Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Chlorogenic Acid Attenuates Isoproterenol Hydrochloride-Induced Cardiac Hypertrophy in AC16 Cells by Inhibiting the Wnt/β-Catenin Signaling Pathway

Cardiac hypertrophy (CH) is an important characteristic in heart failure development. Chlorogenic acid (CGA), a crucial bioactive compound from honeysuckle, is reported to protect against CH. However, its underlying mechanism of action remains incompletely elucidated. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the mechanism underlying the protective effect of CGA on CH. This study established a CH model by stimulating AC16 cells with isoproterenol (Iso). The observed significant decrease in cell surface area, evaluated through fluorescence staining, along with the downregulation of CH-related markers, including atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP), brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), and β-myosin heavy chain (β-MHC) at both mRNA and protein levels, provide compelling evidence of the protective effect of CGA against isoproterenol-induced CH. Mechanistically, CGA induced the expression of glycogen synthase kinase 3β (GSK-3β) while concurrently attenuating the expression of the core protein β-catenin in the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. Furthermore, the experiment utilized the Wnt signaling activator IM-12 to observe its ability to modulate the impact of CGA pretreatment on the development of CH. Using the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database combined with online platforms and tools, this study identified Wnt-related genes influenced by CGA in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) and further validated the correlation between CGA and the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway in CH. This result provides new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying the protective effect of CGA against CH, indicating CGA as a promising candidate for the prevention and treatment of heart diseases.
RVfpga: Computer Architecture Course and MOOC Using a RISC-V SoC Targeted to an FPGA and Simulation

RISC-V FPGA, also written RVfpga, is a freely available course that provides instructions and resources, including the unobfuscated RISC-V system-on-chip (SoC) itself, to show how to readily use and understand a RISC-V SoC, from writing C and assembly programs down to understanding and expanding the system. These materials bridge the gap between the availability of the open and royalty-free RISC-V instruction set architecture (ISA) and actually being able to use and experiment with a commercial RISC-V processor/SoC and the RISC-V toolchain. In addition to providing the SoC source code in Verilog/SystemVerilog and showing how to readily use the RISC-V toolchain to compile, debug, and load C and RISC-V assembly programs onto the SoC, both in simulation and on an FPGA (field programmable gate array), RVfpga shows how to expand the system to add peripherals and how to explore and modify the microarchitecture, including adding instructions, measuring performance using built-in performance counters, and exploring microarchitectural features, from the most fundamental aspects, such as pipelining and caches, to other more specific and advanced capabilities, such as superscalar execution, non-blocking loads and divide operations, secondary ALUs for resolving data hazards, unaligned loads and stores, scratch pad memories for both instruction and data, and advanced branch prediction. We also show how to use several simulators: the Whisper instruction set simulator (ISS) and three Verilator-based simulators: RVfpga-Trace, RVfpga-ViDBo, and RVfpga-Pipeline. The simulators enable users to fully use the materials without the expense of purchasing an FPGA board; thus, the course may be completed without cost. This paper also describes an RVfpga EdX MOOC (massive open online course) that we are completing, which includes ten in-depth chapters, accompanying videos and tutorials, and exercises. This online course can be used on its own or as a guide to instructors in how to present and teach the RVfpga content. In addition to these materials, we have also run ten 1-day RVfpga workshops that were taught world-wide over the past year. The RVfpga materials are most typically implemented as a two-semester course: the first being a junior-level course in digital design, computer architecture, and embedded systems with a follow-on course, at the senior/master’s level, in microarchitecture, but the materials may also be used in a condensed 1-semester course or for self-study.
Student Use of Artificial Intelligence to Write Technical Engineering Papers – Cheating or a Tool to Augment Learning

