Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A new look at an old concept: using 15N2O isotopomers to understand the relationship between soil moisture and N2O production pathways

Abstract. Understanding the production pathways of potent greenhouse gases, such as nitrous oxide (N2O), is essential for accurate flux prediction and for developing effective adaptation and mitigation strategies in response to climate change. Yet there remain surprising gaps in our understanding and precise quantification of the underlying production pathways – such as the relationship between soil moisture and N2O production pathways. A powerful, but arguably underutilized, approach for quantifying the relative contribution of nitrification and denitrification to N2O production involves determining 15N2O isotopomers and 15N site preference (SP) via spectroscopic techniques. Using one such technique, we conducted a short-term incubation where N2O production and 15N2O isotopomers were measured 24 h after soil moisture treatments of 40 % to 105 % water-filled pore space (WFPS) were established for each of three soils that differed in nutrient levels, organic matter, and texture. Relatively low N2O fluxes and high SP values indicted nitrification during dry soil conditions, whereas at higher soil moisture, peak N2O emissions coincided with a sharp decline in SP, indicating denitrification. This pattern supports the classic N2O production curves from nitrification and denitrification as inferred by earlier research; however, our isotopomer data enabled the quantification of source partitioning for either pathway. At soil moisture levels < 53 % WFPS, the fraction of N2O attributed to nitrification (FN) predominated but thereafter decreased rapidly with increasing soil moisture (x), according to FN=3.19-0.041x, until a WFPS of 78 % was reached. Simultaneously, from WFPS of 53 % to 78 %, the fraction of N2O that was attributed to denitrification (FD) was modelled as FD=-2.19+0.041x; at moisture levels of > 78 %, denitrification completely dominated. Clearly, the soil moisture level during transition is a key regulator of N2O production pathways. The presented equations may be helpful for other researchers in estimating N2O source partitioning when soil moisture falls within the transition from nitrification to denitrification.
Effects of chia (Salvia hispanica L.) seed roasting conditions on quality of cookies

Our aims were to analyze physical changes and antioxidant properties of chia seeds roasted under various conditions (160-200°C, 5-15 min) and to investigate the effects on quality characteristics of cookies. Weight loss and water-holding capacity rapidly changed after roasting at 180°C. Fatty acid composition showed no significant change, while antioxidant activity of roasted seeds increased. Cookies were prepared by replacing 3% of flour with roasted chia seeds (180°C, 0-15 min). Baking loss, hardness, and brightness were inversely proportional to roasting time. Roasting of chia seeds affected texture and sweetness scores in a consumer preference test.
The rs72613567: TA Variant in the Hydroxysteroid 17-beta Dehydrogenase 13 Gene Reduces Liver Damage in Obese Children.

We first investigated in obese children the protective role of the hydroxysteroid 17-beta dehydrogenase 13 (HSD17B13) rs72613567:TA variant in liver damage. Six hundred eighty-five obese children were genotyped for HSD17B13, patatin-like phospholipase domain containing 3 (PNPLA3), transmembrane 6 superfamily member 2 (TM6SF2), and membrane bound O-acyltransferase domain containing 7 (MBOAT7) polymorphisms and underwent anthropometrical, ultrasonographic, and biochemical evaluation. Indirect measurement of liver fibrosis (Pediatric NAFLD Fibrosis Index [PNFI]) was calculated. The population was clustered in two genetic risk groups based on the numbers of steatogenic alleles (low: carriers up to 3 risk alleles, high:4-6 risk alleles). Carriers of the HSD17B13 rare A allele showed lower percentage of hepatic steatosis and both lower serum transaminase and PNFI levels than noncarriers, even after adjustments for confounders. These findings were also confirmed in both risk groups.We demonstrated the protective effect of the rs72613567:TA HSD17B13 variant in reducing liver damage in obese children regardless of genetic predisposition.
Effects of Water Vapor Addition on the Flame Structure and Soot Formation in a Laminar Ethanol/air Coflow Flame

