Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Method for overcoming the passion fruit self- incompatibility

ABSTRACT - The methodology of self-pollination of passion fruit flowers at anthesis after stigma excision was proposed. This method was compared with self-pollination procedures at anthesis and at the stage of flower bud. Two genotypes (M7 and N9), propagated by cuttings were studied. Self-pollinations were performed at 1 pm, 1 pm and 5 pm or 5 pm. Fruit set (%), fruit mass (g), pulp mass (g), pulp/fruit ratio and seed number per fruit were evaluated and compared to fruits derived from M7 x N9 and N9 x M7 crosses. No fruit set was obtained from self-pollination at anthesis, which confirms the self-incompatibility of both genotypes. Self-pollination after stigma excision was the best procedure, reaching average fruit set of 73.61 % (13 hours) and 81.94 % (double self-pollination at 1 pm and 5 pm). Although two self-pollinations after stigma excision at anthesis is more efficient, performing only one self-pollination at 1 pm requires less labor. The amount of seeds produced per fruit is satisfactory to generate inbred population.
Seasonal incidence and control of maize stem borer, Chilo partellus (Swinhoe) through newer insecticides on maize in Bihar

In order to study the seasonal incidence and control of maize stem borer, Chilo partellus (Swinhoe) through pest monitoring, screening of different maize genotypes and relative efficacy of insecticides, a series of field experiments were conducted during Kharif 2016 at the research farm, Tirhut College of Agriculture, Dholi, Muzaffarapur, (Bihar). Results pertaining to different aspects of the present study viz., seasonal incidence, screening of different maize genotypes and foliar spray as well as granular application of insecticides applied against maize stem borer on maize crop have been abstracted below: The activity of maize stem borer on maize commenced from 33 standard week (2 week of August, 2016) and continued to 44 standard week (4 week of October, 2016) with maximum maize stem borer population (2.4 larvae/plant) in the 38 standard week (2 week of September, 2016) when the corresponding maximum, minimum temperature ( The per cent infestation has been initially observed in 33 C), relative humidity (%) at 07 hrs and 14 hrs, rainfall (mm) and sunshine (hr) were 30.7, 25.4, 98.0, 86.7, 22.2 and 3.5, respectively. rd standard week (2 week of August, 2016) and continued to 44 standard week (4 week of October, 2016) with maximum per cent infestation of 32.0 per cent during 38 standard week (2 week of September, 2016) when the corresponding maximum, minimum temperature ( Among all the genotypes screened against Chilo partellus under artificial infestation condition, IIMRQPMH 1608, FQH 106 and IIMRQPMH 1606 were found least susceptible in respect to mean per cent infestation, mean leaf injury, mean per cent stem tunnelling, mean tunnel length and mean number of exit holes/plant; while the genotypes IIMRQPMH 1604, IIMRQPMH 1502 and IIMRQPMH 1610 were found susceptible. C), relative humidity (%) at 07 hrs and 14 hrs, rainfall (mm) and sunshine (hr) were 30.7, 25.4, 98.0, 86.7, 22.2 and 3.5, respectively. All the insecticidal treatments under test, were found significantly superior over control, however the treatment Chlorantraniliprole 20 SC followed by Carbofuran 3G was found to be the most effective and was statistically at par with Flubendiamide 480 SC followed by Carbofuran 3G. The foliar application in sequence with whorl application of Carbofuran was found to be more effective than foliar applications alone. The crop protection measures applied against maize stem borer, Chilo partellus proved profitable as indicated by B: C ratio.
Kidney inflammation and tissue injury induced by scorpion venom: comparison with a nephrotoxic model

