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Discovery and DNA analysis of the invasive freshwater mussel Sinanodonta lauta (Unionidae) in south Iran
No full textSome members of the genus Sinanodonta (Modell, 1944) are known as successful invaders of freshwater habitats. Here we report the first record of Sinanodonta lauta (Martens, 1877) from Iran and provide morphological and molecular data on this alien population. This species was observed in the Dez River and a fish farm in Khuzestan, south of Iran. The S. lauta introduction seems to be closely related to the introduction of Asian carps from East Asia. The individuals collected from the river exhibited two COI haplotypes, probably due to several introduction events of host fish. Based on our haplotype network, the alien individuals found in Iran is closer to the native ones from South Korea (two-three substitutions) compared to other native individuals reported from Japan and Russian Far East. The presence of 10-11 years old specimens in Dez River shows that the species can survive well in the natural environment of southern Iran. Further expansion and colonization of S. lauta in south Iran or beyond it are not unexpected due to some human-mediated dispersal events as well as waterways in the region
The Psychological Science Accelerator's COVID-19 rapid-response dataset
No full textIn response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Psychological Science Accelerator coordinated three large-scale psychological studies to examine the effects of loss-gain framing, cognitive reappraisals, and autonomy framing manipulations on behavioral intentions and affective measures. The data collected (April to October 2020) included specific measures for each experimental study, a general questionnaire examining health prevention behaviors and COVID-19 experience, geographical and cultural context characterization, and demographic information for each participant. Each participant started the study with the same general questions and then was randomized to complete either one longer experiment or two shorter experiments. Data were provided by 73,223 participants with varying completion rates. Participants completed the survey from 111 geopolitical regions in 44 unique languages/dialects. The anonymized dataset described here is provided in both raw and processed formats to facilitate re-use and further analyses. The dataset offers secondary analytic opportunities to explore coping, framing, and self-determination across a diverse, global sample obtained at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, which can be merged with other time-sampled or geographic data
Monkeypox Detection Using CNN with Transfer Learning
No full textMonkeypox disease is caused by a virus that causes lesions on the skin and has been observed on the African continent in the past years. The fatal consequences caused by virus infections after the COVID pandemic have caused fear and panic among the public. As a result of COVID reaching the pandemic dimension, the development and implementation of rapid detection methods have become important. In this context, our study aims to detect monkeypox disease in case of a possible pandemic through skin lesions with deep-learning methods in a fast and safe way. Deep-learning methods were supported with transfer learning tools and hyperparameter optimization was provided. In the CNN structure, a hybrid function learning model was developed by customizing the transfer learning model together with hyperparameters. Implemented on the custom model MobileNetV3-s, EfficientNetV2, ResNET50, Vgg19, DenseNet121, and Xception models. In our study, AUC, accuracy, recall, loss, and F1-score metrics were used for evaluation and comparison. The optimized hybrid MobileNetV3-s model achieved the best score, with an average F1-score of 0.98, AUC of 0.99, accuracy of 0.96, and recall of 0.97. In this study, convolutional neural networks were used in conjunction with optimization of hyperparameters and a customized hybrid function transfer learning model to achieve striking results when a custom CNN model was developed. The custom CNN model design we have proposed is proof of how successfully and quickly the deep learning methods can achieve results in classification and discrimination
Synthesis of cross-linked diazaborine-based polymeric microparticles with antiquorum sensing, anti-swarming, antimicrobial, and antibiofilm properties
No full textTransmission of infectious diseases and resistance by microorganisms is a global health threat. Antimicrobial polymers are increasingly being developed as biocides with greater applications than traditional antibiotics. In this study, 3-(potassiumsulfonyl)propyl methacrylate (SPMA) monomer, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate cross-linker and ammonium persulfate initiator were reacted to yield poly[3-(potassiumsulfonyl)propyl methacrylate] microgels (PSPMA). Surface modification of PSPMA with thionyl chloride yielded poly[3-(chlorosulfonyl)propyl methacrylate microparticle] (PSPMA-Cl) which was reacted with hydrazinehydrate to obtain poly[3-(hydrazinylsulfonyl)propyl methacrylate] microparticles (PSPMA-NH2). Finally, 2-formyl benzeneboronic acid was added to give the final product