Considerable concern has emerged over the potential use of AI tools by students for completing assignments in their classes. Reactions in academia have been mixed, with some describing such use of AI tools as “cheating” while others compare it to the use of calculators and see it as the impetus for enabling deeper learning by students. To analyze some of these issues, the recently released AI tool ChatGPT was used to respond to actual Discussion Board questions in our online cybersecurity classes. ChatGPT was also asked to write a Python program to develop a backpropagation Neural Network for XOR. The results were excellent, both for answering the Discussion Board Questions and for writing code. Four findings emerged from this effort: 1) ChatGPT does an exceptional job of answering questions and generating code, 2) it is not clear how student submissions generated with AI should be graded, 3) along with the AI tools themselves, tools have been developed that can detect whether AI was used to generate a student submission but with a high rate of false positives, and 4) despite these three findings, students could and should be encouraged to collaborate with AI tools, similar to the way they would collaborate with other students. These results led to four conclusions: 1) ethically, the use of tools such as ChatGPT without acknowledging that they have been used is cheating, 2) it will be impossible to stop students from using tools like ChatGPT, but unacknowledged use can be detected, albeit with a very high percentage of false positives, 3) use of AI tools should be encouraged rather than discouraged, and 4) higher education should focus on new methods and mechanisms for assessing student learning that take advantage of the AI tools.
Mechanisms of Gills Response to Cadmium Exposure in Greenfin Horse-Faced Filefish (Thamnaconus septentrionalis): Oxidative Stress, Immune Response, and Energy Metabolism

Simple Summary Cadmium (Cd) is one of the most prevalent and hazardous heavy metals. Marine Cd pollution has become a global issue, and the impact of Cd stress on marine organisms is of particular concern. Factors such as the duration and concentration of Cd exposure, as well as the species and life stage of fish, can all influence the severity of its harmful effects. To gain a comprehensive understanding of response mechanisms of commercial fishes to Cd stress, we chose greenfin horse-faced filefish (Thamnaconus septentrionalis) as study species. Our study provided new insights into the toxic effects and signal transduction/metabolic pathways of Cd exposure in marine fishes. Abstract Cadmium (Cd) pollution has become a global issue due to industrial and agricultural developments. However, the molecular mechanism of Cd-induced detrimental effects and relevant signal transduction/metabolic networks are largely unknown in marine fishes. Here, greenfin horse-faced filefish (Thamnaconus septentrionalis) were exposed to 5.0 mg/L Cd up to 7 days. We applied both biochemical methods and multi-omics techniques to investigate how the gills respond to Cd exposure. Our findings revealed that Cd exposure caused the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which in turn activated the MAPK and apoptotic pathways to alleviate oxidative stress and cell damage. Glycolysis, protein degradation, as well as fatty acid metabolism might assist to meet the requirements of nutrition and energy under Cd stress. We also found that long-term (7 days, “long-term” means compared to 12 and 48 h) Cd exposure caused the accumulation of succinate, which would in turn trigger an inflammatory response and start an immunological process. Moreover, ferroptosis might induce inflammation. Overall, Cd exposure caused oxidative stress, energy metabolism disturbance, and immune response in greenfin horse-faced filefish. Our conclusions can be used as references for safety risk assessment of Cd to marine economic fishes.
CACNA1C Polymorphism (rs2283291) Is Associated with Schizophrenia in Chinese Males: A Case-Control Study

Recent research has shown that prenatal famine exposure may be one of the risk factors for schizophrenia and that people born in famine years may be at an increased risk of schizophrenia due to alteration of the DNA methylation of genes. In this study, the association of rs2283291/rs4648635 and the incidence of schizophrenia and prenatal famine exposure at the genetic level were investigated to provide clues to the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. A total of 960 participants were recruited, comprising 473 prenatal famine-exposed individuals (225 patients and 248 controls) and 487 prenatal non-famine-exposed individuals (220 patients and 267 controls). The association of prenatal famine, schizophrenia, and their interaction with DNA methylation levels was analyzed using SPSS and GMDR software. Gender stratification analysis revealed a significant association between the rs2283291 genotype and schizophrenia in male patients (P = 0.017), and difference still existed after correction by the Bonferroni method. It was also found that an increasing risk of schizophrenia was associated with rs2283291 in males (OR: 1.62, 95% CI: 1.13-2.33, P = 0.0086, AIC = 669.7) in an overdominant model. The results of gene-environment interaction and gene-gene interaction revealed no association with the risk of schizophrenia. This study reported for the first time that rs2283291 was associated with schizophrenia in Chinese males.
Association Between the Water Distribution in the Human Body and 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Among the Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Population: A Possible Pathway Between Vitamin D and Diabetic Nephropathy

