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Speech engages distributed temporo-fronto-parietal brain regions, however a comprehensive understanding of its intrinsic functional network architecture is lacking. Here we investigate the human speech processing network using the largest sample to date, high temporal resolution resting-state fMRI data, network stability analysis, and theoretically informed models. Network consensus analysis revealed three stable functional modules encompassing (1) superior temporal plane (STP) and Area Spt, (2) superior temporal sulcus (STS) + ventral frontoparietal cortex, and (3) dorsal frontoparietal cortex. The STS + ventral frontoparietal cortex module showed the highest participation coefficient, and a hub-like organization linking STP with frontoparietal cortical nodes. Node-wise analysis revealed key connectivity features underlying this modular architecture, including a leftward asymmetric connectivity profile, and differential connectivity of STS and STP, with frontoparietal cortex. Our findings, replicated across cohorts, reveal a tripartite functional network architecture supporting speech processing and provide a novel template for future studies.Objective Aorto-right ventricular tunnel (ARVT) is a rare cardiac congenital anomaly where an extra-cardiac channel connects the ascending aorta above the sinutubular junction to the right ventricle. This defect is caused by an abnormal development of the cushions of the aorto-pulmonary outflow tract. A case series and literature review are described. Methods Two cases of ARVT are described. A literature review was conducted, in which 31 cases were reported. Results In our two cases, both ARVTs connected the ascending aorta above the left aortic sinus to the right ventricle (one to the right ventricular outflow tract and one to the right ventricular apex). Both patients underwent successful surgical correction by patch closure of both tunnel orifices, with uneventful post-operative course. Of the 31 ARVT cases described in our review, only 10 patients (32.3%) had an anatomy similar to the two cases described. Coronary artery anomalies can be associated, as reported in our two patients and in 16 cases (51.6%) in the review. Conclusions Surgical correction can be achieved by direct closure or, more often, by patch closure of one or both tunnel orifices, depending mostly on coronary anatomy. Two cases of transcatheter device closure were described in literature, in favorable anatomy cases. Careful attention is required during repair to avoid coronary lesions, due to the high incidence of comorbid coronary anomalies.Methylparaben (MeP) is widely used as preservative in personal care products, food commodities and pharmaceuticals due to its antimicrobial properties. Its widespread use resulted in the contamination of aquatic environment and raised concerns about the potential adverse effects on human health, especially in the developing organisms. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the embryotoxicity of MeP in zebrafish early-life stages applying the benchmark-dose (BMD) methodology to Fish embryo acute toxicity (FET) tests-OECD guideline 236. Toxic effects were studied by daily evaluation of lethal endpoints, hatching rate and sublethal alterations. Zebrafish fertilized eggs were exposed until 96 h post fertilization (hpf) to five concentrations of MeP 1 mg/L, 10 mg/L, 30 mg/L, 60 mg/L and 80 mg/L. The lethal concentration 50 (LC 50) was 72.67 mg/L. Indeed, BMD confidence interval (lower bound, BMDL-upper bound, BMDU) was 40.8-57.4 mg/L for lethal endpoints and 16-26.5 mg/L for toxicity index, that includes both lethal and sublethal alterations. Zebrafish embryos exposed to MeP developed sublethal alterations including pericardial edema, yolk edema, blood stasis, reduction in blood circulation, reduced heartbeat and notochord curvature. The number of embryos exposed to the highest concentrations of MeP that reported sublethal alterations increased between 24hpf and 48 hpf-72 hpf-96 hpf. Only zebrafish larvae treated with 30 mg/L of MeP showed behavioural changes. This study highlighted the detrimental effects of MeP on zebrafish early-life stages with attention to its developmental toxicity.Among the essential oils (EOs), the cabreuva essential oil extracted from the wood of Myrocarpus fastigiatus, is a promising compound for potential applications in the field of pharmaceuticals and food packaging. To overcome the low solubility of cabreuva EO and to protect it, a two-step process, emulsion formation compound by chitosan, SDS, and PVA, and subsequent ionic crosslinking with sodium citrate, was proposed. The formulation containing 0.75% of chitosan and 1% of SDS proved to be the most stable. An alternative to produce nanostructures and encapsulate the EO is the fiber formation through the electrospinning method. The system composed by a PVA solution assembled with crosslinked emulsions modified the viscosity, influencing the morphology of the obtained nanofibers. read more The advantage of the electrospun nanofibers was their ability to be an effective carrier of the cabreuva EO and the capacity of controlling the compound release that proved an effective activity against broad spectra of micro-organisms (Candida albicans, E. coli, S. aureus, and S. epidermidis). The Gallagher-Corrigan model, used to fit the release profiles of matrices in contact with increasing ethanol proportion from 2575 to 5050 showed higher Kb in relation to k suggesting that the polymer swelling played an increasingly prominent role in the EO delivery. The developed nanostructures would be materials with potential applications in the biomedical field.Lithium has been used to treat major depressive disorder, yet the neural circuit mechanisms underlying this therapeutic effect remain unknown. Here, we demonstrated that the ventral tegmental area (VTA) dopamine (DA) neurons that project to the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), but not to nucleus accumbens (NAc), contributed to the antidepressive-like effects of lithium. Projection-specific electrophysiological