Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Catadromous migrations by female tupong (Pseudaphritis urvillii) in coastal streams in Victoria, Australia

Understanding migratory requirements is critical for the conservation of diadromous fishes. Tupong (Pseudaphritis urvillii) are diadromous fishes found in freshwater and estuarine regions of south-eastern Australia. Previous studies have hypothesised that mature female tupong undertake downstream spawning migrations from freshwater to the estuary or sea, with a compensatory return of juveniles, and possibly spent fish, back upstream. We applied acoustic telemetry to test this hypothesis. We tagged 55 female tupong in two river systems in Victoria, Australia, and tracked movements for 4- to 6-month periods over 2 years. Thirty-one fish undertook rapid downstream migrations and then appeared to move through the estuary and out to sea between May and August in each year. Migration was associated with relatively high river discharges, and movement from the estuary to the sea tended to occur most frequently during intermediate moon phases. Low rates of movement between September and April suggested that tupong inhabited restricted home ranges outside of the spawning season. The apparently disparate migratory patterns of female (catadromous) and male (non-diadromous) tupong are rare amongst fishes globally. Differential exertion of a range of selective pressures may have resulted in the evolution of sexual differences in migratory modes in this species.
The male effect stimulus positively increased the ovarian and reproductive seasonality in Criollo goats irrespective of a controlled photoperiodic regime

Present study evaluated the presence of a sexually active male buck upon the onset of reproductive activity and estrous cycle progression in Criollo goats exposed to a 6-month long controlled photoperiod in a range of 13.4–10.6 light-hours per day. Mexican-native (Criollo) goats (n=10) were randomly assigned into 2 groups: (1) goats exposed to a male buck (n=5); (2) goats not exposed to a male buck (n=5). Blood samples were taken weekly to quantify serum-progesterone levels through radioimmunoanalysis. Male exposure increased luteal activity and estrous cycle progression reflected as a higher number of days in luteal activity (44±9.05 vs. 32.3±20.6); a reduced number of days in anestrous (4.0±4.8 vs. 51.9±28) and a greater number of luteal phases (15.7±4.4 vs. 11.3±8.7) without compromising serum progesterone levels (6.8±0.8 vs. 7.3±0.5). In conclusion, presence of a sexually active male induced a greater ovarian activity in Criollo goats, shortening seasonal anestrous irrespective of the controlled photoperiodic regime.
Hatchling size and aspects of biology in the deep-sea amphipod genus Eurythenes (Crustacea: Amphipoda)

Records attributed to Eurythenes gryllus are discussed in the light of described morphological variation, and the existence of a third species in the genus is postulated. The presence of five pairs of oostegites in E. gryllus, a character almost unique among the Amphipoda, is confirmed. Brooding females of E. gryllus and E. obesus, captured in deep midwater hauls in the eastern North Atlantic Ocean, are reported for the first time. The 120 mm E. gryllus female carried 237 hatchlings (mean length 11.13 mm) and the 48 mm E. obesus female 47 hatchlings (mean length 7.99 mm). Hatchlings showed variability in size and bodily proportion, and measurements of individual body segments could not be used to predict overall length. Despite this variability, no evidence for more than one instar was found. The hatchlings of E. gryllus are established as a hitherto unrecognized instar in this species. Egg size for E. gryllus and E. obesus is predicted. The biological consequences of the absolute and relative size of hatchling in the two species, and the depths of capture of the E. gryllus female, are discussed.
Interleukin-2 (IL-2)-mediated Induction of the IL-2 Receptor α Chain Gene

The interleukin-2 receptor α chain (IL-2Rα) is potently induced by antigens, mitogens, and certain cytokines that include IL-2 itself. This induction leads to the formation of high affinity IL-2 receptors when IL-2Rα is co-expressed with the β (IL-2Rβ) and γ (γc) chains of this receptor. We investigated the signaling pathways mediating IL-2-induced IL-2Rα mRNA expression using 32D myeloid progenitor cells stably transfected with either wild type IL-2Rβ or mutants of IL-2Rβ containing tyrosine to phenylalanine substitutions. Of the six cytoplasmic tyrosines in IL-2Rβ, we have found that only the two tyrosines that mediate Stat5 activation (Tyr-392 and Tyr-510) contribute to IL-2-induced IL-2Rα gene expression and that either tyrosine alone is sufficient for this process. Interestingly, the IL-7 receptor contains a tyrosine (Tyr-429)-based sequence resembling the motifs encompassing Tyr-392 and Tyr-510 of IL-2Rβ. Further paralleling the IL-2 system, IL-7 could activate Stat5 and drive expression of IL-2Rα mRNA in 32D cells transfected with the human IL-7R. However, IL-3 could not induce IL-2Rα mRNA in 32D cells, despite its ability to activate Stat5 via the endogenous IL-3 receptor. Moreover, the combination of IL-3 and IL-2 could not “rescue” IL-2Rα mRNA expression in cells containing an IL-2Rβ mutant with phenylalanine substitutions at Tyr-392 and Tyr-510. These data suggest that Tyr-392 and Tyr-510 couple to an additional signaling pathway beyond STAT protein activation in IL-2-mediated induction of the IL-2Rα gene.
Reproductive rates of tsetse flies in the field in Zimbabwe

