Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Comparison of the Photodynamic Effect of Exogenous Photoprotoporphyrin and Protoporphyrin IX on PAM 212 Murine Keratinocytes¶

Abstract A comparative study of the cellular photosensitizing properties of protoporphyrin IX (PpIX) and photoprotoporphyrin (Ppp) was carried out in the transformed murine keratinocyte cell line, PAM 212. Time-course fluorescence studies were performed to determine the rate of uptake by cells together with fluorescence microscopy. The sensitized cells were laser irradiated with a range of light doses at 635 or 670 nm to determine the phototoxicity of the two compounds and to investigate their relative fluorescence photobleaching properties. Ppp showed enhanced phototoxicity at both its optimal activation wavelength of 670 nm (eight times more phototoxic than PpIX activated at its optimal wavelength of 635 nm for the same fluence) and at 635 nm (three times more phototoxic than PpIX at the same wavelength), using the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide assay. The photobleaching rate of Ppp in cells was found to be higher using 670 nm irradiation compared with that of PpIX at 635 nm irradiation. At 635 nm, however, the photobleaching rate of Ppp was comparable to that of PpIX. The photobleaching quantum yields of the two compounds in cells were found to be similar at approximately 5 × 10−4, with the same value confirmed at both 670 and 635 nm irradiation for Ppp. The fluorescence lifetime of Ppp in cells was measured as 5.4 ns using time-correlated single photon counting.
Variability of Primary Production in an Antarctic Marine Ecosystem as Estimated Using a Multi-scale Sampling Strategy1

Abstract A major objective of the multidisciplinary Palmer Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) program is to obtain a comprehensive understanding of various components of the Antarctic marine ecosystem—the assemblage of plants, animals, ocean, sea ice, and island components south of the Antarctic Convergence. Phytoplankton production plays a key role in this polar ecosystem, and factors that regulate production include those that control cell growth (light, temperature, nutrients) and those that control cell accumulation rate and hence population growth (water column stability, advection, grazing, and sinking). Several of these factors are mediated by the annual advance and retreat of sea ice. In this study, we examine the results from nearly a decade (1991–2000) of ecological research in the western Antarctic Peninsula region. We evaluate the spatial and temporal variability of phytoplankton biomass (estimated as chlorophyll-a concentration) and primary production (determined in-situ aboard ship as well as estimated from ocean color satellite data). We also present the spatial and temporal variability of sea ice extent (estimated from passive microwave satellite data). While the data record is relatively short from a long-term perspective, evidence is accumulating that statistically links the variability in sea ice to the variability in primary production. Even though this marine ecosystem displays extreme interannual variability in both phytoplankton biomass and primary production, persistent spatial patterns have been observed over the many years of study (e.g., an on to offshore gradient in biomass and a growing season characterized by episodic phytoplankton blooms). This high interannual variability at the base of the food chain influences organisms at all trophic levels.
COLONIZATION, DISPERSAL, AND HYBRIDIZATION INFLUENCE PHYLOGEOGRAPHY OF NORTH ATLANTIC SEA URCHINS (STRONGYLOCENTROTUS DROEBACHIENSIS)

Abstract We used frequency-based and coalescent-based phylogeographic analysis of sea urchin (Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis) mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences and previously published microsatellite data to understand the relative influence of colonization and gene flow from older (north Pacific) and younger (northeast Atlantic) sea urchin populations on genetic variation in the northwest Atlantic. We found strong evidence of survival of northwestern Atlantic populations in local Pleistocene glacial refugia: most haplotypes were the same as or closely related to Pacific haplotypes, with deep gene genealogies that reflect divergence times within the northwestern Atlantic that are much older than the last glacial maximum. We detected gene flow across the North Atlantic in the form of haplotypes shared with or recently descended from European populations. We also found evidence of significant introgression of haplotypes from a closely related species (S. pallidus). The relative magnitude of gene flow estimated by coalescent methods (and the effective population size differences among oceanic regions) depended on the genetic marker used. In general, we found very small effective population size in the northeastern Atlantic and high trans-Arctic gene flow between the Pacific and northwestern Atlantic. Both analyses suggested significant back-migration to the Pacific. However, microsatellites more strongly reflected older Pacific migration (with similar effective population sizes across the Arctic), whereas mtDNA sequences appeared to be more sensitive to recent trans- Atlantic dispersal (with larger differences in effective population size). These differences across marker types might have several biological or methodological causes, and they suggest caution in interpretation of the results from a single locus or class of markers.
YOLK EMBOLISM ASSOCIATED WITH TRAUMA IN VITELLOGENIC SEA TURTLES IN FLORIDA (USA): A REVIEW OF 11 CASES

