Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Monitoring and recovery of hyperglycaemia-induced endothelial dysfunction with rheopheresis in diabetic lower extremity ulceration with hyperviscosity

Aims Rheopheresis is an extracorporeal haematotherapy that improves haemorheological status by filtering proteins that enhance blood viscosity. It also has anti-inflammatory effects by removing inflammatory cytokines. Our study aims to examine the effects of rheopheresis on the endothelial status in diabetic lower extremity ulceration. Methods In vitro experiments were performed in a HUVEC model to mimic hyperglycaemic stress. We determined the changes in gene expression levels of IL-6, IL-8, TNF-alpha, endothelin convertase enzyme, ET-1, and NO synthase, as well as the ROS and intracellular GSH levels upon hyperglycaemia. In in vivo studies, two rheopheresis procedures were performed on seven patients with diabetic lower extremity ulceration with hyperviscosity, and we measured the changes in plasma concentrations of ET-1, TXB2, SOD enzyme activity, and extracellular components of the glutathione pool depending on treatments. Results Our results showed that hyperglycaemia increases endothelial expression of inflammatory cytokines, ET-1, and endothelin convertase enzyme, while NO synthase was decreased. As a result of rheopheresis, we observed decreased ET-1 and TXB2 concentrations in the plasma and beneficial changes in the parameters of the glutathione pool. Conclusion To summarize our results, hyperglycaemia-induced oxidative stress and endothelial inflammation can be moderated by rheopheresis in diabetic lower extremity ulceration with hyperviscosity.
osr1 Maintains Renal Progenitors and Regulates Podocyte Development by Promoting wnt2ba via the Antagonism of hand2

Knowledge about the genetic pathways that control nephron development is essential for better understanding the basis of congenital malformations of the kidney. The transcription factors Osr1 and Hand2 are known to exert antagonistic influences to balance kidney specification. Here, we performed a forward genetic screen to identify nephrogenesis regulators, where whole genome sequencing identified an osr1 lesion in the novel oceanside (ocn) mutant. The characterization of the mutant revealed that osr1 is needed to specify not renal progenitors but rather their maintenance. Additionally, osr1 promotes the expression of wnt2ba in the intermediate mesoderm (IM) and later the podocyte lineage. wnt2ba deficiency reduced podocytes, where overexpression of wnt2ba was sufficient to rescue podocytes and osr1 deficiency. Antagonism between osr1 and hand2 mediates podocyte development specifically by controlling wnt2ba expression. These studies reveal new insights about the roles of Osr1 in promoting renal progenitor survival and lineage choice.
Making Every Meeting Count: A Qualitative Investigation of Multiteam Meeting Events and Their Role in Supporting Coordinated Cancer Care Delivery

PURPOSE: This research considers how cross-disciplinary cancer care meetings can facilitate coordination within the multiteam systems (MTSs) that provide inpatient hospital care. We conducted a series of interviews and observations with members of a single cancer care MTS to address the following research questions: (1) what are the key characteristics of MTS cancer care meetings (with regard to composition, focus, and structure)? and (2) how is cross-team coordination acknowledged and addressed during these meetings? METHODS: In this single-site case study of a MTS operating to provide gynecologic oncology care within a teaching hospital, two types of meetings, called rounds and huddles, were held consistently. We used qualitative methods, including interviews with health care professional subject matter experts and 30 hours of observations of cancer care meetings, and analyzed the data in three stages of qualitative coding. RESULTS: Our analyses resulted in a thematic framework detailing key processes, and subprocesses, identified as central to the activities of observed cancer care meetings. Key processes include information sharing, gaining clarity, strategizing, and pedagogy. Discussions and explanations of this framework showcase the ways in which MTS meetings can bolster cross-team coordination and facilitate MTS activities. CONCLUSION: Inpatient cancer care meetings provide opportunities to facilitate MTS coordination in several ways, yet doing so does not come without challenges. Considering these results together with insights from meeting science and MTS research, this article concludes by putting forward practical recommendations for leveraging opportunities and overcoming challenges to use cancer care meetings as tools to support cross-team coordination.
Rotational fluxons of Bose-Einstein condensates in coplanar double-ring traps

Institute of Fundamental Sciences, Massey University (Manawatu Campus), Private Bag 11 222, Palmerston North, New Zealand(Dated: February 26, 2009)Rotational analogs to magnetic ﬂuxons in conventional Jose phson junctions are predicted to emerge inthe ground state of rotating tunnel-coupled annular Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs). Such topologicalcondensate-phase structures can be manipulated by external potentials. We determine conditions for observ-ing macroscopic quantum tunneling of a ﬂuxon. Rotational ﬂu xons in double-ring BECs can be created, ma-nipulated, and controlled by external potential in different ways than possible in the solid state system, thusrendering them a promising new candidate system for studying and utilizing quantum properties of collectivemany-particle degrees of freedom.
Uncovering the effective spacetime: Lessons from the effective field theory rationale

