Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Molecular characterization of vembur sheep (Ovis aries) of south India based on microsatellites

The Vembur sheep is a mutton breed, adapted to semi arid habitat and distributed in and around Thoothukudi, Virudhunagar and Tirunelveli districts of Tamilnadu, India. Microsatellite characterization yielded a total of 147 alleles in the sampled population for 25 marker loci under investigation, with a mean of 5.88 ± 0.29 alleles per locus. Number of alleles observed on each locus varied between two and nine. The effective number of alleles observed with a mean of 4.0950 ± 0.23 alleles per locus. The mean PIC value was 0.6905 ± 0.02. The frequency of majority of the loci returned highly significant chi-square values suggesting departure from HWE. The observed heterozygosity (Ho) values varied between 0.1333 and 1.0000, while the expected (He) values ranged from 0.4847 to 0.8537. The mean values were 0.5202 ± 0.04 and 0.7339 ± 0.02 respectively. FIS estimates were negative for three loci indicating more heterozygous nature of the population. The mean value observed was 0.2954 ± 0.31.
Taking Back the Internet: Defeating DDoS and Adverse Network Conditions via Reactive BGP Routing

In this work, we present Nyx, a system for mitigating Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks by routing critical traffic from known benign networks around links under attack from a massively distributed botnet. Nyx alters how Autonomous Systems (ASes) handle route selection and advertisement in the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) in order to achieve isolation of critical traffic away from congested links onto alternative, less congested paths. Our system controls outbound paths through the normal process of BGP path selection, while return paths from critical ASes are controlled through the use of existing traffic engineering techniques. To prevent alternative paths from including attacked network links, Nyx employs strategic lying in a manner that is functional in the presence of RPKI. Our system only exposes the alternate path to the networks needed for forwarding and those networks’ customer cones, thus strategically reducing the number of ASes outside of the critical AS that receive the alternative path. By leaving the path taken by malicious traffic unchanged and limiting the amount of added traffic load placed on the alternate path, our system causes less than 10 ASes on average to be disturbed by our inbound traffic migration. Nyx is the first system that scalably and effectively mitigates transit-link DDoS attacks that cannot be handled by existing and costly traffic filtering or prioritization techniques. Unlike the prior state of the art, Nyx is highly deployable, requiring only minor changes to router policies at the deployer, and requires no assistance from external networks. Using our own Internet-scale simulator, we find that in more than 98% of cases our system can successfully migrate critical traffic off of the network segments under transit-link DDoS. In over 98% of cases, the alternate path provides some degree of relief over the original path. Finally, in over 70% of cases where Nyx can migrate critical traffic off attacked segments, the new path has sufficient capacity to handle the entire traffic load without congestion.
The effect of phytase on apparent digestibility of four practical plant feedstuffs fed to striped bass, Morone saxatilis

This study was conducted to determine the effect of phytase on apparent dry matter (DM), crude protein and phosphorus (P) digestibility of four plant feedstuffs (isolated soya protein, ISP; soyabean meal, SBM; corn gluten meal, CGM and wheat middlings, WM) fed to striped bass Morone saxatilis. One reference diet was formulated based solely on animal feed ingredients. Four test diets were prepared by mixing 60-75% of the reference diet with 40-25% of the test ingredient in order to reach similar levels of total P (0.67-0.73%) and to have a minimum of 35% protein (36.1-53.0%). Chromic oxide was added at 0.5% of the diet and used as an indigestible marker. A phytase solution was sprayed postpelleting on the test diets at a concentration of 1000 phytase units kg(-1) (PU kg(-1) dry diet. The test diets (with or without phytase supplementation) and the reference diet (nine treatments total) were fed to 3-year-old striped bass and were replicated in time (n = 3) during the 4-week period. Digestibility of DM was significantly lower (P < 0.001) for SBM and WM when compared with CGM and ISP and was not influenced by phytase supplementation. Crude protein digestibility was also not affected by phytase supplementation and was significantly lower (P < 0.09) for SBM when compared with ISP. Phosphorus digestibility was improved by approximately 23% with the addition of phytase for all four feedstuffs tested (P < 0.001). Furthermore, WM had significantly lower (P < 0.0001) P digestibility when compared with the other feedstuffs, irrespective of phytase supplementation.
What Limits Trees in C4 Grasslands and Savannas

