Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Melanoxetin: A Hydroxylated Flavonoid Attenuates Oxidative Stress and Modulates Insulin Resistance and Glycation Pathways in an Animal Model of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) continues to escalate, necessitating innovative therapeutic approaches that target distinct pathways and address DM complications. Flavonoids have been shown to possess several pharmacological activities that are important for DM. This study aimed to evaluate the in vivo effects of the flavonoid melanoxetin using Goto-Kakizaki rats. Over a period of 14 days, melanoxetin was administered subcutaneously to investigate its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antidiabetic properties. The results show that melanoxetin reduced insulin resistance in adipose tissue by targeting protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B. Additionally, melanoxetin counteracted oxidative stress by reducing nitrotyrosine levels and modulating superoxide dismutase 1 and hemeoxygenase in adipose tissue and decreasing methylglyoxal-derived hydroimidazolone (MG-H1), a key advanced glycation end product (AGE) implicated in DM-related complications. Moreover, the glyoxalase 1 expression decreased in both the liver and the heart, correlating with reduced AGE levels, particularly MG-H1 in the heart. Melanoxetin also demonstrated anti-inflammatory effects by reducing serum prostaglandin E2 levels, and increasing the antioxidant status of the aorta wall through enhanced acetylcholine-dependent relaxation in the presence of ascorbic acid. These findings provide valuable insights into melanoxetin’s therapeutic potential in targeting multiple pathways involved in type 2 DM, particularly in mitigating oxidative stress and glycation.
Regional environmental differences significantly affect the genetic structure and genetic differentiation of Carpinus tientaiensis Cheng, an endemic and extremely endangered species from China

Differences in topography and environment greatly affect the genetic structure and genetic differentiation of species, and endemic or endangered species with limited geographic ranges seem to be more sensitive to changes in climate and other environmental factors. The complex topography of eastern China is likely to affect genetic differentiation of plants there. Carpinus tientaiensis Cheng is a native and endangered plants from China, and exploring its genetic diversity has profound significance for protection and the collection of germplasm resources. Based on AFLP markers, this study found that C. tientaiensis has low genetic diversity, which mainly came from within populations, while Shangshantou and Tiantai Mountain populations have relatively high genetic diversity. The Nei genetic distance was closely related to geographical distance, and temperature and precipitation notablely affected the genetic variation and genetic differentiation of C. tientaiensis. Based on cpDNA, this study indicated that C. tientaiensis exhibits a moderate level of genetic diversity, and which mainly came from among populations, while Tiantai Mountain population have the highest genetic diversity. It demonstrated that there was genetic differentiation between populations, which can be divided into two independent geographical groups, but there was no significant phylogeographic structure between them. The MaxEnt model showed that climate change significantly affects its distribution, and the suitable distribution areas in Zhejiang were primarily divided into two regions, eastern Zhejiang and southern Zhejiang, and there was niche differentiation in its suitable distribution areas. Therefore, this study speculated that the climate and the terrain of mountains and hills in East China jointly shape the genetic structure of C. tientaiensis, which gived rise to an obvious north-south differentiation trend of these species, and the populations located in the hilly areas of eastern Zhejiang and the mountainous areas of southern Zhejiang formed two genetic branches respectively.
Remote sensing for identifying high emitters and validating emission models

1MAG-Program, IIASA – International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, 2361 Laxenburg, Austria 2Institute of Transportation Studies, University of California, Davis, CA 95616 United States 3Institute for Internal Combustion Engines and Thermodynamics, Graz University of Technology, Austria 4IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute Ltd., Gothenburg, Sweden 5Institute for Transportation Studies, Leeds University, UK
An Azimuth Aware Deep Reinforcement Learning Framework for Active SAR Target Recognition

Achieving automatic target recognition in synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery is a long-standing difficulty because of the limited training samples and its sensitivity to imaging condition. Active target recognition methods can offer an innovative perspective to improve recognition accuracy compared to their passive counterparts. Although prevailing in the optical imagery area, the active target recognition in SAR image processing remains underexplored. This article proposes an active SAR target recognition framework based on deep reinforcement learning for the first time, where we design a simple view-matching task and model it as a Markov decision process. The proximal policy optimization algorithm is used to help the agent learn how to alter the observing azimuth to seek more discriminative target images for the classifier. Furthermore, the single-view feature extractor is trained with the contrastive learning method to help distinguish the target images under different azimuths, allowing the agent to successfully learn the active data collection policy in the training environment and transfer it to the test environment. Lastly, the effectiveness and advancement of the proposed framework are verified on the SAMPLE dataset. When the training samples for the classifier are very scarce, it could bring around 10% more gain in target recognition rate compared to existing active target recognition frameworks.
KINSHIP AFFILIATION THROUGH TIME: BLACK HOMECOMINGS AND FAMILY REUNIONS