The cosmological constant problem can be understood as the failure of the decoupling principle behind effective field theory, so that some quantities in the low-energy theory are extremely sensitive to the high-energy properties. While this reflects the genuine character of the cosmological constant, finding an adequate effective field theory framework which avoids this naturalness problem may represent a step forward to understand nature. Following this intuition, we consider a minimal modification of the structure of general relativity which as an effective theory permits to work consistently at low energies, i.e., below the quantum gravity scale. This effective description preserves the classical phenomenology of general relativity and the particle spectrum of the standard model, at the price of changing our conceptual and mathematical picture of spacetime.
Excitation dependence of resonance line self-broadening at different atomic densities

We study the dipole–dipole spectral broadening of a resonance line at high atomic densities when the self-broadening dominates. The selective reflection spectrum of a weak probe beam from the interface of the cell window and rubidium vapour is recorded in the presence of a far-detuned pump beam. The excitation due to the pump reduces the self-broadening. We found that the self-broadening reduction dependence on the pump power is atomic density independent. These results provide experimental evidence for the disordered exciton based theory of self-broadening, and can be useful for the description of the interaction of a strong optical field with a dense resonance medium.
Therapeutical Targets in Allergic Inflammation

From the discovery of IgE to the in-depth characterization of Th2 cells and ILC2, allergic inflammation has been extensively addressed to find potential therapeutical targets. To date, omalizumab, an anti-IgE monoclonal antibody, and dupilumab, an anti-IL-4 receptor α monoclonal antibody, represent two pillars of biologic therapy of allergic inflammation. Their increasing indications and long-term follow-up studies are shaping the many different faces of allergy. At the same time, their limitations are showing the intricate pathogenesis of allergic diseases.
Mechanical and Optical Characterization of a Suspended Core Fiber Exhibiting Fundamental-Mode Cutoff Wavelength in Presence of Nanoscale Air Holes in the Core Region

In this work, mechanical and optical characterization of a new type of suspended core fiber (SCF) has been performed. The proposed SCF along with additional central air holes exhibits an unusual property of fundamental mode cutoff at short wavelengths. Two variants (single hole and double hole) of design under two different fiber platforms (SiO2 and As2Se3) have been considered to develop better insight into the mechanical and optical properties of the structure deploying plane strain and full vector eigen analysis, respectively. Dependence of thermal stress likely to be present in such nanostructured fibers on fiber materials and geometries are thoroughly studied. A relation between the cutoff condition and geometrical parameters of the design has been obtained with reference to characteristic decay length which nullifies the possibility of any numerical artifact. In addition, improvement of fiber birefringence and evanescence sensing capability due to the presence of such air holes in the guided region has been theoretically demonstrated. Effects of such air holes on fiber properties like GVD and mode mismatch are also studied with a relation to power confinement inside such nano scale regions.
A SPITZER SEARCH FOR COLD DUST WITHIN GLOBULAR CLUSTERS

Globular cluster (GC) stars evolving off the main sequence are known to lose mass, and it is expected that some of the lost material should remain within the cluster as an intracluster medium (ICM). Most attempts to detect such an ICM have been unsuccessful. The Multiband Imaging Photometer for Spitzer on the Spitzer Space Telescope was used to observe eight Galactic GCs in an attempt to detect the thermal emission from ICM dust. Most clusters do not have significant detections at 70 μm; one cluster, NGC 6341, has tentative evidence for the presence of dust, but 90 μm observations do not confirm the detection. Individual 70 μm point sources which appear in several of the cluster images are likely to be background galaxies. The inferred dust mass and upper limits are less than 4 × 10−4 M☉, well below expectations for cluster dust production from mass loss in red and asymptotic giant branch stars. This implies that either GC dust production is less efficient, or that ICM removal or dust destruction is more efficient, than previously believed. We explore several possibilities for ICM removal and conclude that present data do not yet permit us to distinguish between them.
pH Alteration in Plant-Mediated Green Synthesis and Its Resultant Impact on Antimicrobial Properties of Silver Nanoparticles (AgNPs)

Plant-mediated green synthesis is a cost-effective and eco-friendly process used to synthesize metallic nanoparticles. Experimental pH is of interest due to its ability to influence nanoparticle size and shape; however, little has been explored in comparison to the influence of this parameter on the therapeutic potential of resultant metallic nanoparticles. Our work investigated the influence of pH alternation on antimicrobial properties of plant-mediated green synthesized (using Spinacia oleracea leaf extract) silver nanoparticles. We further investigated if the antimicrobial activity was sustained at 8 weeks (after initial green synthesis). Antimicrobial properties were evaluated against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Candida albicans. Our work confirmed that experimental pH in plant-mediated green synthesis of silver nanoparticles influenced their resultant antimicrobial properties. Silver nanoparticles generated at experimental pH 4.5, and nine showed activity against E. coli which was sustained at various levels over 8 weeks. No antimicrobial activity was observed against S. aureus, and weak antimicrobial activity against C. albicans. These interesting findings highlight the importance of experimental pH. Further understanding of the role experimental pH plays on resultant metallic nanoparticle properties as it relates to biological and therapeutic impact is required, which will have an impact on wider applications beyond antimicrobial activity.
Evolution of the Concept of Sepsis