Abstract The effect of Androctonus australis hector (Aah) venom in comparison with nephrotoxic model was investigated in vivo. Aah venom induced a rapid inflammatory response characterized by recruitment of neutrophil and eosinophil cells, increased levels of cytokines, and lipid peroxidation. These results were in accordance with the histological findings showing structural damage in the nephrons, similar and faster to that induced by cisplatin model. The modifications in renal function parameters as an elevation of blood urea and creatinine levels with a significant increase in the serum aspartate aminotransferase and lactate dehydrogenase were indicative of tissue damages responsible for the renal failure.
The Cellular and Molecular Actions of DMXAA (5, 6-dimethylxanthenone-4-acetic acid) on HUVE-12 Endothelial Cells

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Predator–prey dynamics mediate long-term production trends of cisco (Coregonus artedi) in a northern Wisconsin lake

We quantified production, biomass, and production to biomass (P/B) ratios for cisco (Coregonus artedi) in Trout Lake, Wisconsin, USA (2001–2015). Across all years, annual production, biomass, and P/B were variable ranging 0.6–30.2 kg·ha−1·year−1, 1.2–39.7 kg·ha−1, and 0.4–0.9·year−1, respectively. Cisco production exhibited obvious decline. However, neither biomass nor P/B changed significantly over time. Long-term patterns of environmental conditions remained unchanged during the study and were unrelated to cisco production. However, lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) relative abundance showed a strong inverse relationship with cisco production and biomass. Intense lake trout stocking has occurred in this lake over time to conserve a genetically unique strain of the species. These management efforts may have had the unintended consequence of amplifying top-down predation on cisco. Since cisco P/B has gone largely unchanged, cisco production would be predicted to rebound quickly to adaptive reductions in lake trout stocking. Further increases in lake trout numbers could place both populations at risk of collapse. This study provides an example of a fisheries production approach for understanding and conserving cold-water fisheries, especially in lakes dominated by ciscoes.
Survival and Cause-specific Mortality of Adult Female Eastern Wild Turkeys in a Bottomland Hardwood Forest

Abstract Meleagris gallopavo (Wild Turkey) population dynamics are greatly influenced by female survival, and high female-survival rates may offset low reproductive rates and maintain stability in populations characterized by low productivity. Additionally, reproduction may incur a cost to annual survival, given the physiological stress associated with breeding, and predation risks associated with incubation and brood-rearing. We used radio-telemetry and known-fate modeling to quantify annual survival and identify mortality causes of 54 adult female Meleagris gallopavo ssp. silvestris (Eastern Wild Turkey) tracked during 2002–2004 and 2007–2010 in a population characterized by low productivity in a bottomland hardwood forest in Louisiana. We detected 31 mortalities in which predation was the leading cause (87%), primarily attributed to Canis latrans (Coyote) and Lynx rufus (Bobcat). We estimated an annual survival rate of 0.58 (95% CI = 0.47–0.68) with no evidence of seasonal variation. This level of survival appeared to be sufficient to offset low productivity; the population was considered healthy and stable during the study period. Annual survival rates of females that incubated a nest were lower than reproductively inactive females, although confidence intervals overlapped considerably. The mechanisms underlying survival differences between reproductive classes were not entirely clear because survival of nesting females did not greatly decrease during incubation and brood-rearing seasons relative to non-nesters as would be expected under the hypothesis of increased predation risk during reproduction periods. Future studies should aim to better elucidate the links between reproduction and survival in Eastern Wild Turkey populations because this information will have important management ramifications in the southeast, where region-wide declines in productivity have been observed.
Correlation between Antiapoptotic Gene Product Protein Expression in Oral Carcinoma with Age and Gender of Patients