poly[3-((1-hydroxybenzo(d)(1,2,3)diazaborinin-2(1H)-yl)sulfonyl)propyl methacrylate] (PSPMA-DAZ) microparticles. The modified microparticles were characterized using attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive x-ray analyses. The polymeric microparticles showed good antibiofilm activity against Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, Candida albicans ATCC 10239 and Candida tropicalis ATCC 13803 while low to moderate biofilm inhibitions were observed against Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 7644, Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853 and Salmonella typhi ATCC 14028. Surface group modification from PSPMA, PSPMA-Cl, PSPMA-NH2 to PSPMA-DAZ increased violacein inhibition, quorum-sensing inhibition and antimicrobial activity but reduced swarming. These polymer microparticles can be used to reduce spread of microbial infections and resistanc
Green synthesis and evaluation of antipathogenic, antioxidant, and anticholinesterase activities of gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) from Allium cepa L. peel aqueous extract
No full textGold nanoparticles (Au NPs) have potentially therapeutic properties as they are synthesized via biomolecules as reducing and stabilizing agent(s). The aim of this study is to develop an easy and eco-friendly method for the synthesis of Au NPs using extracts from the Allium cepa (AC) red peel (skin) extract and investigate the antibacterial and antioxidant activity and also inhibitory effects on acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) enzymes. UV–Vis peak at ~ 564 nm confirmed the Au NPs absorbance. TEM images revealed the formation of Au NPs with mostly spherical shapes and sizes between 6.08 and 54.20 nm. FTIR analysis confirmed the important biological compounds responsible for the reduction of gold. The strong absorption property of Au NPs was studied by EDX. The produced Au NPs demonstrated significant antibacterial and antifungal activity against the bacterial and fungal strains tested, as well as efficient inhibitory activity against both AChE and BChE enzymes. The highest antimicrobial activities were found against Staphylococcus aureus (0.06° mg/ml) and Candida albicans (0.06° mg/ml). The antioxidant test findings revealed that AC-Au NPs had lesser activity when compared to normal antioxidants. The Au NPs showed excellent inhibitory efficacy against AChE and BChE. The proposed green technique could encourage the innocuous generation of Au NPs, implying therapeutic possibilities
Mistletoe (Viscum album L.) extract attenuates ıtraconazole-ınduced acute oxidative stress and hepatocellular ınjury in rats
No full textIn the current study, the protective effect of a mistletoe extract (Helixor (R), HLX) on Itraconazole (ITZ)-induced hepatocellular injury and acute oxidative stress in rats was aimed to be investigated by histological, biochemical and comet assay methods. Four groups a control group, an HLX group (5mg/kg/14days/intraperitoneally (ip)), an ITZ group (100mg/kg/14days/oral) and an HLX plus ITZ group (5mg/kg/14days/ip+100mg/kg/14days/oral) were all created from 32 female Wistar albino rats. At the end of the experiment, AST and ALT liver enzymes, total oxidant status (TOS) levels and total antioxidant status (TAS) levels, histopathological analysis and comet assay were carried out. Highest genotoxicity, higher levels of plasma AST and ALT, higher TOS, more degeneration of liver histopathology including hepatocyte degeneration, hepatocyte apoptosis and necrosis, portal/periportal inflammation, bile ductus hyperplasia and multinuclear giant cell formation were observed in ITZ group (p<0.05). As opposed to that, administration of HLX plus ITZ improved histopathological changes and DNA damage and showed a dramatic decrease in AST, ALT and TOS levels (p<0.05) and an increase in TAS level (p<0.001) when compared to ITZ group. This study showed that the antioxidant properties of HLX administration significantly decreased acute oxidative stress and hepatocellular damage in rats given ITZ
Psychiatric Manifestations of Arachnoid Cysts
No full textArachnoid cysts (ACs) are generally congenital, primarily located in the middle fossa adjacent to the temporal lobes that have dense neuronal connections. Many case reports and case series results reveal that ACs can cause psychiatric and cognitive disorders. It has been reported that surgical cyst decompression will provide substantial clinical improvement, especially for cognitive disorders. In children with ACs, it is particularly important to consider surgical intervention in order to prevent irreversible mental function impairment as brain development continues. Some authors emphasize that there is sufficient evidence in the literature to support this philosophy. In the course of primary psychiatric disorders, it should be kept in mind that the symptoms are complex, and in the case of resistance to standard treatments, there may be presence of an intracranial AC. Neuroimaging should be used more frequently in psychiatry than is currently in practice. Well-known pharmacotherapy options are used in the treatment of psychiatric symptoms. When necessary, electroconvulsive therapy is used after sufficient assessment of the patient. Neuropsychological testing should be a part of the process for the diagnosis of and surgical indications for cognitive disorders and in evaluating patients in follow-up