This paper illustrates ways in which annual homecomings and family reunions have acted to reinforce ties of kinship and affinity over time among the Black residents of a rural hamlet in the Piedmont region of North Carolina. Homecomings and family reunions are annual ceremonies in which three types of familial status may be observed: (1) the status one holds as a resident of the hamlet, in opposition to other such hamlets in the country; (2) one's status as a member of a specific kin unit within the hamlet vis-a-vis other such units; and (3) one's status as an affine. This paper is concerned with familial segmentation and the articulation which occurs between such segments. An attempt has been made to utilize historical sources (census records, oral histories, and local church and family records), in addition to participant observation, in order to analyze the formation of kin units and their subsequent segmentation over time. This paper illustrates ways in which annual church homecomings and family reunions have acted to reinforce ties of kinship and affinity over time among the Black residents of a rural hamlet in the Piedmont region of North Carolina. Homecomings and family reunions are annual ceremonies in which three types of familial status may be observed: (1) the status one holds as a resident of the hamlet, in opposition to other hamlets in the county; (2) one's status as a member of a specific kin unit within the hamlet vis-a-vis other such units; and (3) one's status as an affine. This paper, then, is concerned with familial segmentation and the articulation which occurs between such segments. An attempt has been made to utilize historical sources (census data, oral histories, and local church and family records), in addition to participant observation, in order to analyze the formation of kin units and their subsequent segmentation over time. 1 In this paper, kinship is conceived of as a social category which ties individuals together through time and space, resulting in an "axiom of amity" so that among a large number of consanguineal and affinal relatives certain types of obligations and affinity are felt towards certain kinsmen more so than others (Fortes 1969:251). Homecomings and family reunions become important focal points of interaction between kin, as they reestablish ties of descent from key ancestors and hence determine status within the hamlet, and act to signal the status of the participant as either a direct descendent of an important ancestor through consanguineal links,or an affine whose familial history is
Dimensiuni sociale ale succesului şcolar: rolul şcolii şi comunităţii în performanţa şcolară a elevilor

ercetarea de faţă se bazează pe rezultatele anchetei-pilot a proiectului Diagnosticul social al performanţei şcolare prin scala socială a succesului şcolar şi proiectarea unor metode de intervenţie validate prin cercetare, proiect ce îşi propune identificarea şi evaluarea unor modalităţi eficiente de influenţare a aspectelor sociale ale succesului şcolar. Proiectul are la bază validarea în România a unui instrument construit la Universitatea Chapel Hill din SUA si denumit School Success Profile – SSP (Profilul Succesului Şcolar – PSS). Articolul este centrat pe relaţiile dintre gradul de siguranţă al cartierului, respectiv gradul de siguranţă al şcolii şi prezenţa elevilor la ore, evitarea problemelor la şcoală şi notele obţinute de aceştia. Instrumentul are la bază o perspectivă ecologică şi contribuie la identificarea adolescenţilor aflaţi în situaţii de risc şcolar. Am ales acest model de lucru pentru a arăta că factorii sociali menţionaţi mai sus trebuie cuprinşi în planurile de îmbunătăţire a managementului educaţional. Inovaţia educaţională poate începe, după părerea noastră, prin analiza situaţională a variabilelor amintite şi poate fi continuată prin intervenţii ţintite. O preocupare reală pentru succesul şcolar al elevilor va trebui să ţină seama, în mod concret, de variabilele puse în evidenţă de acest studiu, variabile ale căror pondere este modificabilă prin programe de intervenţie ţintite. Cuvinte-cheie: Profilul Succesului Şcolar, perspectiva ecologică, performanţa şcolară, siguranţa cartierului, siguranţa şcolii.
Real-Time Traffic Flow Analysis without Background Modeling

In this study, the research goal is to analyze the traffic flow with the vision-based method. However, the vision-based methods may face the problems of serious illumination variation , shadows, moving clouds, or swaying trees. Here, we propose a novel vehicle detection method without background modeling to overcome the aforementioned problems. First, a modified block-based frame differential method is established to quickly detect the moving targets without the influences of rapid illumination changes. Second, the precise targets’ regions are extracted by the dual foregrounds fusion method. Third, a texture-based object segmentation method is proposed to segment each vehicle from the merged foreground image blob and remove the shadows. Fourth, a false foreground filtering method is developed based on the concept of motion entropy to remove the false object regions caused by the swaying trees or moving clouds. Finally, the texture-based target tracking method is proposed to track each detected target and then apply the virtual-loop detector to compute the traffic flow. Furthermore, the traffic jam event is also detected in the proposed system. Experimental results show that our proposed system can work in real time with the computing rate above 20 fps and the average of accuracy of vehicle counting can approach 86%.
Genome-Wide Analysis of SPL Gene Family and Functional Identification of JrSPL02 Gene in the Early Flowering of Walnut