Oral cavity cancer represent a multiplicity of disease, Squamous cell carcinoma represents the most common frequent malignant tumor of the oral cavity. Aims :To identify Bcl-2 oncogene product expression of oral carcinoma and its correlation to the age and sex of patients. Patients and methods :Twenty four patients were presented with oral carcinoma , Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded sections were stained with H and E and immunohistostaning . Primary antibody kit (Bcl-2 onco-protein ready to use) clone 124 Dako corporation . Results:-Bcl-2 immunohistochemical expression is confined to the basal cell layers in normal oral mucosa , while Bcl-2 expression in oral carcinoma is peripherally located with in infiltrating tumor cells , which were more intensely stained . they may be genetically damaged or mutated cells not eliminated by apoptosis , this lead to alter the ratio of Bcl-2 / Bax and hance lead to over expression of Bcl-2 . There was no correlation between Bcl-2 expression and the age and sex . Conclusion :Bcl-2 expression in normal oral mucosa and oral carcinoma, Bcl-2 immunoreactivity did not correlated neither to the age nor gender of the patients .
Spatiotemporal distribution and microbial assimilation of polyamines in a mesotrophic lake

We examined seasonal and spatial variations of dissolved free polyamines (DFPA) in the large mesotrophic prealpine Lake Zurich (Switzerland). An ion‐pairing liquid chromatography method with mass spectrometric detection was optimized for the quantification of DFPA without prior concentration or derivatization. Total DFPA concentrations varied between 0.4 nM and 11 nM in winter and spring of 2015, respectively. Polyamine concentrations were highest in the epilimnion during the phytoplankton growth phase, and reflected occurrence patterns of diatoms. Putrescine consistently dominated the DFPA pool throughout the season whereas norspermidine was detected only once in spring. Incubations with 13C‐labeled putrescine revealed concentration‐dependent uptake rates (3.2–5 nM h−1) and short turnover times (2.4–4.4 h). In contrast, incorporation rates into biomass measured with 14C‐labeled putrescine were substantially lower (0.9 nM h−1), indicating that this compound was predominantly respired. Uptake kinetics moreover suggested that putrescine in situ uptake rates were limited by low ambient concentrations. Competition assays revealed that putrescine uptake could only be inhibited by excess concentrations of another polyamine (spermidine), but not by amino acids. Bacteria affiliated with Limnohabitans and the acI lineage of Actinobacteria were identified as the taxa with the highest fraction (25–32%) of putrescine‐incorporating cells. This compound was also utilized by Alphaproteobacteria, Cyclobacteriaceae, diatoms, and cyanobacteria. Overall, our data point to fast turnover of putrescine by different microorganisms, implying the importance of this substrate as an attractive energy source.
Evaluation of the Growth-Promoting Potential of Endophytic Bacteria Recovered from Healthy Tomato Plants

The study examined the plant growth-promoting potential of 38 endophytic bacterial isolates recovered from healthy tomato plants. Eight isolates were selected as the most efficient in improving the plant height by 30.5-35.9%, the aerial part fresh weight by 47.4 -56.9%, the maximum root length by 17.3- 28.3%, and the root fresh weight by 44.7- 58.8% compared to control. They were morphologically and biochemically characterized and identified using 16S rDNA sequencing genes as Stenotrophomonas maltophilia CT12, S. maltophilia CT13, S. maltophilia CT16, Pseudomonas geniculata CT19, B. amyloliquefaciens CT32, B. subtilis subsp. inaquosorum CT43, B. licheniformis SV4, and B. subtilis SV5. All isolates were shown able to produce indole-3-acetic acid and displayed pectinolytic activity. Phosphate solubilization ability was recorded in S. maltophilia CT13, S. maltophilia CT16, B. subtilis subsp. inaqosorum CT43 and B. licheniformis SV4. This study demonstrates that healthy tomato plants may be naturally colonized by beneficial endophytic bacteria with growth-promoting potential useful for the improvement of tomato growth.
Introducing CHO.C.O. (Choose, Cut, Offset) farms in the Christmas tree market: a first year implementation results

ABSTRACT In this paper, the enhancement of Choose & Cut supply method of Christmas trees with the Offset dimension is proposed, introducing CHO.C. O. farms (Choose, Cut, Offset). The offset component refers to the need to reduce carbon emissions from the transportation of agricultural and forest products. It is proposed that the producers offset the emissions created by cars driving to the farm, internalising this external environmental cost. The rational for this is that the latter will be interested in purchasing an integrated carbon neutral product. To test if the supply and demand side are interested, questionnaires were used before and after a first year pilot implementation of CHO.C. O. farms in Greece. The encouraging preliminary results are briefly discussed.
Acid prehydrolysis of wood