ABSTRACT Ethanol is a promising alternative fuel to gasoline engines; however, the problem of particulate matter (PM) emissions still exists when ethanol is applied to gasoline direct injection (GDI) engines, especially under high load. Water injection is proved to be an effective way to reduce the PM emissions and engine knocking, simultaneously. In this work, a numerical calculation was carried out in an ethanol/air coflow diffusion flame to investigate the effects of water vapor addition on the flame structure and soot formation. A complete step-by-step decoupling method was proposed to numerically isolate the dilution, density, transport, thermal, radiative and chemical effects of water vapor by introducing several virtual species. Results show that the temperature distribution of the flame is mainly affected by the dilution effect and thermal effect of water vapor, followed by radiative effect and chemical effect. The mole fraction of OH radical increases because of the enhancement of the reaction H2O + H <=> OH + H2 and O + H2O <=> OH + OH, while the conversion of CO to CO2 is promoted through the reaction CO + OH <=> CO2 + H, due to the chemical effect. Soot volume fraction is also reduced, where the dilution and chemical effects play the most important roles. Hydrogen-abstraction-carbon-addition (HACA) surface growth and OH oxidation are the processes controlling the soot mass addition and consumption, respectively. HACA rate is mainly affected by the dilution and chemical effects. However, chemical effect has little influence on the OH oxidation rate, since the collision probability of OH with soot particles remains almost unchanged as a result of the increase of OH concentration and the decrease of soot volume fraction under the chemical effect.
Expression mapping, quantification, and complex formation of GluD1 and GluD2 glutamate receptors in adult mouse brain

In the cerebellum, GluD2 is exclusively expressed in Purkinje cells, where it regulates synapse formation and regeneration, synaptic plasticity, and motor learning. Delayed cognitive development in humans with GluD2 gene mutations suggests extracerebellar functions of GluD2. However, extracerebellar expression of GluD2 and its relationship with that of GluD1 are poorly understood. GluD2 mRNA and protein were widely detected, with relatively high levels observed in the olfactory glomerular layer, medial prefrontal cortex, cingulate cortex, retrosplenial granular cortex, olfactory tubercle, subiculum, striatum, lateral septum, anterodorsal thalamic nucleus, and arcuate hypothalamic nucleus. These regions were also enriched for GluD1, and many individual neurons coexpressed the two GluDs. In the retrosplenial granular cortex, GluD1 and GluD2 were selectively expressed at PSD‐95‐expressing glutamatergic synapses, and their coexpression on the same synapses was shown by SDS‐digested freeze‐fracture replica labeling. Biochemically, GluD1 and GluD2 formed coimmunoprecipitable complex formation in HEK293T cells and in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus. We further estimated the relative protein amount by quantitative immunoblotting using GluA2/GluD2 and GluA2/GluD1 chimeric proteins as standards for titration of GluD1 and GluD2 antibodies. Intriguingly, the relative amount of GluD2 was almost comparable to that of GluD1 in the postsynaptic density fraction prepared from the cerebral cortex and hippocampus. In contrast, GluD2 was overwhelmingly predominant in the cerebellum. Thus, we have determined the relative extracerebellar expression of GluD1 and GluD2 at regional, neuronal, and synaptic levels. These data provide a molecular–anatomical basis for possible competitive and cooperative interactions of GluD family members at synapses in various brain regions.
A reassessment of the discrepancies in the annual variation of δD-H2O in the tropical lower stratosphere between the MIPAS and ACE-FTS satellite data sets