Case information and postmortem examination findings are presented for 11 adult female sea turtles in reproductive form that died in Florida, USA. All had abundant, large vitellogenic follicles, and most were either gravid or had recently nested. Species included six loggerheads (Caretta caretta) and five green turtles (Chelonia mydas). Identified proximate causes of death included falls or entrapment by obstructions on nesting beaches, burial under collapsed dunes, and other traumatic injuries of different causes. Evidence of yolk embolization was found in 10 cases and suspected in an 11th turtle. Ten turtles also had various amounts of free intracoelomic yolk. Although the effects of yolk embolization are uncertain at this time, precedence of pathologic importance in other species suggests that embolism may complicate traumatic injuries, including seemingly minor events.
Thiersianthus (Marchantiophyta: Lejeuneaceae), a new genus from lowland rainforests in Borneo

Abstract The tropical lowland rainforest is a paradise for Lejeuneaceae. Borneo is located in the heart of the biodiversity hotspots of Philippines, Sundaland and Wallacea. During an expedition to explore liverwort diversity of Sabah, Borneo we found an undescribed ocellate taxon in the lowland ultramafic rainforests. Our phylogenetic analyses based on the nuclear ribosomal ITS region and two chloroplast regions (rbcL, trnL-trnF) suggest that this unknown species belongs to the subtribe Lepidolejeuneinae of Lejeuneaceae. On the basis of the combined molecular phylogenetic and morphological data, here we propose a new genus, Thiersianthus, to accommodate this new species. Capillolejeunea known only from the East African Islands and Kymatolejeunea endemic to New Zealand were included in molecular analysis for the first time.
LINKAGE-DEPENDENT GENE FLOW IN A HOUSE MOUSE CHROMOSOMAL HYBRID ZONE

Abstract In the alpine valley of Valtellina there are two Robertsonian chromosomal races of house mouse, the Poschiavo (POS: 2n = 24–26) characterized by metacentric 8.12 and acrocentrics 2 and 10 and the Upper Valtellina (UV: 2n = 22–24) characterized by metacentrics 2.8 and 10.12. The races inhabit separate villages in the valley except in Sommacologna and Sondalo, where they both occur together with hybrids. A total of 179 mice from 16 villages were typed at 13 microsatellite loci. Seven of these loci were localized close to the centromeres of chromosomes 10 and 12, with the prediction that these regions on the race-specific chromosomes would be the most likely to experience a barrier to gene flow. The remaining six loci were localized at the telomeres of chromosomes 10 and 12 and at the centromeres of chromosomes that do not differ between the races. Substantial differences in allelic frequencies were found between the villages with POS and UV races at five of the loci at the centromeres of chromosomes 10 and 12 but at none of the other loci. These differences were not found to distinguish the two races in Sommacologna and Sondalo. Therefore, the centromeric regions of race-specific chromosomes do appear to experience a barrier to gene flow, although this can break down under intense interbreeding between the races. These results are considered in the context of Harrison's (1990) concept of the semipermeability of hybrid zones to gene exchange and in relation to parapatric speciation.
The Ultimate Basis of the Caching Preferences of Rodents, and the Oak-Dispersal Syndrome: Tannins, Insects, and Seed Germination1