Purpose To explore the association between the water distribution in the human body and 25-hydroxyvitamin D among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and to analyze whether water distribution is a mediator between vitamin D and T2DM complications. Patients and Methods In total, 533 T2DM inpatients were included from August 1, 2016 to April 1, 2023. Water distribution indicators, whether from the whole body, arms, trunk, or legs, were measured to calculate the association with vitamin D using linear regression analysis. Subgroups based on age, sex, body mass index, and macrovascular complications were established to clarify changes in the association between vitamin D and water distribution in different populations. Mediation analysis was applied to evaluate the correlation between vitamin D, water distribution, and T2DM complications. Results There was a negative correlation between 25-hydroxyvitamin D and the ratio of extracellular water (ECW)/total body water (TBW) both in the whole body (P=0.045, β=−0.008) and in certain parts. A U-shaped restricted cubic spline curve further presented an inflection point (approximately 23 ng/mL 25-hydroxyvitamin D) in the relationship between 25-hydroxyvitamin D and the ECW/TBW of the whole body. A negative correlation was observed between ECW/TBW and vitamin D in the obese subgroup (P=0.015, β=−0.038). In the total effect of vitamin D on diabetic nephropathy (DN), the mediation effect of ECW/TBW accounted for 15.44%. Conclusion A correlation between vitamin D and water distribution was observed, and a high ECW/TBW was one of the pathways through which low vitamin D levels might affect DN.
A system for digital stereo image matching

: The digital ster 0 image processing literature is briefly reviewed, and an automatic system developed at SRI International for digital m ching of points in aerial stereo imagery is described. Our system uses area-based correlation, but couples this very basi measure of match with a variety of novel search techniques to develop a disparity model for a given stereo image p ir. The techniques used are hierarchical in nature, incorporate iterative refinement, and use a best-first strategy in the atching process; matches are then checked by a new technique that we call back-matching. Our techniques are illus ted using some of the results produced by this system when we participated in Image Matching Test A for lSPR Working Group III/4.
Volumetric Imitation Generative Adversarial Networks for Anatomical Human Body Modeling

Volumetric representation is a technique used to express 3D objects in various fields, such as medical applications. On the other hand, tomography images for reconstructing volumetric data have limited utilization because they contain personal information. Existing GAN-based medical image generation techniques can produce virtual tomographic images for volume reconstruction while preserving the patient’s privacy. Nevertheless, these images often do not consider vertical correlations between the adjacent slices, leading to erroneous results in 3D reconstruction. Furthermore, while volume generation techniques have been introduced, they often focus on surface modeling, making it challenging to represent the internal anatomical features accurately. This paper proposes volumetric imitation GAN (VI-GAN), which imitates a human anatomical model to generate volumetric data. The primary goal of this model is to capture the attributes and 3D structure, including the external shape, internal slices, and the relationship between the vertical slices of the human anatomical model. The proposed network consists of a generator for feature extraction and up-sampling based on a 3D U-Net and ResNet structure and a 3D-convolution-based LFFB (local feature fusion block). In addition, a discriminator utilizes 3D convolution to evaluate the authenticity of the generated volume compared to the ground truth. VI-GAN also devises reconstruction loss, including feature and similarity losses, to converge the generated volumetric data into a human anatomical model. In this experiment, the CT data of 234 people were used to assess the reliability of the results. When using volume evaluation metrics to measure similarity, VI-GAN generated a volume that realistically represented the human anatomical model compared to existing volume generation methods.
Dance as a mental health therapy in the Metaverse: exploring the therapeutic potential of Dance Movement Therapy as a non-pharmacological treatment in the Metaverse