Though the distribution of global vegetation can generally be predicted from climate, grasslands are an exception. C4 grassy biomes cover vast areas that are warm enough and wet enough to support closed forests. The extent of this climate mismatch has been revealed by physiologically based global vegetation simulations and by large empirical data sets. Reasons for the existence of grassy biomes have long been debated, polarized into bottom-up (resources) or top-down (fire, herbivory) arguments. Recent studies indicate that both are important, especially in suppressing woody recruits. Grasses are formidable competitors belowground, create highly flammable fuels, and can support large herbivore densities. The net effect on trees is rare and episodic recruitment of adults in tree-fall gaps. The implication is that ecosystem structure and function depend on demographic transitions. Tree cover is increasing and grass/forest boundaries are changing. These changes can have large feedbacks to the earth-atmosphere.
Plant functional trait variation in relation to riparian geomorphology:The importance of disturbance

This study examined the patterns of plant functional trait variation in relation to geomorphology, disturbance and a suite of other environmental factors in the riparian margin of the Upper Hunter River, New South Wales, Australia.Vegetation was surveyed on three geomorphic surfaces (point bar, bench and bank) along a 5.5-km stretch of the Upper Hunter River. Functional traits relating to plant growth and reproduction were collected for the identified species. anova and principal components analysis were used to compare the trait assemblages of species associated with each geomorphic unit. Pearson's correlation coefficients were used to investigate trait variation with respect to environmental variables. There were clear differences in the plant functional trait assemblages associated with the three geomorphic units.Generally the point bar was associated with species that were herbaceous, with small seed mass, a short stature and a high specific leaf area (SLA). Conversely, the bench was associated with grasses that had unassisted seed dispersal and intermediate seed mass and SLA, while species on the bank had tall stature, large seed mass, a high SLA and a perennial life cycle.Variation along the primary gradient of plant functional trait composition was most strongly related to disturbance frequency and to a lesser extent soil nutrients and the proportion of clay and silt, while variation along the secondary gradient was associated with variation in substrate texture as well as soil nutrients.
Early development of root rot in young Norway spruce planted on sites infected by Heterobasidion in southern Finland

Root rot infections in Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst. ) regeneration, planted after the clear-cutting of spruce on sites infested by Heterobasidion, were investigated on 21 experimental plots in eight 2- to 23-year-old plantations. Heterobasidion root rot became evident about 10 years after planting and the proportion of infected spruces increased steadily with plantation age. The average number of planted spruces infected per old decayed stump was 0.2 trees in 2- to 9-year-old plantations, 0.8 trees in 11- to 15-year-old plantations, and 1.8 trees in 20- to 23-year-old plantations. About 10 and 20 years after planting, 7 and 23% of the planted spruces in the disease centers were infected by Heterobasidion. Heterobasidion parviporum Niemela & Korhonen, and Heterobasidion annosum (Fr.) Bref. s. str. caused 98 and 2% of the Heterobasidion infections in the previous spruce rotation, and 96 and 4% in the spruce regeneration, respectively. In all, 71% of the infected regeneration trees were attacked by .
The pattern of off-label and unlicensed drug use in adult and pediatric patients in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: multicenter retrospective study

Background: Screening approved medications to identify therapeutics for drug repurposing is an effective tactic, and a deep research into off label drug use (OLDU) is required. Unfortunately, OLDU has not been extensively studied in Middle East. Our study aimed to evaluate the extent of OLDU in Saudi Arabia.Methods: Retrospective study carried out during 12 month period at six tertiary hospitals in Saudi Arabia. Each prescription was evaluated as unlicensed or OLDU based on the product information or based on Food and drug Administration (FDA) approval.Results: A total of 288 prescriptions were analyzed, where the reasons for off-label prescribing were OLDU by indication (94.42%), OLDU by different age group (2.09%), and other reasons represented (3.48%). Adults/geriatrics (≥18 years) received (89.05%) of the orders, and children (1-11 years) received (7.78%) of the orders. Both adolescents (12-18 years) and neonates (1-29 days) received (1.42%) of the orders per each category, while infants (1 month-1 year) received (0.36%) of the orders. The therapeutic classes most often prescribed were antidepressants (21.88%), antidiabetics (17.71%), and atypical antipsychotics (10.06%). Conclusions: Off-label prescribing was found in most adults/geriatrics suffering from depression, and diabetes mellitus. The most common reason for off-label prescription was off-label by indication. The results call for the need to conduct more studies with larger sample size, do more investigations on the OLDU in the whole kingdom, and develop policy for OLDU across hospitals.
Management of Leucinodes Orbonalis Guenee on Eggplants During the Rainy Season in India