Abstract We have shown that eastern gray squirrels and other animals consistently prefer to store intact acorns from the red oak group rather than those from the white oak group. We hypothesized that the ultimate advantage to this behavior comes from the dormancy of red oak acorns. Acorns of the white oak group germinate early in the autumn; thus, we hypothesize that avoiding germination is the primary selective advantage to the preference for caching red oak acorns. Here, we test two alternative hypotheses to explain the benefits of this caching preference: 1) storing red oak acorns allows the high tannin concentrations in red oak acorns to decline (making them more palatable), and 2) storing red oak acorns minimizes losses to insects, presuming they are less infested with insects. We also test the effect of germination schedule on squirrel caching preferences directly, by presenting them with dormant red oak acorns, and red oak acorns about to germinate. We find no evidence that tannin concentrations in red oak acorns decline, although tannin levels did decline in our white oak acorns. We found high losses to insect infestations in one white oak species, but a second white oak species lost very little mass to insects. Finally, we found that germination schedule directly affects squirrel caching preferences: red oak acorns that are near germination are treated like white oak acorns. We conclude that the primary advantage to the preference for caching red oak acorns is that they are less perishable, due to their dormancy. We discuss the effects of this preference on the dispersal of red and white oak acorns, and the subsequent effects of differential dispersal on the ecology and evolution of oaks.
EVOLUTION OF LATE-LIFE MORTALITY IN DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER

Abstract Aging appears to cease at late ages, when mortality rates roughly plateau in large-scale demographic studies. This anomalous plateau in late-life mortality has been explained theoretically in two ways: (1) as a strictly demographic result of heterogeneity in life-long robustness between individuals within cohorts, and (2) as an evolutionary result of the plateau in the force of natural selection after the end of reproduction. Here we test the latter theory using cohorts of Drosophila melanogaster cultured with different ages of reproduction for many generations. We show in two independent comparisons that populations that evolve with early truncation of reproduction exhibit earlier onset of mortality-rate plateaus, in conformity with evolutionary theory. In addition, we test two population genetic mechanisms that may be involved in the evolution of late-life mortality: mutation accumulation and antagonistic pleiotropy. We test mutation accumulation by crossing genetically divergent, yet demographically identical, populations, testing for hybrid vigor between the hybrid and nonhybrid parental populations. We found no difference between the hybrid and nonhybrid populations in late-life mortality rates, a result that does not support mutation accumulation as a genetic mechanism for late-life mortality, assuming mutations act recessively. Finally, we test antagonistic pleiotropy by returning replicate populations to a much earlier age of last reproduction for a short evolutionary time, testing for a rapid indirect response of late-life mortality rates. The positive results from this test support antagonistic pleiotropy as a genetic mechanism for the evolution of late-life mortality. Together these experiments comprise the first corroborations of the evolutionary theory of late-life mortality.
IRON STORAGE DISORDERS IN CAPTIVE WILD MAMMALS: THE COMPARATIVE EVIDENCE

Excessive burden of iron, or iron storage disease (ISD), has been reported in a large variety of captive mammal species, including browsing rhinoceroses; tapirs; fruit bats; lemurs; marmosets and some other primates; sugar gliders; hyraxes; some rodents and lagomorphs; dolphins; and some carnivores; including procyonids and pinnipeds. This report collates the comparative evidence for species’ susceptibility, recognizing that the data for mammal species are limited. Differences reported in the occurrence of ISD between facilities, or within facilities over periods that span management changes, have been reported in individual cases but are underused in ISD research. Given the species composition, the hypothesis that evolutionary adaptations to the iron content and availability in the natural diet determine a species’ susceptibility to ISD (in the face of deviating iron content and availability in diets offered in captivity) seems plausible in many cases. But exceptions, and additional species putatively susceptible based on this rationale, should be investigated. Whereas screening for ISD should be routine in zoo animal necropsy, screening of live individuals may be implemented for valuable species, to decide on therapeutic measures such as chelator application or phlebotomy. Whatever the reasons for ISD susceptibility, reducing dietary iron levels to maintenance requirements of the species in question seems to be a logical, preventive measure.
Load Of Challenge Marek's Disease Virus DNA In Blood As a Criterion For Early Diagnosis of Marek's Disease Tumors