Abstract. Tsetse flies Glossina morsitans morsitans Westwood and G. pallidipes Austen were marked and released within 12 h of emergence at Rekomitjie Research Station, Zambezi Valley, Zimbabwe, and on Redcliff Island, Lake Kariba. Ovarian dissections were performed on recaptured flies and on wild collected samples. At Rekomitjie >90% of female G. m. morsitans were inseminated by age 4 days and G. pallidipes by 7 days. For both species at both sites the length of the largest oocyte, for flies in ovarian category zero, increased approximately linearly for about the first 6 days and was ovulated at c. 6–8 days. The largest oocyte grew significantly more slowly in later cycles. For G. m. morsitans, but not for G. pallidipes, the rate increased with temperature; the rates were always higher than observed in the laboratory. At Rekomitjie, for both species and at a mean screen temperature of 22d̀C, the first larva was produced at c. 18 days and subsequent larvae at 11–day intervals; the intervals decreased with temperature by c. 0.5 days/d̀C. On Redcliff Island the intervals for both species were 2 days shorter than at Rekomitjie at any given screen temperature and were sometimes as short as 7 days. The length of the larva in utero increased exponentially during pregnancy.
Use of the fluorochromes xylenol orange, calcein green, and tetracycline to document bone deposition and remodeling in healing fractures in chickens.

SUMMARY. The fluorescent calcium binding dyes xylenol orange, calcein green, and tetracycline were used successfully to sequentially label new bone deposition and bone remodeling during the healing of rigidly fixed humeral fractures in the chicken. Xylenol orange and calcein green, administered subcutaneously at 90 mg/kg and 10 mg/kg, respectively, provided easily identified and differentiated bands in newly deposited bone within periosteal and endosteal calluses, intercortical gaps, and screw holes. Tetracycline, administered at 50 mg/kg per os by crop tube, labeled bone faintly in a non-specific manner. Parenteral administration of the same compound might have yielded better results.
Gender Differences in Beliefs on the Returns to Effort

We study gender differences in attitudes in the role of luck versus hard work in achieving success using data from the World Values Survey. Women are consistently more likely to report that success is a matter of luck. We consider several potential explanations: workplace discrimination, religion, household responsibilities, and political alignment. Our results favor explanations based on workplace discrimination and household responsibilities.
New set of microsatellite loci isolated in apricot

We report 99 simple sequence repeats (SSRs) newly isolated from an apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.) genomic library enriched for AG/CT repeats. Twenty SSRs were screened for their polymorphism in 16 apricot cultivars. The number of alleles ranged from two to nine, whereas the expected heterozygosity (HE) ranged from 0.26 to 0.82. The same SSRs showed also an appreciable transportability across different Prunus species, such as peach, nectarine, almond, European plum, Japanese plum, sweet cherry and sour cherry, with 20% of primers giving successful amplifications in all Prunus species assayed. None gave amplification in apple.
Estimação de parâmetros genéticos para características produtivas em búfalos na Amazônia Oriental

Dados de 1.182 registros de producao de femeas bubalinas da raca Murrah e seus mesticos, parindo no periodo de 1967 a 2005, foram utilizados para estimacao de parâmetros geneticos utilizando-se o metodo de maxima verossimilhanca restrita. O modelo animal utilizado para estimacao de componentes de variância incluiu os efeitos fixos de rebanho, ano e epoca de parto, ordem de parto e duracao da lactacao e os efeitos aleatorios do animal, e ambiente permanente e temporario. As estimativas de herdabilidade foram 0,25, 0,18, 0,08 e 0,09, para producao de leite, producao de gordura, duracao da lactacao e producao de leite por dia de intervalo de parto, respectivamente. As estimativas de repetibilidade foram 0,33, 0,29 e 0,10 para producao de leite, producao de gordura e duracao da lactacao, respectivamente. As correlacoes geneticas entre producoes de leite e gordura, producao de leite com duracao da lactacao, producao de leite com producao de leite por dia de intervalo de partos, producao da gordura com duracao da lactacao, producao de gordura com producao de leite por dia de intervalo de partos e duracao da lactacao com producao de leite por dia de intervalo de partos foram 0,93; 0,76; 0,99; 0,89; 0,87 e -0,27, respectivamente. Os resultados demonstram que ganhos geneticos podem ser obtidos pela selecao das producoes de leite e gordura.
Population dynamics of Cardamine amara L. (Brassicaceae): Evidence from the soil seed bank and aboveground populations