Abstract. The annual variation of δD in the tropical lower stratosphere is a critical indicator for the relative importance of different processes contributing to the transport of water vapour through the cold tropical tropopause region into the stratosphere. Distinct observational discrepancies of the δD annual variation were visible in the works of Steinwagner et al. (2010) and Randel et al. (2012). Steinwagner et al. (2010) analysed MIPAS (Michelson Interferometer for Passive Atmospheric Sounding) observations retrieved with the IMK/IAA (Institut für Meteorologie und Klimaforschung in Karlsruhe, Germany, in collaboration with the Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía in Granada, Spain) processor, while Randel et al. (2012) focused on ACE-FTS (Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment Fourier Transform Spectrometer) observations. Here we reassess the discrepancies based on newer MIPAS (IMK/IAA) and ACE-FTS data sets, also showing for completeness results from SMR (Sub-Millimetre Radiometer) observations and a ECHAM/MESSy (European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts Hamburg and Modular Earth Submodel System) Atmospheric Chemistry (EMAC) simulation (Eichinger et al., 2015b). Similar to the old analyses, the MIPAS data set yields a pronounced annual variation (maximum about 75 ‰), while that derived from the ACE-FTS data set is rather weak (maximum about 25 ‰). While all data sets exhibit the phase progression typical for the tape recorder, the annual maximum in the ACE-FTS data set precedes that in the MIPAS data set by 2 to 3 months. We critically consider several possible reasons for the observed discrepancies, focusing primarily on the MIPAS data set. We show that the δD annual variation in the MIPAS data up to an altitude of 40 hPa is substantially impacted by a “start altitude effect”, i.e. dependency between the lowermost altitude where MIPAS retrievals are possible and retrieved data at higher altitudes. In itself this effect does not explain the differences with the ACE-FTS data. In addition, there is a mismatch in the vertical resolution of the MIPAS HDO and H2O data (being consistently better for HDO), which actually results in an artificial tape-recorder-like signal in δD. Considering these MIPAS characteristics largely removes any discrepancies between the MIPAS and ACE-FTS data sets and shows that the MIPAS data are consistent with a δD tape recorder signal with an amplitude of about 25 ‰ in the lowermost stratosphere.
Chemical Composition and Bioactivity of Three Plant Essential Oils against Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) and Sitophilus oryzae (L.)

Three essential oils extracted from German chamomile, Matricaria chamomilla, Anise, Pimpinella anisum and cumin, Cuminum cyminum were assessed against two of the major stored grain insect species, Sitophilus oryzae (L.) and Tribolium castaneum (Herbst). The chemical composition of the essential oils was determined by gas chromatography (GC) and GC/mass spectrometry. The bioactivity of the oils determined was assessed against both species. A concentration of 100000 ppm, essential oils caused 100% mortality of S.oryzae after 96 h. of exposure, whereas, T. castaneum were more tolerant to the oils than S. oryzae. At this concentration, the values of F1 progeny production, progeny reduction (%) and grain weight loss (%) of both insect species were lower than other concentrations. Eventually, all oils exhibited a negative impact on some biological aspects of both insects. These results highlight the potential of these oils as grain protectants and antifeedants, and consequently could be suitable for the management of insect pests in grain stores.
In situ Evaluation of Ruminal Degradability and Intestinal Digestibility of Sunflower Meal Compared to Soybean Meal

The aim of this study was to compare the nutritional value of sunflower meal (SFM) and soybean meal (SBM) protein by determining both its ruminal degradability and intestinal digestibility. Three non lactating Jersey cows fitted with a rumen and T-type duodenal cannulas were used to estimate rumen degradability and intestinal digestibility of SFM and SBM dry matter (DM) and crude protein (CP). Samples of SFM were collected from seven sunflower processing plants (SFM1 to SFM7). Six different samples of SBM were collected from three main suppliers (SBM1 to SBM6). Both protein feeds were incubated in the rumen of the cows for 0, 2, 4, 8, 16, 24 and 48 h in 6 replications. The rapidly degradable fraction of DM averaged 24.8% for SFM which was lower (P<0.01) than that observed for SBM (29.2%). The effective DM degradability of SFM (56.2 %/h), at mean rumen outflow rate of 0.06/h, was lower (P<0.01) compared with SBM samples (67.3 %/h). The washable fraction a of CP was higher (P<0.01) for SFM samples (26.3%) in comparison to all batches of SBM (16.5%). The effective degradability of SFM CP (67.7 %/h) at rumen passage rate of 0.06/h was higher (P<0.01) than in SBM (63.0 %/h). The DM intestinal digestibility of SFM samples (42.6%) measured by the mobile bag technique was lower (P<0.01) compared to SBM samples (71.9%). The intestinal digestibility of SFM CP (89.9%) was also lower (P<0.01) than in SBM (94.6%). Results of this study indicate that SBM samples were more resistant to ruminal degradation than SFM. The data suggest that changing the toasting parameters can decrease degradability of SFM to improve protein quality.
Electrospun ZnSnO Nanofibers for Neuromorphic Transistors With Ultralow Energy Consumption