Additional Information MD is a lymphoproliferative disease of chickens that is of great concern for the poultry industry. Even though MD has been successfully controlled by vaccination since 1968, sporadic outbreaks of MD still occur and lead to remarkable economic losses. There are many different factors that contribute to the onset of an outbreak. The evolution of MDV towards more virulence has a negative effect on the vaccine efficacy. In addition, MD vaccines are cell-associated and therefore very labile. Problems associated with storing and handling of MD vaccines are responsible for many of the outbreaks. Concomitant immunosuppressive diseases (i.e. chicken infectious anemia, infectious bursal disease) can also decrease the efficacy of MD vaccines and contribute to their failure. Finally, other factors such as early exposure to MDV prior to development of immunity against the disease also play a role. Monitoring of MD protection in the field is extremely difficult because MDV is ubiquitous and infection is not synonymous with disease. Moreover, even though there is strong neutralizing antibody response after MD vaccination, neutralizing antibodies do not protect against development of tumors. Therefore, they cannot be used to estimate the level of protection conferred by MD vaccine. The model used in this study has the potential of being valid in field conditions when flocks are vaccinated with serotype 2 and 3 but not with serotype 1 because the primers used in the study will not be able to differentiate between serotype 1 MDVs. Further studies to validate this method in field trials and optimize methods that permit differentiation between serotype 1 MDVs are warranted. *Corresponding author. E-mail: Isabel_Gimeno@ncsu.edu
Cooperative Effects in the Photophysical Properties of Self-associated Triguanosine Diphosphates¶

Abstract The present study deals with the photophysical properties of triguanosine diphosphate in aqueous solutions, which are compared with those of the 2′-deoxyguanosine monophosphate. They are studied by steady-state absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy as well as by time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy with femtosecond resolution. The temperature, salt and concentration dependence of the absorption and fluorescence spectra reveal that association of the trimers takes place. The resulting aggregates could correspond to a tetraplex structure. The aggregate fluorescence quantum yield is higher and the fluorescence lifetime much longer than those of the monomer. These results show the interaction between guanosine residues that may manifest itself via self-solvation, hydrogen bonding and / or delocalization of the excitation.
Rectifying inspection plans applied in the determination of the optimum process mean

In this paper, we present a modified Pulak and Al-Sultan's model for determining the optimum process mean under the rectifying inspection plan. Both the lot tolerance percent defective (LTPD) protection and the average outgoing quality limit (AOQL) protection are considered in the modified model. By solving the modified model, we can obtain the optimum process mean with the maximum expected profit and the specified quality level reached.
PHYSIOLOGIC AND SERUM BIOCHEMISTRY VALUES IN FREE-RANGING HOFFMANN'S TWO-TOED (CHOLOEPUS HOFFMANNI) AND BROWN-THROATED THREE-TOED (BRADYPUS VARIEGATUS) SLOTHS IMMOBILIZED USING DEXMEDETOMIDINE AND KETAMINE

Dexmedetomidine, a highly selective a-2 adrenergic agonist and dextrorotary enantiomer of medetomidine, was combined with ketamine and used to immobilize 14 free-ranging Choloepus hoffmanni (Hoffmann’s two-toed sloths) and 11 Bradypus variegatus (brown-throated three-toed sloths) in Upala, Costa Rica. Following intramuscular injection of ketamine (2.1 mg/kg) and dexmedetomidine (11 lg/kg), heart rate, respiratory rate, and indirect systolic blood pressure were measured every 5 min for a total of 25 min. An iStat (CG8þ) was used to evaluate serum biochemical and hematologic values during anesthesia. After 30 min of anesthesia, atipamezole (0.13 mg/kg) was administered intramuscularly, which resulted in rapid and smooth recoveries. Mean heart rate and respiratory rate remained unchanged in both C. hoffmanni and B. variegatus over time. Progressive decreases in mean indirect systolic blood pressure were documented in both species. Results of this study suggest a combination of dexmedetomidne and ketamine is a safe and effective anesthetic protocol for use in free-ranging C. hoffmanni and B. variegatus. Similar to other a-2 adrenergic agonist-based immobilization protocols, close monitoring of cardiovascular and respiratory parameters are recommended. This study also provides serum biochemical and hematologic data in free-ranging C. hoffmanni and B. variegatus.
Evolution of the Cholecystokinin and Gastrin Peptides and Receptors1

