PECAN Predicts Patterns of Cancer Cell Cytostatic Activity of Natural Products Using Deep Learning.

Many machine learning techniques are used as drug discovery tools with the intent to speed characterization by determining relationships between compound structure and biological function. However, particularly in anticancer drug discovery, these models often make only binary decisions about the biological activity for a narrow scope of drug targets. We present a feed-forward neural network, PECAN (Prediction Engine for the Cytostatic Activity of Natural product-like compounds), that simultaneously classifies the potential antiproliferative activity of compounds against 59 cancer cell lines.

Let's Talk About Sex: Tyrolean Online Study on Reproductive Health Issues.

Introduction: The way pupils and university students talk about sex does not reflect their real understanding of reproductive health issues. Therefore, we developed a survey for pupils and students in Tyrol, Austria, to evaluate the current state of knowledge.

Methods: Two questionnaires with 39 items for pupils (n = 369) and 53 items for university students (n = 537) were developed, and an online survey was carried out in Tyrol, Austria, between April and July 2022.

Perspectives on facilitating dynamic ecology courses online using active learning.

As education methodology has grown to incorporate online learning, disciplines with a field component, like ecology, may find themselves sidelined in this transition. In response to challenges posed by moving classes online, previous studies have assessed whether an online environment can be effective for student learning. This work has found that active learning structures, which maximize information processing and require critical thinking, best support student learning.

Facklamia hominis bacteremia after transurethral resection of the prostate: a case report.

Background: Transurethral resection of the prostate (TUR-P) is one of the most frequent routine procedures in urology. Because of the semisterile environment, postoperative infections, including sepsis, are a common complication, with Escherichia coli, Klebsiella spp., Proteus mirabilis or Enterococcus faecalis as frequently isolated pathogens.

Compensatory indirect effects of an herbicide on wetland communities.

The direct effects of large-scale disturbances are readily studied because their effects are often apparent and result in large changes to ecosystems. Direct effects can cascade through the ecosystem, leading to indirect effects that are often subtle and difficult to detect. Managing anthropogenic disturbances, such as chemical contamination, requires an understanding of both direct and indirect effects to predict, measure, and characterize the impact.

Computational study of precision nitrogen doping on graphene nanoribbon edges.

Nitrogen doping in graphene is important for applications spanning from electronics to metal-free electrocatalysts. Despite much experimental study, limited theoretic work has been done in understanding the mechanism of the doping process, especially from a precision perspective. Herein, we present a computational study on precision nitrogen doping on edges of graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) by combining molecular dynamics (MD) simulation at a time scale of 40 ns and density function theory (DFT) calculation.

Variation in amphibian response to two formulations of glyphosate-based herbicides.

Variation in toxicity among formulations and species makes it difficult to extrapolate results to all species and all formulations of herbicides. The authors exposed larval wood frogs (Lithobates sylvaticus) from 4 populations to 2 glyphosate-based herbicides, Roundup Weed and Grass Control® and Roundup WeatherMax®. The 96-h median lethal concentration values for both formulations varied among the populations (Roundup Weed and Grass Control, 0.

Laboratory and field exposure of two species of juvenile amphibians to a glyphosate-based herbicide and Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis.

Herbicides are commonly used in agriculture and silviculture to reduce interspecific competition among plants and thereby enhance crop growth, quality, and volume. Internationally, formulations of glyphosate-based herbicides are the most widely used herbicides in both these sectors. A large amount of work has focused on the effects of these herbicides on amphibians.

Varying responses of northeastern North American amphibians to the chytrid pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis.

Chytridiomycosis, caused by Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), is widespread among amphibians in northeastern North America. It is unknown, however, whether Bd has the potential to cause extensive amphibian mortalities in northeastern North America as have occurred elsewhere. In the laboratory, we exposed seven common northeastern North American amphibian species to Bd to assess the likelihood of population-level effects from the disease.

Effects of chytrid fungus and a glyphosate-based herbicide on survival and growth of wood frogs (Lithobates sylvaticus).

Anthropogenic-derived stressors in the environment, such as contaminants, are increasingly considered important cofactors that may decrease the immune response of amphibians to pathogens. Few studies, however, have integrated amphibian disease and contaminants to test this multiple-stressor hypothesis for amphibian declines. We examined whether exposure to sublethal concentrations of a glyphosate-based herbicide and two strains of the pathogenic chytrid fungus, Batrachochrytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) could: (1) sublethally affect wood frogs (Lithobates sylvaticus) by altering the time to and size at metamorphosis, and (2) directly affect survivability of wood frogs after metamorphosis.

Exposure of juvenile green frogs (Lithobates clamitans) in littoral enclosures to a glyphosate-based herbicide.

The majority of studies on the toxicity of glyphosate-based herbicides to amphibians have focused on larval life stages exposed in aqueous media. However, adult and juvenile amphibians may also be exposed directly or indirectly to herbicides. The potential for such exposures is of particular interest in the littoral zone surrounding wetlands as this is preferred habitat for many amphibian species.

Overt signs of toxicity to dogs and cats of dietary deoxynivalenol.

Studies were conducted to determine the dietary amounts of deoxynivalenol (DON; vomitoxin) in dog and cat food that are required to produce overt signs of toxicity (e.g., vomiting or reduced food intake).

Rates of lysine catabolism are inversely related to rates of protein synthesis when measured concurrently in adult female rats induced to grow at different rates.

To test the effect of changes in the rate of protein synthesis on amino acid oxidation, both were studied concurrently in individual 200-g female Sprague-Dawley rats. In a growth trial (Experiment 1), recombinant bovine somatotropin (rbST) was injected subcutaneously (0, 2 or 12 mg/d) over 6 d (n = 4 rats per rbST level). Weight gain increased with rbST level (P < 0.

Efficiency of lysine or threonine retention in growing rats fed diets limiting in either lysine or threonine.

Over a 21-d experiment, the efficiency of lysine and threonine retention was determined in 80 male Sprague-Dawley rats (65.9 +/- 0.3 g, means +/- SE) fed purified diets containing an amino acid mix limiting in either lysine or threonine.

Recombinant bovine somatotropin decreases hepatic amino acid catabolism in female rats.

The effect of recombinant bovine somatotropin (rbST) on hepatic amino acid catabolism in female rats was investigated. Daily injections of rbST for 5 d decreased liver homogenate lysine alpha-ketoglutarate reductase (EC 1.5.

Diminishing returns in weight, nitrogen, and lysine gain of pigs fed six levels of lysine from three supplemental sources.

Diminishing returns responses to increments of lysine intake were evaluated in 82 crossbred barrows (10.2 +/- SE = .31 kg) fed one of six concentrations of lysine expressed as 55, 80, 90, 100, 115, or 140% of a concentration (10.

Role of protein synthesis in amino acid catabolism.

Except for branched chain amino acids, the site of indispensable amino acid degradation is the liver. Location of amino acid degradation capacity in a single organ may play an important role in the reutilization of amino acids derived from protein turnover. The importance of preferential utilization of amino acids for protein synthesis on catabolism of amino acids is demonstrated in two ways.

Use of a four-parameter logistic equation to evaluate the response of growing rats to ten levels of each indispensable amino acid.

Over a 21-d period, 400 [four rats/level, 10 levels/amino acid, 10 indispensable amino acids (IAA)] male weanling rats (65.9 +/- 0.3 g; mean +/- SEM) were fed diets with one of 10 levels of each of the 10 IAA.