals

Environment-friendly nanosponges, having a high content of carboxyl groups, were synthesized by crosslinking β-cyclodextrin and linecaps, a highly soluble pea starch derivative, with citric acid in water. Additionally, pyromellitic nanosponges were prepared by reacting β-cyclodextrin and linecaps with pyromellitic dianhydride in dimethyl sulfoxide and used in comparison with the citric nanosponges. After ion-exchange of the carboxyl groups H+ with sodium ions, the ability of the nanosponges to sequester heavy metal cations was investigated. At a metal concentration of 500 ppm, the pyromellitate nanosponges exhibited a higher retention capacity than the citrate nanosponges. At lower metal concentrations (≤50 ppm) both the citrate and the pyromellitate nanosponges showed high retention capacities (up to 94% of the total amount of metal), while, in the presence of interfering sea water salts, the citrate nanosponges were able to selectively adsorb a significantly higher amount of heavy metals than the pyromellitate nanosponges, almost double in the case of Cu2+.
A robotic ankle-foot orthosis with integrated electromyography biofeedback control for improving gait symmetry in stroke rehabilitation

OF THE THESIS A ROBOTIC ANKLE-FOOT ORTHOSIS WITH INTEGRATED ELECTROMYOGRAPHY BIOFEEDBACK CONTROL FOR IMPROVING GAIT SYMMETRY IN STROKE REHABILITATION by Szu-Min Chang Florida International University, 2007 Miami, Florida Professor Diana Rincon, Major Professor The pathology of stroke attacks the central nervous system commonly resulting in the loss of voluntary neuromuscular control which negatively affects the walking capability of many survivors. New rehabilitation techniques utilizing biofeedback, robotic assisted movements, and gait specific exercises have been shown individually to increase the neurological recovery as compared to traditional methods of physical rehabilitation. The Biofeedback Assisted Robotic Ankle-foot orthosis (B.A.R.A.) is a prototype that combines all three characteristic treatments into a single portable device focused on improving voluntary dorsiflexion capability and gait patterns of the ankle-foot complex. The initial pilot study utilized a single healthy individual to study the joint angle patterns of the ankle while utilizing the BARA device in a drop-foot gait simulation. The resulting angular positional curves showed general patterns representative of a normal gait cycle while eliminating the hazardous effects of drop-foot.
Effects of Physical Exercise on the Stereotyped Behavior of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Background and Objectives: Recent studies have shown the existence of a positive relationship between physical exercise, symptomatic improvement, and reduction of damage caused by comorbidities associated with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) in children, adolescents, and adults. The aim of this systematic review with meta-analysis (SRM) was to estimate the effects of physical exercise (PE) on the stereotyped behaviors of children with a diagnosis of ASD in intervention studies. Materials and Methods: The design followed the PRISMA guidelines and the TREND statement to assess the quality of information in each study. Nine non-randomized intervention trial studies with low, moderate, and vigorous physical exercise, with a duration varying from 8 to 48 weeks and a frequency of 3 times a week, were included in the SRM. The dependent variable episodes of stereotypical behaviors was analyzed in all studies and assessed as the number of episodes demonstrated by the child in pre- versus post-exercise intervention conditions. Results: The eight studies included a total 129 children (115 males and 14 females) with an average age of 8.93 ± 1.69 years. Children with ASD showed a reduction of 1.1 in the number of occurrences of stereotypical behaviors after intervention with physical exercise. Conclusion: Evidence was found to support physical exercise as an effective tool in reducing the number of episodes of stereotypical behaviors in children diagnosed with ASD.
I’ll make you an offer you can refuse: How socially sensitive is the MFN?