Synopsis. The intestinal hormone, cholecystokinin (CCK), and the stomach hormone, gastrin, form a simple two member family of peptides with much to offer students of hormone and receptor evolution. They share a common carboxyl-terminal tetrapeptide sequence, which is the bioactive site of each peptide and is also antigenic, making heterologous biological and immunological assays feasible. Current evidence indicates that CCK evolved in chordate ancestors and that gastrin-like peptides that separately regulate stomach functions evolved from an ancestral CCK at the level of the divergence of tetrapods from fish. This tentative conclusion may require modification when the two separate CCK- and gastrin-like peptides recently identified in the dogfish shark are characterized further. The CCK-X receptor appears to be ancestral to the CCK-A and CCK-B receptors identified in amniotes. The evolution of gastrin and of CCK-A and -B receptors may have played roles in the evolution of the stomach and the evolution of endothermy in vertebrate phylogeny.
Surveillance for High Pathogenicity Avian Influenza Virus in Wild Birds in the Pacific Flyway of the United States, 2006–2007

Important Findings In 2006 the United States Department of Agriculture and Department of Interior and cooperating state fish and wildlife agencies began surveillance for high-pathogenicity avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 virus in wild birds in the Pacific Flyway of the United States. Surveillance occurred in 8 western states and primarily in the months of August through January. Sampling focused on live wild birds, hunter-killed waterfowl during state hunting seasons, and wild bird mortality events (Figure 1). Of 20,888 samples collected, 18,139 were from order Anseriformes (waterfowl) and 2,010 were from order Charadriiformes (shorebirds), representing the two groups of birds regarded to be the primary reservoirs of avian influenza viruses. Although 83 birds were positive by H5 real time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, no HPAI H5N1 virus was found. Thirtytwo virus isolates were obtained from the H5 positive samples, including low-pathogenicity H5 viruses identified as H5N2, H5N3, and H5N9. Significance of Findings Experimentally, wild species of waterfowl have been infected with HPAI H5N1 resulting in a range of outcomes from mortality in infected individuals to little or no clinical signs of disease but high shedding of virus. These results have led to speculation that some species may be capable of transporting HPAI H5N1 over long distances. While researchers did not detect HPAI H5N1 in the study, this and other recent reports suggest that wild birds may play a role in the local or regional spread of the virus, and consequently surveillance in migratory birds is warranted and is a necessary component of any surveillance program.
Variation in Reproductive Traits within the Lizard Genus Xenosaurus

—We document variation among 13 populations of distinct species of the lizard genus Xenosaurus in four key reproductive traits: minimum size at maturity, litter size, size at birth, and relative clutch mass (RCM). Despite a common flattened morphology, considerable variation occurs in the examined traits. Minimum size at maturity varied between 92 and 110 mm snout–vent length (SVL), average litter size ranged between 2.1 and 5.7 newborns per female, mean size at birth varied between 40.6 and 51.6 mm SVL, and average RCM ranged between 0.16 and 0.35. We also found considerable interpopulational variation in mean size of reproductive females (from 102.9–119.2 mm SVL) and in the length of the birth season (from about one month to four months distributed between early May and late September). Litter size and RCM were the most variable traits with coefficients of variation above 20, whereas the other traits showed coefficients of variation between 4 and 7.4. Only the minimum size at maturity showed an allometric effect. Litter size and size at birth were negatively correlated, which we interpret as evidence of a trade-off between these two traits. Cluster analyses revealed the existence of two main life-history strategies: populations with relatively large litters of small young and populations with small litters of large young. We suggest further ecological and phylogenetic analyses to explain the patterns of variation and covariation observed in the
Dermally Adhered Soil: 1. Amount and Particle-Size Distribution

Abstract The risk associated with the dermal absorption of chemicals from contaminated soil is, in part, a function of particle size distribution, as determined by either dry or wet sieving techniques. For the soils tested, the adhered soil fractions were shown to be independent of organic matter content and soil origin. Soil moisture content becomes a factor only for very moist soils. Results show that the adhered fractions of dry or moderately moist soils with wide distributions of particle sizes generally consist of particles of diameters <63 μm. Consequently, dermal absorption experiments using larger size fractions may be of limited relevance to actual situations of soil exposure.