This study conducts a detailed qualitative review of Alternative Therapies for mental health and proposes a novel design for integrating Non-Pharmacological Interventions into the Metaverse Extended Reality environments.This study investigates the potential of the Extended Reality environments for Non-Pharmacological Interventions in Mental Health, with a specific focus on Dance Movement Therapy as a preventive and therapeutic strategy for anxiety, depression, and other mental health conditions.This study conducts qualitative evidence syntheses of primary quantitative data and performs meta-analyses of existing studies of participants reporting anxiety, depression, or other mental health conditions.Dance Movement Therapy in the extended reality environments shows promise as a viable alternative therapy, but data privacy and ethical considerations must be addressed.This study raises significant concerns regarding the privacy and security of participants' data, necessitating the storage of only the metadata in electronically compatible files, in cases where users' data is stored for long-term preservation.The outcomes of this study could revolutionize mental health practice, providing effective Non-Pharmacological Interventions for anxiety, depression, and other mental health conditions.
Strain-Rate Dependent Shear Modulus of San Francisco Bay Mud

The effects of shearing strain amplitude and shearing strain rate on the shear modu~us of normally consolidated specimens of San Francisco Bay Mud were studied with a specially constructea torsional shear/resonant column device. Torsional shear measurements were performed at excitat1on frequencies of 0.03, 0.1, 0.3, and 1.0 Hz and were followed by a resonant column measurement at the same strain amplitude. This testing sequence was conducted at constant values of shearing strain amplitude over the range from 0.001 to 0.1 percent. From these measurements the dependency of shear modulus on shearing strain rate and amplitude was studied. Shear modulus was found to increase with the logarithm of shearing strain rate at a constant shearing strain amplitude. The infl.uence ot shearing strain rate was found to be independent of shearing strain amplitude, mean effective norma~ stress, and duration of confinement at constant mean effective normal stress. Typical variation in shear modulus with shearing strain rate at a constant shearing strain amplitude was about four percent per log cycle of shearing strain rate. Shear modulus was found to decrease with the logarithm of shearing strain amplitude at a constant shearing strain rate. No ultimate value of shear modulus at low-amplitude shearing strains (below 0.001 percent) at a constant shearing strain rate was found. Thus, the ultimate value of low-amplitude shear modulus measured in the resonant column test is seen to be a special case in which the decrease in shear modulus due to lower shearing strain rate is counterbalanced by an increase in shear modulus due to lower shearing stra1n amplitude.
Digital Electronic System-on-Chip Design: Methodologies, Tools, Evolution, and Trends

This paper reviews the evolution of methodologies and tools for modeling, simulation, and design of digital electronic system-on-chip (SoC) implementations, with a focus on industrial electronics applications. Key technological, economic, and geopolitical trends are presented at the outset, before reviewing SoC design methodologies and tools. The fundamentals of SoC design flows are laid out. The paper then exposes the crucial role of the intellectual property (IP) industry in the relentless improvements in performance, power, area, and cost (PPAC) attributes of SoCs. High abstraction levels in design capture and increasingly automated design tools (e.g., for verification and validation, synthesis, place, and route) continue to push the boundaries. Aerospace and automotive domains are included as brief case studies. This paper also presents current and future trends in SoC design and implementation including the rising, evolution, and usage of machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms, techniques, and tools, which promise even greater PPAC optimizations.
Service-oriented Geoprocessing in Spatial Data Infrastructures