ABSTRACT Medial frontal negativity (MFN) is an event-related potential thought to originate in the anterior cingulate cortex. It is evoked by outcomes being worse than expected, such as when presented with unfair economic proposals during the Ultimatum Game (UG). This could mean the MFN indexes a social-emotional response, as commonly suggested in accounts that relate it to a violation of a social norm of fairness. To examine the link between MFN and norm violation, we designed an EEG experiment with participants acting as representatives in an UG. Participants responded either as themselves, or as representatives of two charities. Of these, a norm-compatible charity conformed to the participant’s values, while the norm-incompatible charity contrasted to them. The behavioral results showed that norm-incompatible representation reversed behavior, with almost all fair offers being declined. The MFN, however, was unaffected by the norm representation, with unfair offers consistently evoking MFNs across conditions. We furthermore replicated the curious finding that unexpectedly generous offers evoke as much MFN as unfair offers. Thus, the MFN is not nearly as sensitive to higher-order social-emotional processes as commonly assumed. Instead, the perceived inequality that drives the MFN likely reflects a rational, probabilistic process.
PolyASite 2.0: a consolidated atlas of polyadenylation sites from 3′ end sequencing

Abstract Generated by 3′ end cleavage and polyadenylation at alternative polyadenylation (poly(A)) sites, alternative terminal exons account for much of the variation between human transcript isoforms. More than a dozen protocols have been developed so far for capturing and sequencing RNA 3′ ends from a variety of cell types and species. In previous studies, we have used these data to uncover novel regulatory signals and cell type-specific isoforms. Here we present an update of the PolyASite (https://polyasite.unibas.ch) resource of poly(A) sites, constructed from publicly available human, mouse and worm 3′ end sequencing datasets by enforcing uniform quality measures, including the flagging of putative internal priming sites. Through integrated processing of all data, we identified and clustered sites that are closely spaced and share polyadenylation signals, as these are likely the result of stochastic variations in processing. For each cluster, we identified the representative - most frequently processed - site and estimated the relative use in the transcriptome across all samples. We have established a modern web portal for efficient finding, exploration and export of data. Database generation is fully automated, greatly facilitating incorporation of new datasets and the updating of underlying genome resources.
Role reversal: adaptive immunity instructs inflammasome activation for anti‐viral defence

Signalling by innate immune cells is critical to shaping the adaptive immune response to microbial infection. In this issue of The EMBO Journal, Labzin et al reveal that the adaptive immune system can instruct the innate response to adenovirus infection. In human macrophages, antibody‐coated adenovirus triggers a novel TRIM21‐dependent pathway that activates the NLRP3 inflammasome and the secretion of IL‐1β.
Expression Profiling of Candidate Genes in Sugar Beet Leaves Treated with Leonardite-Based Biostimulant

Leonardite-based biostimulants are a large class of compounds, including humic acid substances. Foliar application of biostimulants at field level improves plant growth, yield and quality through metabolic changes and stimulation of plant proton pumps. The present study aimed at identifying optimum dosage of BLACKJAK, a humic acid-based substance, which is able to modify genes involved in sugar beet growth. Thirty-three genes belonging to various biochemical pathway categories were tested in leaves of treated sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L.) samples to assess gene expression profiling in response to BLACKJAK. Seedlings of a diploid and multigerm variety were grown in plastic pots and sprayed with two dilutions of BLACKJAK (dilution 1:500–1.0 mg C L−1 and dilution 1:1000–0.5 mg C L−1). Leaf samples were collected after 24, 48, and 72 h treatment with BLACKJAK for each dilution. RNA was extracted and the quantification of gene expression was performed while using an OpenArray platform. Results of analysis of variance demonstrated that, 15 genes out of a total of 33 genes tested with OpenArray qPCR were significantly affected by treatment and exposure time. Analysis for annotation of gene products and pathways revealed that genes belonging to the mitochondrial respiratory pathways, nitrogen and hormone metabolisms, and nutrient uptake were up-regulated in the BLACKJAK treated samples. Among the up-regulated genes, Bv_PHT2;1 and Bv_GLN1 expression exerted a 2-fold change in 1:1000 and 1:500 BLACKJAK concentrations. Overall, the gene expression data in the BLACKJAK treated leaves demonstrated the induction of plant growth–related genes that were contributed almost to amino acid and nitrogen metabolism, plant defense system, and plant growth.
The Effects of Eplerenone on the Circadian Blood Pressure Pattern and Left Ventricular Hypertrophy in Patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Resistant Hypertension—A Randomized, Controlled Trial

The obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is highly associated with various significant cardiovascular outcomes such as resistant hypertension (RAH). Despite this, as of now the relationship between high night-time blood pressure (BP) and left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) in patients with OSA and RAH is not fully understood. The aim of this study was to assess the influence of the addition of eplerenone to a standard antihypertensive therapy on parameters of 24-h ambulatory blood pressure measurement (ABPM) as well as on the results of echocardiography and polysomnography in patients with OSA and RAH. The patients were randomly assigned to one of the two study groups: the treatment group, receiving 50 mg/d eplerenone orally for 6 months (n = 51) and the control group, remaining on their standard antihypertensive therapy (n = 51). After that period, a significant reduction in the night-time BP parameters in the treatment group including an increased night blood pressure fall from 4.6 to 8.9% was noted. Additionally, the number of non-dipper patients was reduced by 45.1%. The treatment group also revealed a decrease in left ventricular hypertrophy and in the apnea–hypopnea index (AHI) with a positive correlation being observed between these two parameters. This study is the first to report the improvement of the circadian BP profile and the improvement of the left ventricle geometry in patients with OSA and RAH following the addition of selective mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists to antihypertensive therapy.
Finite-Frequency H-/H∞ Fault Detection for Discrete-Time T–S Fuzzy Systems With Unmeasurable Premise Variables

This paper investigates a finite-frequency <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$H_{-}/H_{\infty }$ </tex-math></inline-formula> fault detection method for discrete-time T–S fuzzy systems with unmeasurable premise variables. To minimize the effect of uncertainties on system performance and maximize that of actuator faults on the generated residual, both the <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$H_{\infty }$ </tex-math></inline-formula> disturbance attenuation index and finite-frequency <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$H_{-}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> fault sensitivity index are utilized. Since the premised variables are unmeasurable, the existing generalized Kalman–Yakubovich–Popov lemma cannot be directly extended to these nonlinear systems. In this paper, the conditions of allowing one to design the proposed <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$H_{-}/H_{\infty }$ </tex-math></inline-formula> fault detection observer are established and transformed into linear matrix inequalities. Some scalars and slack matrices are introduced to bring extra degrees of freedom in observer design. Finally, a single-link robotic manipulator model is utilized to illustrate that the proposed technique can detect faults with smaller amplitude than that required by a normal <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$H_{\infty }$ </tex-math></inline-formula> observer technique.
The Silent Minority: Insights into Who Fails to Present for Medical Care Following a Brain Injury

Background: The WHO and Center for Disease Control have identified that current estimates of brain injury incidence miss individuals who do not seek medical attention for their injury. Methods: The Canadian Community Health Survey is a nationally representative health survey. Respondents aged 12 years and above reporting “concussion or other brain injury” occurring within the previous year also reported whether they had received any medical attention from a health professional within 48 h of their injury. Results: Nationally representative data were available biennially from 2000/2001 through 2013/2014 with the exception of 2007/2008 and 2011/2012. In all, 1,749 respondents reported concussion or other brain injury with disability in the previous 12 months. Of these, 21.9% (95% CI 19.0–24.7) reported not having received medical attention from a health professional within 48 h following their injury. Within a multivariable model, those who are more likely not to receive medical care with 48 h of incurring a brain injury are more likely to be younger (<20 years) or older (>24 years), have an injury incurred through sports exposure or in or around their home, do not identify as immigrant, and are currently smokers. The area under the ROC was modest at 0.58. Conclusions: Within a nationally representative sample of individuals reporting concussion or other brain injury, we found that those reporting medical non-attendance and those reporting medical attendance within 48 h of their injury were remarkably similar. This outcome suggests that brain injury surveillance based on point of care may produce relatively unbiased samples of the brain injured population.