Acid pretreatment of wood provides significant energy savings during refining but reduces the brightness of the pulp. Acid treatments also extract carbohydrates from wood. Addition of an acid pretreatment process to a thermomechanical pulping process therefore offers an opportunity to reduce refining energy cost and provide a secondary product from a fermentation ethanol plant. A process being investigated by BioPulping International and the Forest Products Laboratory involves pretreatment with oxalic acid or diethyl oxalate and offers 25% or more reduction in specific refiner energy consumption, with a minor sacrifice in brightness. This treatment also results in extraction of approximately 6% of the wood mass. Similarly, research during the late 1970s on sulfonated chemimechanical pulping at low pH determined that bisulfite reduced specific refining energy, maintained brightness, and released carbohydrates. The similarity in behavior of these two pretreatments suggests a common mechanism that is the subject of this study. Our hypothesis is that both acids provide optimal conditions, either buffering at pH 2 or mildly reducing conditions, for pretreating wood. To test this hypothesis, a series of spruce and aspen veneer samples were pretreated with sodium bisulfate, sulfurous acid, and oxalic acid. These three acids can provide buffering near pH 2 and a range of redox potential. The wood chip brightness of the sodium bisulfate and oxalic acid experiments were similar but at a given yield sulfurous acid seems to preserve brightness better than does either bisulfate or oxalic acid. The redox activity does not seem to affect results.
Dietary organic trace minerals level influences eggshell quality and minerals retention in hens

Abstract The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of reduced levels of Cu, Zn, Mn in combination from organic mineral source on eggshell quality and mineral retention in hens. After feeding the basal diet (8.82 mg/kg Cu, 24.94 mg/kg Zn, and 16.38 mg/kg Mn) without Cu, Zn, and Mn addition for 4 weeks, hens (39-week-old) were assigned to 5 treatments according to the equal body weight and egg production for 12-week experimental trial. The 5 treatments included the basal diet without Cu, Zn, and Mn (NCON), and NCON added with 16-80-60 mg/kg Cu-Zn-Mn from sulfates (ITM100%), or 4-20-15, 8-40-30 or 16-80-60 mg/kg Cu-Zn-Mn from 2-hydroxy-4-(methylthio)butanoic acid (HMTBA) mineral chelates (OTM25%, OTM50% or OTM100%). Supplementation of Cu, Zn, and Mn had no significant influences on the performance of hens. After 12 weeks feeding, eggshell breaking strength (EBS) decreased in the following order: OTM25% and ITM100% > OTM50% > NCON and OTM100%. The eggshell weight and thickness in OTM25% were greater than that in NCON, while not differing from that in ITM100%. The EBS and eggshell weight linearly decreased with increasing level of OTM. After 12 weeks feeding, supplementation of Cu, Zn, and Mn increased the concentrations of liver Zn, tibia Zn and Mn, and Zn and Mn retention in eggs as compared with NCON. No significant difference was observed in the concentrations of Cu, Zn, and Mn in liver and plasma, and Zn and Mn in eggs between any OTM treatment and ITM100% groups. Addition of OTM at increasing level had quadratic effect on tibia Cu, Zn, Mn concentrations, with the greater retention of Cu, Zn, and Mn in OTM50%. In conclusion, the OTM25% from HMT BA mineral chelates can substitute for ITM100% evaluated by the eggshell quality in the diet of laying hens.
VACUUM INFILTRATION OF 24-EPIBRASSINOLIDE DELAYS CHLOROPHYLL DEGRADATION AND MAINTAINS QUALITY OF LIME DURING COLD STORAGE