This article proposes a concept for offering complex geoprocessing functionality in service-based Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDI). Today, geoprocessing in SDI is typically realized in a data driven manner. Applying the suggested moving code approach in a case study in the field of Spatial Decision Support proves its applicability. The proposed solution is analyzed and assessed in terms of gained efficiency, performance behavior and support for distributed development of geoprocessing functionality. In data and computation intensive SDI applications the deployment of moving code proves to be beneficial.
Influence of Tillage, Antecedent Moisture, and Rainfall Timing on Atrazine Transport

Laboratory studies were conducted to determine the effect of rainfall timing and antecedent moisture on atrazine leaching through intact soil cores taken from no-till and conventional-till corn fields. Simulated rainfall was applied to no-till and conventional-till cores 1 to 14 d after atrazine application and, in a second study, one d after atrazine was applied to no-till and conventional-till cores at 1 to 800 kPa soil moisture. Increasing the lag time between atrazine application and rainfall from one to 14 d reduced the amount of atrazine leached by about 50% for both no-till and conventional-till soil cores. During the same time period, the amount of atrazine adsorbed to soil increased by about 30% for both tillages. Soil dryness (antecedent moisture) at the time of atrazine application had no effect on the amount of atrazine leached through conventional-till cores. However, leaching decreased in no-till cores as antecedent moisture decreased from 1 to 33 kPa; drying to 800 kPa had no further effect. The leaching rate of atrazine was much higher for the initial 0.5 pore volume than for the next 1.5 pore volume at all rainfall timing and antecedent moisture levels. This behavior is indicative of preferential transport.
Combination of Oncolytic Virotherapy with Different Antitumor Approaches against Glioblastoma

Glioblastoma is one of the most malignant and aggressive tumors of the central nervous system. Despite the standard therapy consisting of maximal surgical resection and chemo- and radiotherapy, the median survival of patients with this diagnosis is about 15 months. Oncolytic virus therapy is one of the promising areas for the treatment of malignant neoplasms. In this review, we have focused on emphasizing recent achievements in virotherapy, both as a monotherapy and in combination with other therapeutic schemes to improve survival rate and quality of life among patients with glioblastoma.
The Preparation of Acryloxyl Group Functionalized Siloxane Polymers and the Study of Their Ultra Violet Curing Properties

Polysiloxane with multiple acryloxyl groups at the terminal site of the polymer chain was synthesized by the condensation reaction between hydroxyl-terminated polysiloxane and acryloyl chloride and used to improve the cross-linking density of UV-curable silicone materials initiated from dual acryloxy-terminated symmetric polysiloxane or single acryloxy-terminated asymmetric polysiloxane with the mixture of Irgacure 1173 and Irgacure 184 at a mass ratio of 1:1 as the photoinitiator. The effects of factors such as initiator composition, UV irradiation time, structure, and molecular weight of linear dual acryloxy-terminated or single acryloxy-terminated asymmetric siloxane oligomers on the gelation yield, thermal properties, water absorption, and water contact angle of UV-cured film were investigated. The synthesized cross-linking density modifier can be copolymerized with acryloxy-functionalized linear polysiloxanes under the action of a photoinitiator to increase the cross-link density of UV-cured products effectively. Both linear dual acryloxy-terminated or single acryloxy-terminated asymmetric siloxane oligomers can be copolymerized with cross-link density modifiers within 20 s of UV irradiation. The gelation yields of the UV-cured products obtained from the dual acryloxy-terminated siloxane oligomers were greater than 85%, and their surface water contact angles increased from 72.8° to 95.9° as the molecular weight of the oligomers increased. The gelation yields of UV-cured products obtained from single acryloxy-terminated asymmetric siloxane oligomers were less than 80%, and their thermal stabilities were inferior to those obtained from the dual acryloxy-terminated siloxane oligomers. However, the water contact angles of UV-cured products obtained from these single acryloxy-terminated asymmetric siloxane oligomers were all greater than 90°.