SPL transcription factors affect plant growth and development, including blooming and photoperiod control. The investigation began with transcriptome data screening of 28 JrSPL genes in walnut (Junglans regia L.) ‘Wen185’. These genes were discovered on all chromosomes except 6 and 15. Phylogenetic study divides the 28 JrSPL genes into five groupings. The biggest cluster, cluster IV, has 12 JrSPL genes. The expression of JrSPL genes in different tissues was investigated by qRT-PCR. JrSPL02 gene expression was greater in walnut female and male flower tissues than other genes. Subcellular localization has shown the JrSPL02 gene resides in the nucleus. Jre-miR156 may target JrSPL02’s 3′-UTR region, according to miRNA sequencing, RACE, and BiFC studies. Arabidopsis plants expressing the JrSPL02 gene flowered 3 days faster than the wild type, according to phenotypic observation. Transgenic lines had more stem branches and siliques than the control group but fewer rosette leaves. In summary, this study functionally analyses the metamorphosis of the miR156-SPL module during the blooming stage and the underlying mechanisms that govern early fruiting in early-fruiting walnuts in Xinjiang.
Bone damage and health-related quality of life in Hodgkin lymphoma survivors: closing the gaps

In the recent decades, remarkable successes have been recorded in the treatment of Hodgkin’s lymphoma to the point that today it represents one of the neoplasms with the highest rates of cure and with the highest life expectancy. Nonetheless, this raises the concern for the health of long- term survivors. Late side effects of treatments in synergy with other risk factors expose survivors to increased morbidity and impaired quality of life. In the complexity of the topics concerning these last aspects, an area of growing interest is that of bone damage that follows Hodgkin Lymphoma and its treatments. In this narrative review, we conducted our work through assessment of available evidence focusing on several aspects linking bone damage and quality of life with Hodgkin lymphoma and its treatments. At present, the problem of osteopenia and osteoporosis in Hodgkin lymphoma survivors is a theme for which awareness and knowledge need to be implemented.
Characterization and Anti-Ultraviolet Radiation Activity of Proanthocyanidin-Rich Extracts from Cinnamomum camphora by Ultrasonic-Assisted Method

The ultrasonic-assisted extraction (UAE) method was employed to separate Cinnamomum camphora proanthocyanidin-rich extracts (PCEs). This extraction process was optimized by the Box–Behnken design, and the optimal conditions, on a laboratory scale, were as follows: an ethanol concentration of 75%, a liquid-to-solid ratio of 24 mL/g, an ultrasonic time of 39 min, and an ultrasonic power of 540 W. Under the obtained conditions, the PCE yield extracted by UAE was higher than that from heat reflux extraction and soaking extraction. An ultra-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry analysis was employed to characterize the phloroglucinolysis products of the C. camphora PCEs, by which epigallocatechin, catechin, epicatechin, and (−)-epigallocatechin-3-O-gallate were identified as the terminal units; epigallocatechin, epicatechin, and (−)-epigallocatechin-3-O-gallate were recognized as extension units. The C. camphora PCEs possessed higher anti-ultraviolet activity in vitro compared with the commercially available sunscreen additive of benzophenone with respect to their ethanol solutions (sun protection factor of 27.01 ± 0.68 versus 1.96 ± 0.07 at a concentration of 0.09 mg/mL) and sunscreens (sun protection factor of 17.36 ± 0.62 versus 14.55 ± 0.47 at a concentration of 20%). These results demonstrate that C. camphora PCEs possess an excellent ultraviolet-protection ability and are promising green sunscreen additives that can replace commercial additives.
Therapeutic Targeting of Hypoxia-Inducible Factors in Cancer

In the realm of cancer therapeutics, targeting the hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) pathway has emerged as a promising strategy. This study delves into the intricate web of HIF-associated mechanisms, exploring avenues for future anticancer therapies. Framing the investigation within the broader context of cancer progression and hypoxia response, this article aims to decipher the pivotal role played by HIF in regulating genes influencing angiogenesis, cell proliferation, and glucose metabolism. Employing diverse approaches such as HIF inhibitors, anti-angiogenic therapies, and hypoxia-activated prodrugs, the research methodologically intervenes at different nodes of the HIF pathway. Findings showcase the efficacy of agents like EZN-2968, Minnelide, and Acriflavine in modulating HIF-1α protein synthesis and destabilizing HIF-1, providing preliminary proof of HIF-1α mRNA modulation and antitumor activity. However, challenges, including toxicity, necessitate continued exploration and development, as exemplified by ongoing clinical trials. This article concludes by emphasizing the potential of targeted HIF therapies in disrupting cancer-related signaling pathways.
Toxic Effects of Different Coating-Related Functionalized Nanoparticles on Aquatic Organisms