Sepsis has been recognized for more than 2500 years, but the criteria used to identify it have evolved. Sepsis is an infection associated with some degree of organ dysfunction—put very simplistically, sepsis is a ‘bad infection’. Specific criteria may be useful for research purposes but have less value in day-to-day clinical practice. What is relevant here is early recognition and some awareness of severity so that appropriate therapy can be started without delay.
Antibiotic Resistance in the Finfish Aquaculture Industry: A Review

Significant challenges to worldwide sustainable food production continue to arise from environmental change and consistent population growth. In order to meet increasing demand, fish production industries are encouraged to maintain high growth densities and to rely on antibiotic intervention throughout all stages of development. The inappropriate administering of antibiotics over time introduces selective pressure, allowing the survival of resistant bacterial strains through adaptive pathways involving transferable nucleotide sequences (i.e., plasmids). This is one of the essential mechanisms of antibiotic resistance development in food production systems. This review article focuses on the main international regulations and governing the administering of antibiotics in finfish husbandry and summarizes recent data regarding the distribution of bacterial resistance in the finfish aquaculture food production chain. The second part of this review examines promising alternative approaches to finfish production, sustainable farming techniques, and vaccination that circumvents excessive antibiotic use, including new animal welfare measures. Then, we reflect on recent adaptations to increasingly interdisciplinary perspectives in the field and their greater alignment with the One Health initiative.
Performance Evaluation of Nested Polymerase Chain Reaction (Nested PCR), Light Microscopy, and Plasmodium falciparum Histidine-Rich Protein 2 Rapid Diagnostic Test (PfHRP2 RDT) in the Detection of Falciparum Malaria in a High-Transmission Setting in Southwestern Nigeria

Malaria remains a major public health challenge worldwide. In order to ensure a prompt and accurate malaria diagnosis, the World Health Organization recommended the confirmatory parasitological diagnosis of malaria by microscopy and malaria rapid diagnostic test (RDT) prior to antimalarial administration and treatment. This study was designed to evaluate the performance of nested polymerase chain reaction (nested PCR), light microscopy, and Plasmodium falciparum histidine-rich protein 2 rapid diagnostic test (PfHRP2 RDT) in the detection of falciparum malaria in Akure, Nigeria. A cross-sectional and hospital-based study involving 601 febrile volunteer participants was conducted in Akure, Nigeria. Approximately 2–3 mL venous blood samples were obtained from each study participant for parasitological confirmation by microscopy and PfHRP2-based malaria RDT. Thick and thin films were prepared and viewed under the light microscope for parasite detection, parasite density quantification, and species identification, respectively. Dry blood spot samples were prepared on 3MM Whatman filter paper for nested PCR. The overall prevalence of microscopy, PfHRP2 RDT, and nested PCR were 64.89% (390/601), 65.7% (395/601), and 67.39% (405/601), respectively. The estimates of sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, accuracy, and Youden’s j index of microscopy and RDT were 96.30, 100.00, 100.00, 92.89, 97.50, 0.963, and 95.06, 94.90, 97.47, 90.29, 95.01, and 0.899, respectively. Malaria RDT recorded higher false negativity, compared microscopy (4.94% vs. 3.70%). A near perfect agreement was reported between microscopy and nested PCR, and between PfHRP2 RDT and nested PCR with Cohen’s kappa (k) values of 0.94 and 0.88, respectively. This study revealed that PfHRP2 RDT and microscopy continues to remain sensitive and specific for falciparum malaria diagnosis in the study area.
Antiproton and Radio Constraints on the Dark Matter Interpretation of the Fermi Gamma Ray Observations of the Galactic Center

Recently, it was suggested that the gamma rays observed by the Fermi Gamma Ray Space Telescope from the direction of the galactic center could surprisingly well be described by a dark matter annihilation scenario, both in terms of their angular distribution and energy spectrum. Here, I point out that such a scenario would be in considerable tension with existing antiproton data, in particular the new PAMELA measurements. Radio data are even more constraining, thus disfavoring the dark matter hypothesis and making an astrophysical explanation of the observations much more plausible.
Corrections to Reissner-Nordström black hole solution due to exponential nonlinear electrodynamics