New records of rare species in the Mediterranean Sea (December 2022)
No full textThis Collective Article presents information on 20 taxa belonging to five (5) Phyla: Cnidaria (2), Mollusca (8), Arthropoda (4), Echinodermata (1) and Chordata (5) recorded from the Alboran Sea to the Levantine Sea. These new records were found in seven (7) different ecoregions as follows: Alboran Sea: new record of the rare football octopus Ocythoe tuberculata in the harbour of Algeciras (Spain); Western Mediterranean Sea: first record of the isopod Arcturinella deltensis in the Ligurian Sea, and the third in the whole Mediterranean Sea; third Mediterranean site for the Muricidae Coralliophila ahuiri along the Italian coasts (Alghe-ro); first and westernmost record of the goby Corcyrogobius liechtensteini from the Iberian Peninsula; new record of the sea slug Glaucus atlanticus from the coast of the Iberian Peninsula; first and easternmost record of Holothuria (Vaneyothuria) lentiginosa lentiginosa along the Italian coasts; Tunisian Plateau/Gulf of Sidra: seventh record of the oceanic squid Thysanoteuthis rhombus in Tunisia, and first for the Gulf of Gabes. Ionian Sea: second occurrence of the Atlantic tripletail Lobotes surinamensis in the Ionian Sea and first record from the Strait of Messina area; new record of the rare sea elephant Pterotrachea coronata from the Strait of Messina; Adriatic Sea: first record of a facies of football ascidian Diazona violacea in the South Adriatic Sea (Tremiti Island, Italy); two records of the sevengill shark Heptranchias perlo in Croatian waters after more than 70 years of absence of documented records in this area; first known occurrence of the nudibranch Jalonus hyalinus in Slovenian waters and also the first known occurrence of this species in the Adriatic Sea; first record of the nudibranch Okenia elegans in Slovenian waters; Aegean Sea: First record of the parasitic isopod Nerocila milesensis along Greek coasts (Crete island) as well as the second record world-wide; additional record of the brachyuran Paragalene longicrura collected from the Saronikos Gulf (Greece); first record of the siphonophore Rhizophysa filiformis in Greek waters as well as the second record of this species in the eastern Mediterranean basin; new record of the rare and protected angelshark Squatina aculeata along Turkish coasts; Levantine Sea: first record of the marine amphipod Caprella andreae in the Levantine Mediterranean shore of Israel, based on both morphological and molecular data; first occurrence of the cephalopod Tremoctopus violaceus along Turkish coasts, which confirms its presence in the north-eastern coasts of Turkey; record of a bloom of the thermophilic jellyfish Pelagia noctiluca in the north Levantine Sea
Data mining and molecular dynamics analysis to detect HIV-1 reverse transcriptase RNase H activity inhibitor
No full textHIV-1 is a deadly virus that affects millions of people worldwide. In this study, we aimed to inhibit viral replication by targeting one of the HIV-1 proteins and identifying a new drug candidate. We used data mining and molecular dynamics methods on HIV-1 genomes. Based on MAUVE analysis, we selected the RNase H activity of the reverse transcriptase (R.T) enzyme as a potential target due to its low mutation rate and high conservation level. We screened about 94,000 small molecule inhibitors by virtual screening. We validated the hit compounds' stability and binding free energy through molecular dynamics simulations and MM/PBSA. Phomoarcherin B, known for its anticancer properties, emerged as the best candidate and showed potential as an HIV-1 reverse transcriptase RNase H activity inhibitor. This study presents a new target and drug candidate for HIV-1 treatment. However, in vitro and in vivo tests are required. Also, the effect of RNase H activity on viral replication and the interaction of Phomoarcherin B with other HIV-1 proteins should be investigated
DEVOUR: Deleterious Variants on Uncovered Regions in Whole-Exome Sequencing
No full textThe discovery of low-coverage (i.e. uncovered) regions containing clinically significant variants, especially when they are related to the patient's clinical phenotype, is critical for whole-exome sequencing (WES) based clinical diagnosis. Therefore, it is essential to develop tools to identify the existence of clinically important variants in low-coverage regions. Here, we introduce a desktop application, namely DEVOUR (DEleterious Variants On Uncovered Regions), that analyzes read alignments for WES experiments, identifies genomic regions with no or low-coverage (read depth < 5) and then annotates known variants in the low-coverage regions using clinical variant annotation databases. As a proof of concept, DEVOUR was used to analyze a total of 28 samples from a publicly available Hirschsprung disease-related WES project (NCBI Bioproject: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/bioproject/?term=PRJEB19327), revealing the potential existence of 98 disease-associated variants in low-coverage regions. DEVOUR is available from https://github.com/projectDevour/DEVOUR under the MIT licens