Emulating the essential synaptic working principles using a three-terminal synaptic transistor has been an important research field in recent years. Electrospun metal oxide nanofibers have been regarded as promising blocks for large-area, low-cost, and one-dimensional (1D) electronic devices. In this letter, zinc-tin oxide (ZnSnO) nanofibers were fabricated by electrospinning, and the synaptic transistors based on ZnSnO nanofibers were integrated. To mimic the synaptic behavior of human brain, LiClO4 dissolved in polyethylene oxide was used as the gate electrolyte in the synaptic transistors. The plasticities, including short term and long term, are mimicked with the help of electrolyte ion dynamics under low and large bias voltage, and an energy consumption of as low as 0.44 pJ per event is observed. This work demonstrates a new approach for establishing the large-scale, energy-efficient 1D artificial synapses for neuromorphic networks.
Effect of molasses on the treatment efficiency of fish recycling aquaculture wastewater and its microbial community analysis

The study aimed to investigate the effects of molasses on denitrification in an actual aquaculture wastewater through a set of experiments with the addition of an external C source. The difference in pollutant degradation in the aquaculture water was observed through the aerobic denitrification process in the biological aerated filter. Molasses can cause changes in the water environment and increase the bacterial metabolism when added to the reactor as a cosubstrate. High inorganic N bioremoval levels were also due to the different bacterial communities. At the phylum level, the dominant bacteria were Proteobacteria, Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes. At the genus level, molasses addition also stimulated a significant increase in the aerobic denitrifying bacteria, such as Pseudomonas, Comamonas and Zoogloea.
pH Shift Solubilization and Precipitation Protein Extraction from the Wastes of the Threadfin Bream, Nemipterus japonicus

This study aimed at extraction of protein from the wastes of the threadfin bream, Nemipterus japonicus using pH shift solubilization and precipitation processes and evaluation of the influencing factors on protein extraction. Towards this objective, the wastes of head, skin and internal organs were collected, and their nutritional composition evaluated. Furthermore, the ratio of waste: water for protein extraction was screened and the effect of pH, centrifugation speed and time on protein solubility rate, the amino acid composition and the molecular weight of proteins via SDS-PAGE were determined. Results demonstrated that moisture was the highest percentage (~70-78%) of all wastes. Highest protein content (19.67Â±1.10%), fat content (1.81Â±0.09%) and carbohydrate content (4.43Â±0.23%) were observed in skin, head and internal organs, respectively. The optimum ratio of waste: water for protein extraction is 1:9 for head, 1:8 for internal organs and 1:6 for skin. The protein extraction efficiency for all three samples were high at pH 3 and pH 12. Protein solubility increased with increased centrifugation speed up to 10,000 Ã—g, and there was no significant difference (P>0.05) between the protein solubility at 10,000 Ã—g and 20â€™000 Ã—g. Furthermore, there was significant difference (P<0.05) between protein solubility with increased centrifugation time. Alkaline process showed a remarkably higher amino acid content as compared to that of acid version. Glutamic acid and lysine were found higher compared to other amino acids. The molecular weight of proteins isolated in this study were low (<100 KDa).
Multi-Domain Adversarial Learning

Author(s): Schoenauer-Sebag, Alice; Heinrich, Louise; Schoenauer, Marc; Sebag, Michele; Wu, Lani F; Altschuler, Steve J | Abstract: Multi-domain learning (MDL) aims at obtaining a model with minimal average risk across multiple domains. Our empirical motivation is automated microscopy data, where cultured cells are imaged after being exposed to known and unknown chemical perturbations, and each dataset displays significant experimental bias. This paper presents a multi-domain adversarial learning approach, MuLANN, to leverage multiple datasets with overlapping but distinct class sets, in a semi-supervised setting. Our contributions include: i) a bound on the average- and worst-domain risk in MDL, obtained using the H-divergence; ii) a new loss to accommodate semi-supervised multi-domain learning and domain adaptation; iii) the experimental validation of the approach, improving on the state of the art on two standard image benchmarks, and a novel bioimage dataset, Cell.
Enzymatic degradation of recalcitrant pharmaceutical micropollutants