Leucinodes orbonalis Guenee (Pyraustidae: Lepidoptera) is a fruit and shoot borer which is the key pest of eggplant (also known as brinjal and aubergine). L. orbonalis causes broad-based problems in eggplant cultivation. An effort was made to control the borer during the Indian rainy season, as this is the time when the problem is at its worst. The impact of treatments on natural enemies as well as pollinators was also assessed. Integration of phytosanitation, mechanical control and prophylactic application of neem seed kernel extract (NSKE) exerted a satisfactory impact on the incidence and damage of L. orbonalis. After two need-based applications of new generation pesticide molecules like flubendiamide or rynaxypyr or emamectin benzoate, fairly good, healthy yields were pro- duced. A ready-mix formulation (triazophos 40% + cypermethrin 4%), and carbofuran also offered good protection against the borer but both were found highly toxic and unsafe for predators i.e. predatory coccinellids and spiders and pollinating bees. Flubendiamide and rynaxypyr appeared comparatively more unsafe for bees than emamectin benzoate, while both allowed a substantial proportion of coccinellids and spiders to survive. Naturolyte, with the active ingredient emamectin benzoate, was found safe for predators and bees and on par with the untreated check.
Use of both benthic and drift sampling techniques to assess tropical stream invertebrate communities along an altitudinal gradient, Costa Rica

were used to sample invertebrates drifting in the stream flow. 2. Sites were established at 30, 50, 700, 1800 and 2700 m a.s. l. In one to two streams per site, six Surber samples were collected, and drift was sampled every 3 h over one 24-h period between April and August 1994. All sites were in primary forest, with the exception of the lowest elevation site (30 m) which was located in banana plantations. 3. Both sampling techniques indicated that Diptera (Chironomidae) and Ephemeroptera were the dominant insect groups at all sites. Disturbed streams draining banana plantations were dominated by Chironomidae and had lower taxon richness and diversity than other sites. 4. While data from benthic samples indicated that insects were the major faunal component (. 90%) at all sites, drift samples were dominated by larval shrimps (. 50%) at the 30 m and 50 m sites. 5. Drift periodicity of invertebrates was observed at those sites characterized by predaceous fishes: nocturnal drift densities were higher than diurnal densities at 30, 50 and 700 m a.s. l. , however, no periodicity was observed at 1800 and 2700 m a.s. l. where fish were absent. 6. This study shows the importance of measuring invertebrate drift, in addition to directly sampling the benthos. Drift sampling provided data on a major community component (shrimps) of lowland tropical streams, that would have been overlooked using traditional benthic sampling techniques, and in some cases provided additional information on taxon richness. 7. Based on results of the present study, it is recommended that drift sampling be included as a standard complementary tool to benthic sampling in biological assessments (e.g. bioassessment protocols) of tropical streams, which are often characterized by migratory invertebrate species such as shrimps. Drift samples provide critical information on the presence or absence of shrimps and also on the timing and magnitude of their migration which is an important link between many tropical rivers and their estuaries.
Analysis of genetic diversity in Argentinian heterotic maize populations using molecular markers