recordings revealed that high concentrations of lithium increased firing rates in mPFC-, but not NAc-, projecting VTA DA neurons in mice treated with chronic unpredictable mild stress (CMS). In parallel, chronic administration of high-dose lithium in CMS mice restored the firing properties of mPFC-projecting DA neurons, and also rescued CMS-induced depressive-like behaviors. Nevertheless, chronic lithium treatment was insufficient to change the basal firing rates in NAc-projecting VTA DA neurons. Furthermore, chemogenetic activation of mPFC-, but not NAc-, projecting VTA DA neurons mimicked the antidepressive-like effects of lithium in CMS mice. Chemogenetic downregulation of VTA-mPFC DA neurons’ firing activity abolished the antidepressive-like effects of lithium in CMS mice. Finally, we found that the antidepressant-like effects induced by high-dose lithium were mediated by BNDF signaling in the mesocortical DA circuit. Together, these results demonstrated the role of mesocortical DA projection in antidepressive-like effects of lithium and established a circuit foundation for lithium-based antidepressive treatment.We report the outcome of hematopoietic cell transplantation for 52 patients with Shwachman-Diamond syndrome (SDS) transplanted between 2000 and 2017. The median age at transplant was 11 years with a median follow-up of 60 months. Transplant indication was bone marrow failure (BMF; cytopenia or aplastic anemia) in 39 patients and myelodysplasia or acute myeloid leukemia in 13 patients. Eighteen patients received grafts from HLA-matched siblings, 6 from HLA-matched or mismatched relatives and 28 from HLA-matched or mismatched unrelated donors. Preparative regimens for BMF were myeloablative (n=13) and reduced intensity (n=26). Twenty-nine of 39 patients with BMF are alive and the 5-year overall survival was 72% (95% CI; 57-86%). Graft failure and graft-versus-host disease were the predominant causes of death. Preparative regimens for myelodysplastic syndrome or acute myeloid leukemia were myeloablative (n=8) and reduced intensity (n=5). Only 2 of 13 patients are alive (15%) and relapse was the predominant cause of death. Survival after transplantation for SDS related BMF is better compared to historical reports but strategies are needed to overcome graft failure and graft-versus-host disease. For SDS related myelodysplastic syndrome or acute myeloid leukemia, transplantation does not extend survival. Rigorous surveillance and novel treatments for leukemia are needed urgently.The waste management processes typically involve numerous technical, climatic, environmental, demographic, socio-economic, and legislative parameters. Such complex nonlinear processes are challenging to model, predict and optimize using conventional methods. Recently, artificial intelligence (AI) techniques have gained momentum in offering alternative computational approaches to solve solid waste management (SWM) problems. AI has been efficient at tackling ill-defined problems, learning from experience, and handling uncertainty and incomplete data. Although significant research was carried out in this domain, very few review studies have assessed the potential of AI in solving the diverse SWM problems. This systematic literature review compiled 85 research studies, published between 2004 and 2019, analyzing the application of AI in various SWM fields, including forecasting of waste characteristics, waste bin level detection, process parameters prediction, vehicle routing, and SWM planning. This review provides comprehensive analysis of the different AI models and techniques applied in SWM, application domains and reported performance parameters, as well as the software platforms used to implement such models. The challenges and insights of applying AI techniques in SWM are also discussed.Based on a method combining the LC-MS/MS molecular networking strategy with the conventional means of phytochemical research, the chemical constituents and the availability of Paris tengchongensis, a new species found in 2017 from Yunnan Province, were investigated for the first time. The molecular networking showed that this species contained the characteristic steroidal glycosides of the genus Paris by comparison of those of Paris polyphylla var. yunnanensis. Furthermore, the detailed investigation on the 80% EtOH extract of its rhizomes resulted to the isolation of twenty steroidal glycosides including three new spirostane-type saponins, named paristengosides A-C (1-3). Their structures were confirmed by spectroscopic analyses (HRMS and NMR) and chemical methods. The new isolates were evaluated for their cytotoxicities against two human cancer cell lines (HEL and MDA-MB-231), anti-inflammatory effects on a lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated NO production model in RAW264.7 macrophages, anti-AChE, and antimicrobial activities. The results from the molecular networking and the investigation on the chemical constituents suggested that P. tengchongensis can be used as a potential resource of Rhizoma Paridis.Brain activity in numerous perisylvian brain regions is modulated by the expectedness of linguistic stimuli. We leverage recent advances in computational parsing models to test what representations guide the processes reflected by this activity. Recurrent Neural Network Grammars (RNNGs) are generative models of (tree, string) pairs that use neural networks to drive derivational choices. Parsing with them yields a variety of incremental complexity metrics that we evaluate against a publicly available fMRI data-set recorded while participants simply listen to an audiobook story. Surprisal, which captures a words un-expectedness, correlates with a wide range of temporal and frontal regions when it is calculated based on word-sequence information using a top-performing LSTM neural network language model. The explicit encoding of hierarchy afforded by the RNNG additionally captures activity in left posterior temporal areas. A separate metric tracking the number of derivational steps taken between words correlates with activity in the left temporal lobe and inferior frontal gyrus.