This work is focused on the study of the enzymatic depletion of recalcitrant pharmaceutical micropollutants in water. The potential degradation of three antibiotics (amoxicillin, ciprofloxacin and sulfamethoxazole) and one anti-epileptic (carbamazepine) was studied with three laccases: Pycnoporus sanguineus CS43, Trametes versicolor (Tv) and Myceliophtora thermophila. Free laccase systems were evaluated for pharmaceuticals depletion on model solutions in the presence or absence of redox mediators and the impact of several parameters on the performance of laccases for degradation were studied. The enzymes were then immobilized on different solid supports: commercial silica, laboratory synthetized nano-silica and clay based composite nanomaterials and used for degradation tests. A novel methodology for the covalent binding of laccases onto carriers was developed by using glutaraldehyde in vapour phase and the best immobilization conditions were determined through a 23 full factorial design. The immobilized Tv shown the highest activity and was tested in presence of redox mediators. Moreover, the reusability was evaluated in several degradation cycles and the toxicity of the solutions after treatment was assessed with the Microtox® test. In comparison to laccase immobilized on commercial silica, the Tv supported on laboratory synthetized materials showed higher activity and a better performance for the removal of target compounds.
Characterization of aerosol particles at Cape Verde close to sea and cloud level heights – Part 2: ice nucleating particles in air, cloud and seawater

Abstract. Ice nucleating particles (INPs) in the troposphere can form ice in clouds via heterogeneous ice nucleation. Yet, atmospheric number concentrations of INPs (NINP) are not well characterized and although there is some understanding of their sources, it is still unclear to what extend different sources contribute, nor if all sources are known. In this work, we examined properties of INPs at Cape Verde from different sources, the oceanic sea surface microlayer (SML) and underlying water (ULW), the atmosphere close to both sea and cloud level as well as cloud water. Both enrichment and depletion of NINP in SML compared to ULW were observed. The enrichment factor (EF) varied from roughly 0.4 to 11, and there was no clear trend in EF with temperature. NINP in PM10 sampled at Cape Verde Atmospheric Observatory (CVAO) at any particular temperature spanned around 1 order of magnitude below −15 °C, and about 2 orders of magnitude at warmer temperatures (>−12 °C). NINP in PM1 were generally lower than those in PM10 at CVAO. About 83 ± 22 %, 67 ± 18 % and 77 ± 14 % (median ± standard deviation) of INPs had a diameter > 1 µm at ice activation temperatures of −12, −15, and −18 °C, respectively. Among the 17 PM10 samples at CVAO, three PM10 filters showed elevated NINP at warm temperatures, e.g., above 0.01 std L−1 at −10 °C. However, for NINP in PM1 at CVAO, this is not the case. At these higher temperatures, often biological particles have been found to be ice active. Consequently, the difference in NINP between PM1 and PM10 at CVAO, suggests that biological ice active particles were present in the super-micron size range. NINP in PM10 at CVAO was found to be similar to that on Monte Verde (MV, at 744 m a.s.l.) during non-cloud events. During cloud events, most INPs on MV were activated to cloud droplets. When highly ice active particles were present in PM10 filters at CVAO, they were not observed in PM10 filters on MV, but in cloud water samples, instead. This is direct evidence that these INPs which are likely biological are activated to cloud droplets during cloud events. In general, Cape Verde was often affected by dust from the Saharan desert during our measurement. For the observed air masses, atmospheric NINP in air fit well to the concentrations observed in cloud water. When comparing concentrations of both sea salt and INPs in both seawater and PM10 filters, it can be concluded that sea spray aerosol (SSA) only contributed a minor fraction to the atmospheric NINP. Therefore it can be said that, unless there would be a significant enrichment of NINP during the formation of SSA particles, NINP was mainly dominated by mineral dust at cold temperatures with few contributions from possible biological particles at warmer temperatures.
NEW TETRANUCLEAR AND MONONUCLEAR OXALATO ORGANOTIN (IV) COMPLEXES WITH MONOCYCLOHEXYLAMMONIUM AS ADVERSE CATION: SYNTHESIS AND INFRARED STUDY

Eight new adducts and derivatives have been synthesized and studied by infrared. Discrete, layered or infinite chain structures are suggested with an oxalate behaving as a monodentate, bidentate, monochelating or bichelating ligand, the environment around the tin centres being tetrahedral, cis trigonal bipyramidal or octahedral. In all the studied compounds, supramolecular architectures may be obtained when intermolecular hydrogen bonds are considered.