Over the past three decades, traditional Argentinean Orange Flint maize cultivars have been replaced by the higher yielding U.S. Yellow Dent germplasms. However, flint cultivars are potentially resistant to biotic and/or abiotic stress. Thus, knowledge of genetic diversity and relationships among flint inbred lines would help reduce genetic vulnerability and broaden the genetic base of crops in national improvement programs. In this study, we report the analysis of 25 inbred Orange Flint germplasms and one dent using 21 microsatellite markers or Simple Sequence Repeats (SSR). The aim was to assess genetic diversity among these accessions and evaluate the usefulness of SSR markers for defining heterotic groups in temperate germplasm. Genetic diversity values for flint germplasm (25 inbreeds) was relatively high. The number of alleles per locus was 5.14 and expected heterozygosis (He) was 0.68. When testing for genetic differentiation among the four heterotic populations established by topcross, twelve loci from a total of twenty-one displayed significant P-values. Even though we cannot observe a significant agreement between groupings based on topcross and clustering based on molecular data. On the other hand, Bayesian grouping (STRUCTURE software) performed better when compared to the clustering based on genetic distance (UPGMA-Modified Roger’s Distance). Desde las tres ultimas decadas, las variedades tradicionales argentinas de maiz Cristalino Colorado han sido reemplazadas por germoplasma mas competitivo de origen norteamericano. Sin embargo, los cultivares flint son una fuente potencial de resistencia a estres biotico y abiotico. En consecuencia, el conocimiento de la diversidad genetica y relacion entre las lineas ayudaria a reducir la vulnerabilidad genetica y aumentar la base genetica del cereal en los programas de mejoramiento nacionales. En este trabajo se reporta el analisis de 25 lineas de germoplasma Cristalino Colorado y 1 linea de maiz dentada utilizando 21 marcadores microsatelite o SSR (Simple Sequence Repeats). El objetivo fue evaluar la diversidad genetica entre dichas entradas y la utilidad de los marcadores SSR para definir grupos heteroticos en germoplasma de clima templado. La poblacion de 25 lineas de maiz Cristalino Colorado presento valores relativamente altos de diversidad genetica: Numero de alelos/locus = 5,14 y He = 0,68. El test de diferenciacion genica, aplicado sobre las cuatro poblaciones heteroticas establecidas por topcross, revelo 12 loci, de un total de 21, con valores de P, significativos. Aunque no se observo un acuerdo importante entre los agrupamientos basados en informacion molecular y los grupos heteroticos establecidos por topcross, el agrupamiento bayesiano (programa STRUCTURE) presento un mejor comportamiento respecto al agrupamiento basado en distancia genetica (UPGMA-Modified Roger’s Distance).
Holocene fires and a herb‐dominated understorey track wetter climates in subalpine forests

1. Relationships between vegetation, climate and disturbance are likely to be altered in the near future as a result of changes in both climate and human impacts on ecosystems. These changes could trigger species losses and distribution shifts in sensitive (e.g. mountainous) ecosystems. Models project a 2.5–3 °C increase in global temperatures by the end of the 21st century, and combined with effects of current land‐use abandonment (leading to the build‐up of fuel material); these increases could cause future ecosystems to become similar to ecosystems of the first half of the Holocene when human impact was negligible.
A new diverse shark fauna from the Wordian (Middle Permian) Khuff Formation in the interior Haushi‐Huqf area, Sultanate of Oman

Abstract: Chondrichthyans are newly reported from the autochthonous Wordian Khuff Formation (middle Permian), cropping out in well‐exposed, low‐palaeolatitude sections in the interior Haushi‐Huqf area of Oman. The shark remains comprise isolated teeth, dermal denticles and fin spines and have been recovered by processing limestone in buffered acetic acid from bulk rock samples. The fauna consists of mainly ctenacanthiform and hybodontiform taxa, identified as Glikmanius cf. myachkovensis, Glikmanius culmenis sp. nov., Omanoselache hendersoni gen. et sp. nov., Omanoselache angiolinii gen. et sp. nov., cf. Omanoselache sp. , Reesodus underwoodi gen et sp. nov., Teresodus amplexus gen. et sp. nov., Gunnellodus bellistriatus, Khuffia lenis gen. et sp. nov., Khuffia prolixa gen. et sp. nov. and Euselachii sp. indet. Additional specimens include rare teeth of the lonchidiid cf. ‘Palaeozoic Genus 1’ sp. , of the neoselachian Cooleyella cf. fordi and a further indeterminate neoselachian, of an indeterminate petalodont and of the holocephalan Deltodus aff. mercurei and Solenodus cf. crenulatus. Fin spines add a further two taxa, Nemacanthus sp. and Amelacanthus cf. sulcatus, which have neoselachian affinities and therefore an unclear relationship to the recovered teeth. The occurrence of Nemacanthus within this Wordian fauna represents the oldest record of this taxon and its only known occurrence in the Palaeozoic. Of the remaining genera, Glikmanius has previously been recorded from the Wordian, whereas for all the others, this study represents their youngest known stratigraphic occurrence and first occurrence in Guadalupian (middle Permian) strata. This adds significantly to our knowledge of the global diversity of chondrichthyans preceding the end‐Guadalupian biotic crisis. Palaeogeographically, for all taxa, this study represents the first record from the western fringe of the marine Neotethyan basin, and only Cooleyella was previously known from the southern (Gondwanan) part of the Pangaean continental margin.
Seasonal Changes in Proximate Composition and Fatty Acid Profile of Pufferfish (Lagocephalus sceleratus Gmelin, 1789) from the Mediterranean Sea of Turkey