Effects of 24-epibrassinolide (EBR) treatments on chlorophyll (Chl) degradation and postharvest quality of two lime (‘Persian lime’ and ‘Tahiti’) cultivars during chilling-induced storage were studied in this work. EBR at 0, 2.5, 5 and 10 μM were applied to fruit by vacuum infiltration at 30.63 kPa for 7 min and afterward stored at 4°C for 60 days. Postharvest EBR application effectively maintained greater fruit firmness and lessened weight loss during cold storage. The results displayed that EBR treatments efficiently delayed the reduction of the Chl a contents and hue values. EBR treatments significantly increased ascorbic acid content, total phenolic content (TPC), antioxidant activity, and titratable acidity (TA). On the other hand, the treatments reduced soluble solids concentration (SSC), pH, and SSC/TA ratios during cold storage. Overall, EBR application by vacuum infiltration could be an effective and simple method for maintaining postharvest quality of limes during cold storage.
The analysis of genetic variation in the mitochondrial genome and its application for the identification of Papilio species

Abstract Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) markers are ideal for evolutionary studies, including phylogeography, population genetics, phylogeny, etc. However, different mitochondrial genes always own different evolutionary rate. In this study, we analysed the genetic variation across the 16 complete mtDNA from 13 species in the genus Papilio and recognized the best DNA barcoding for Papilio species. The mitochondrial gene arrangement for each species shares a similar order, similar to the typical Papilionidae species, which indicated the relatively conservative state of gene arrangement in Papilio. The sliding window of genetic diversity showed that there was a significant difference in the genetic diversity of each gene in the mitochondrial genome of Papilio. The relatively mean clock rate of the ND1 was broadly lower than the other genes in mitochondrial genome of Papilio; while the ATP8 owns the largest values of mean clock rate. Those results suggested that the rate of evolution of each gene is not balanced and all mitochondrial genes except ND1 and ATP8 could act as barcoding for the identification of Papilio species. The phylogenetic analyses of complete mtDNA data for 13 Papilio species divided them into five major branches, which keep the same topological structure with previous studies.
Monitoring of okra shoot and fruit borer (Earias vittella) fabricius through pheromone traps and the impact of abiotic factors on trap catch

Seasonal incidence of Okra Shoot and Fruit borer, Earias vittella Fabricius was studied from the pheromone trap catches during Summer 2013 and 2014 in Balasore district of Odisha. The adult moth was first appeared during 10 and 11 Standard Meteorological Week (SMW) in two years of study respectively. The correlation study between abiotic factors and pheromone catch of the adult male population revealed a significant positive correlation with temperature (maximum, minimum, average) and a negative correlation with relative humidity (morning, afternoon and average) and rainfall. The extent of fluctuation in trapped adult male population due to multiple interactions of abiotic factors was 85.4% during 2013 and 89.9% during 2014. Among the independent environmental variables temperatures played the dominant role followed by relative humidity in adult population variation.
Is Genetic Variability of Coastal Species (Cakile Maritima) Due to Human Effect

Understanding how plant populations respond to human impact on natural habitat is an important aim of plant ecological research. Kelly et al. (2003) has shown that plant populations strongly vary in space and time in response to the disturbance in their natural’s habitats. Because the continuous disturbance, the eventual fates of all populations is extinctions [1]. Thus, the regional dynamics of plant species are usually a matter of both local extinction and colonization of new unoccupied sites [2,3]. Today in many ecosystems, fragmentation and degradation of habitats have increased the extinction risk of populations of plant species adapted to specific environmental conditions [4,5]. In particular, spectacular recent growth of urbanism and tourism in coastal areas were widely identified as the most important factor causing coastal plant decline [6-8]. Tourism has had a range of negative direct and indirect impacts on native flora including contributing to the decline of some rare and threatened plant species and communities [9,10]. In this context, direct effects of tourism and recreation on flora may include vegetation clearance for resorts, roads and other infrastructure [11].