The peculiar physico-chemical characteristics of nanomaterials (NMs) and the use of different coatings to improve their expected properties result in a huge amount of nanoforms, which vary in chemical composition, size, shape and surface characteristics. This makes it almost impossible to test all the nanoforms available, and efforts have been made to establish grouping or read-across strategies. The aim of this work was to find a behavior pattern of effect among nanoforms of different metallic core nanoparticles (NPs) (TiO2, CeO2 and Ag NP) with the same coatings (sodium citrate, poly (ethylene glycol), dodecylphosphonic acid or oleylamine). Daphnia magna, rainbow trout and two fish cell lines (PLHC-1 and RTH-149) were exposed to a range of concentrations (up to 100 mg/L) of the uncoated or coated NPs. Ag NPs were the most toxic, followed by CeO2 NPs and finally by TiO2 NPs. The results show that a clear pattern of toxicity in the studied species could not be established related to the coatings. However, it was possible to confirm different inter-species sensitivities. RTH-149 was the most sensitive cell line, and Daphnia magna was more sensitive than fish. Moreover, some differences in coating-core interactions were found between the metal oxide and the metal NPs in Daphnia magna.
Universidad e investigación

El objetivo de este trabajo es medir la relación de las universidades con la investigación. Se trata de situar a cada universidad en escalas relativas de capacidad investigadora, de esfuerzo u orientación hacia la investigación y de excelencia investigadora. El método utilizado se basa en el análisis de los resultados agregados de la competencia que los investigadores desarrollan por la financiación pública de la I+D. El periodo utilizado para la construcción de los datos corresponde a los proyectos de I+D financiados por la Administración General del Estado entre 1996 y 2001, a través de los Programas Nacionales de I+D y del Programa de Promoción General del Conocimiento (PGC). De modo singular se analizarán las actividades de investigación en el ámbito de las Ciencias Sociales y Económicas.
Mitigating Injection-Based Weaknesses: A Flexible Template Architecture

Addressing vulnerabilities in software requires consideration of architectural issues. This paper presents a flexible architecture using design patterns to address software vulnerabilities. The architecture employs an extensible security template for mitigating injection-based weaknesses in authentication, authorization, and data validation. The paper presents the architecture’s associated algorithms, demonstrates the mapping of weaknesses to use cases and the utilization of architectural, behavioral, and security patterns to mitigate them. A case study application is used to show the prevention of use-case specific weaknesses
The transcription factors and pathways underpinning male reproductive development in Arabidopsis

As Arabidopsis flowers mature, specialized cells within the anthers undergo meiosis, leading to the production of haploid microspores that differentiate into mature pollen grains, each containing two sperm cells for double fertilization. During pollination, the pollen grains are dispersed from the anthers to the stigma for subsequent fertilization. Transcriptomic studies have identified a large number of genes expressed over the course of male reproductive development and subsequent functional characterization of some have revealed their involvement in floral meristem establishment, floral organ growth, sporogenesis, meiosis, microsporogenesis, and pollen maturation. These genes encode a plethora of proteins, ranging from transcriptional regulators to enzymes. This review will focus on the regulatory networks that control male reproductive development, starting from flower development and ending with anther dehiscence, with a focus on transcription factors and some of their notable target genes.
The Role of Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme (ACE) Polymorphisms in the Risk of Development and Treatment of Diabetic Nephropathy

Background: Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) is responsible for the production of angiotensin II, and increased production of angiotensin II is observed in diabetes. What is more, ACE polymorphisms may play a role in the development of diabetic nephropathy. The aim of this study was to assess the role of selected ACE polymorphisms (rs4343 and rs4646994) in the risk of development of diabetic nephropathy and in the likelihood of renal replacement therapy. Methods: ACE polymorphisms were analyzed in a group of 225 patients who were divided into three subgroups. The rs4343 polymorphism was determined using the PCR-RFLP, and the rs4646994 polymorphism was determined using the PCR. Molecular docking between domains of ACE and its ligands was performed by using AutoDock Vina. Results: The G/G genotype of rs4343 polymorphism is associated with increased odds of developing diabetic nephropathy. The G allele is also associated with a higher risk of this disease. Similar results were obtained in patients who had already had a kidney transplant as a result of diabetic nephropathy. Conclusions: The presence of G/G and G/A genotypes, and the G allele increases the likelihood of developing diabetic nephropathy. This may also be a risk factor for renal replacement therapy.