This study represents a first report on the proximate composition and fatty acid profile of Lagocephalus sceleratus from the Mediterranean Sea as well as seasonal changes and sexual differences. Significant variations in the proximate composition were observed during the months of the study (p < 0.05). The highest moisture, fat, protein, and ash contents were found to be 78.47, 0.33, 21.62, and 1.63%, respectively. Total saturated and monounsaturated fatty acid values were similar throughout the year despite individual variations of 24.22–29.46 and 7.87–13.94%, respectively. However, significant variations were observed in total polyunsaturated fatty acids as well as significant differences between sexes (p < 0.05) with some exceptions. The major fatty acid was found as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), between 24.17 and 32.65%. Due to the low fat content of this species, the highest eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) + DHA values were calculated as 80.93 mg/100 g of edible muscle. The results indicated that this species contains high nutritional properties in terms of protein content and fatty acid values.
Effect of Delayed Icing on the Quality of White Shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) during Chilled Storage

The effect of delayed icing on the quality of Litopenaeus vannamei was assessed by chemical, microbiological and sensory evaluation. Shrimps were divided into three lots. One lot was immediately iced and the other two lots were subjected to delayed icing after keeping in ambient conditions (30 ± 2C) for 2 and 4 h, respectively. White shrimp had a moisture content of 77.21%, protein 18.80%, ash 1.47% and fat 1.30% on wet weight basis. Total volatile basic nitrogen, trimethylamine, thiobarbituric acid and K value showed increasing trend during chilled storage. It was observed that there is a significant (P < 0.05) decrease in the hardness of shrimp meat during storage. Sensory evaluation indicated that the shelf life of white shrimp iced immediately after catch and 2 h delayed iced was approximately 9 days, whereas 4 h delayed iced sample had shortened shelf life of 6 days. Practical Applications Shrimp is one of the most traded and consumed aquatic product worldwide. Shrimps are rich in protein, containing very little fat and have significant cholesterol content. Shrimp is more prone to deterioration because of its high content of free amino acids and other soluble nonprotein nitrogenous substances that can serve as easily digestible nutrients for microbial growth. Chilled or iced preservation helps in delaying or reducing the bacterial growth, preventing browning and prolonging the shelf life of shrimp. Delayed icing of the catch at the site results in downgrading of the shrimp. The present study provides information about a baseline investigation of the shelf life and quality of Pacific white shrimp due to delayed icing. It can be useful to quantify the quality and shelf life of fresh shrimp prior to the application of preservative treatments to extend the shelf life.
Infection with low numbers of the sea louse Lepeophtheirus salmonis induces stress-related effects in postsmolt Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)

Infection of postsmolt Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) with three, six, or 10 preadult and adult sea lice (Lepeophtheirus salmonis) per fish resulted in changes to epithelial structure and at sites in the skin and gill, distant from lice attachment and feeding. In the skin, increased apoptosis and necrosis occurred in the superficial epithelial cells and numbers of mucous cells decreased. In the gill, where no lice were found, uplifting of the epithelium, intercellular swelling, and infiltration by leukocytes occurred in filaments and lamellae. High cell turnover of chloride cells was associated with significantly elevated gill Na+/K+-ATPase activities. Serum chloride levels were elevated in the 3 and 6 lice/fish groups, and the serum Na to Cl ratio was lower in all parasitized groups at 5 days. The results indicate that infection with low numbers of the preadult and adult parasite induced changes characteristic of a stress response. In the low- and medium-infested groups, homeostatic recovery had occurred .