An exponential model of nonlinear electrodynamics coupled with the gravitational field is analyzed. It was shown that weak, dominant, and strong energy conditions are satisfied. We obtain corrections to Coulomb's law at r → ∞. It was demonstrated that the electric-magnetic duality between and frames is violated. The asymptotic black hole solution at is found that contains corrections to the Reissner-Nordström solution. The electromagnetic mass of the black hole is calculated, expressed through the parameter β of the model.
Technical Evaluation of qPCR Multiplex Assays for the Detection of Ixodes ricinus-Borne Pathogens

Background: The extent to which infections with Ixodes ricinus-borne pathogens (TBPs), other than Borrelia burgdorferi s. l. and tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV), cause disease in humans remains unclear. One of the reasons is that adequate diagnostic modalities are lacking in routine or research settings. Methods: We evaluated the analytical specificity, sensitivity and robustness of qPCR assays for the detection of Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Neoehrlichia mikurensis, Spiroplasma ixodetis, several Babesia species and Spotted Fever Rickettsia species as well as Bartonella species in human samples. Results: The qPCRs were found to perform well, given the difficulties of dealing with microorganisms for which confirmed patient materials are scarce or non-existent, a hurdle that was partially overcome by using synthetic controls. Spiking blood samples with the tested microorganisms showed that the detection of the TBPs was not inhibited by the presence of blood. The acceptable sensitivity when multiplexing the different pathogens, the good inter-assay variability and the absence of cross-reactivity make them potentially suitable as human diagnostics. Conclusions: The qPCRs evaluated in this study are technically suitable for the laboratory diagnostic assessment of clinical samples for infection with tick-borne pathogens. However, clinical validation and independent confirmation are still needed, pending the availability of sufficient human samples for testing in different laboratories.
Long-term observations of the pulsars in 47 Tucanae - II. Proper motions, accelerations and jerks

This paper is the second in a series where we report the results of the long-term timing of the millisecond pulsars (MSPs) in 47 Tucanae with the Parkes 64-m radio telescope. We obtain improved timing parameters that provide additional information for studies of the cluster dynamics: a) the pulsar proper motions yield an estimate of the proper motion of the cluster as a whole ($\mu_{\alpha}\, = \, 5.00\, \pm \, 0.14\, \rm mas \, yr^{-1}$, $\mu_{\delta}\, = \, -2.84\, \pm \, 0.12\, \rm mas \, yr^{-1}$) and the motion of the pulsars relative to each other. b) We measure the second spin-period derivatives caused by the change of the pulsar line-of-sight accelerations; 47 Tuc H, U and possibly J are being affected by nearby objects. c) For ten binary systems we now measure changes in the orbital period caused by their acceleration in the gravitational field of the cluster. From all these measurements, we derive a cluster distance no smaller than $\sim\,$4.69 kpc and show that the characteristics of these MSPs are very similar to their counterparts in the Galactic disk. We find no evidence in favour of an intermediate mass black hole at the centre of the cluster. Finally, we describe the orbital behaviour of the four "black widow" systems. Two of them, 47 Tuc J and O, exhibit orbital variability similar to that observed in other such systems, while for 47 Tuc I and R the orbits seem to be remarkably stable. It appears, therefore, that not all "black widows" have unpredictable orbital behaviour.
Energy spectra of X-ray quasi-periodic oscillations in the Lense-Thirring precession model

We model the energy dependence of a quasi periodic oscillation (QPOs) produced by Lense-Thirring precession of a hot inner flow. We use a fully 3-dimensional Monte-Carlo code to compute the Compton scattered flux produced by the hot inner flow intercepting seed photons from an outer truncated standard disc. The changing orientation of the precessing torus relative to the line of sight produces the observed modulation of the X-ray flux. We consider two scenarios of precession. First, we assume that the precession axis is perpendicular to the plane of the outer disc. In this scenario the relative geometry of the cold disc and the hot torus does not change during precession, so the emitted spectrum does not change, and the modulation is solely due to the changing viewing angle. In the second scenario the precession axis is tilted with respect to the outer disc plane. This leads to changes in the relative geometry of the hot flow and cold plasma, possibly resulting in variations of the plasma temperature and thus generating additional spectral variability, which combines with the variations due to the viewing angle changes.
A Fidelity Susceptibility Approach to Quantum Annealing of NP-hard problems

The computational complexity conjecture of NP $\nsubseteq$ BQP implies that there should be an exponentially small energy gap for Quantum Annealing (QA) of NP-hard problems. We aim to verify how this computation originated gapless point could be understood based on physics, using the quantum Monte Carlo method. As a result, we found a phase transition detectable only by the divergence of fidelity susceptibility. The exponentially small gapless points of each instance are all located in the phase found in this study, which suggests that this phase transition is the physical cause of the failure of QA for NP-hard problems.