KOCH, M. , HUTHMANN, M. & BERNHARDT, K. -G. : Population dynamics of Cardamine amara L. (Brassicaceae): Evidence from the soil seed bank and aboveground populations. — Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 125: 405–429. 2004. — ISSN 0006-8152. In a recently presented paper we investigated the spatial distribution of genetic diversity in a strictly outcrossing cruciferous plant species, Cardamine amara, comparing surface population with subpopulations stored as seeds in the soil seed bank using isozyme analysis. Genetically, thirty-six populations from an area of approximately 900 square kilometres were investigated in a geographically well-defined region in Northwestern Germany. For ten out of these 36 populations, detailed soil seed bank analyses have been performed. Comparisons of soil seed bank composition and aboveground vegetation have been tested to serve as indicator of the environmental dynamics influencing floristic composition of the total habitat. Herein we are presenting the original and complete soil seed bank data of the different Cardamine amara habitats and comparing them to the actual vegetation cover. In total, we recovered 142 plant species (including 3 Equisetum species and Athyrium filix-femina from the pteridophytes), of which 78 were found also in the soil seed bank (including Athyrium filix-femina). These plant species have been characterized within seven groups depending on their occurrence in the soil seed bank and/or actual vegetation. Because particular attention has been paid on environmental dynamics, we fractionated the soil samples according to their depth (0–10 and 10–20 cm) and provided the according information about seed distribution. However, in four species only seeds occurred with a significantly higher frequency in the lower soil fraction than in the upper soil layer.
Performance and Carcass Yield of Broilers Supplemented with Plant Extract During the Finisher Phase

In this study, 600 one-day-old male Cobb 500 broilers were distributed according a completely randomized experimental design into the different dietary treatments. Broilers were fed the following dietary treatments: positive control diet (PC), containing 54 ppm zinc bacitracin; negative control diet (NC), with no inclusion of performance enhancers and 3% reduction in metabolizable energy, crude protein, and amino acid levels; PC up to 33 days and then NC, with the dietary addition of 75, 150, or 225 ppm plant extracts, until day 42 days of age. Broiler performance and carcass yield were evaluated. Data were analyzed using the Statistical Analysis System package (SAS Institute Inc., 2008), and submitted to polynomial regression analysis using the GLM procedure at 5% significance level. There was no influence of treatments on feed intake or weight gain, but feed conversion ratio of the broiler fed the plant extract was significantly higher (p 0.05) of the applied treatments on carcass yield. We concluded that the replacement of performance-enhancing additives by plant extracts, at the evaluated inclusion levels, does not promote positive performance results.
Tidally oriented vertical migration and position maintenance of zooplankton in a temperate estuary

In many estuaries, maxima in turbidity and abundance of several common species of zooplankton occur in the low salinity zone (LSZ) in the range of 0.5–6 practical salinity units (psu). Analysis of zooplankton abundance from monitoring in 1972–1987 revealed that historical maxima in abundance of the copepod Eurytemora affinis and the mysid Neomysis mercedis, and in turbidity as determined from Secchi disk data, were close to the estimated position of 2 psu bottom salinity. The copepod Sinocalanus doerrii had a maximum slightly landward of that of E. affinis. After 1987 these maxima decreased and shifted to a lower salinity, presumably because of the effects of grazing by the introduced clam Potamocorbula amurensis. At the same time, the copepod Pseudodiaptomus forbesi, the mysid Acanthomysis sp. , and amphipods became abundant with peaks at salinity around 0.2–0.5 psu.
(E)-β-Ocimene and Myrcene Synthase Genes of Floral Scent Biosynthesis in Snapdragon: Function and Expression of Three Terpene Synthase Genes of a New Terpene Synthase Subfamily Article, publication date, and citation information can be found at www.plantcell.org/cgi/doi/10.1105/tpc.011015.

Snapdragon flowers emit two monoterpene olefins, myrcene and (E)-β-ocimene, derived from geranyl diphosphate, in ad-dition to a major phenylpropanoid floral scent component, methylbenzoate. Emission of these monoterpenes is regulated developmentally and follows diurnal rhythms controlled by a circadian clock. Using a functional genomics approach, we have isolated and characterized three closely related cDNAs from a snapdragon petal-specific library that encode two myrcene synthases (ama1e20 and ama0c15) and an (E)-β-ocimene synthase (ama0a23). Although the two myrcene synthases are almost identical (98%), except for the N-terminal 13 amino acids, and are catalytically active, yielding a single monoterpene product, myrcene, only ama0c15 is expressed at a high level in flowers and contributes to floral myrcene emission. (E)-β-Ocimene synthase is highly similar to snapdragon myrcene synthases (92% amino acid identity) and produces predominantly (E)-β-ocimene (97% of total monoterpene olefin product) with small amounts of (Z)-β-ocimene and myrcene. These newly isolated snapdragon monoterpene synthases, together with Arabidopsis AtTPS14 (At1g61680), define a new subfamily of the terpene synthase (TPS) family designated the Tps-g group. Members of this new Tps-g group lack the RRx8W motif, which is a characteristic feature of the Tps-d and Tps-b monoterpene synthases, suggesting that the reaction mechanism of Tps-g monoterpene synthase product formation does not proceed via an RR-dependent isomerization of geranyl diphosphate to 3S-linalyl diphosphate, as shown previously for limonene cyclase. Analyses of tissue-specific, developmental, and rhythmic expression of these monoterpene synthase genes in snapdragon flowers revealed coordinated regulation of phenylpropanoid and isoprenoid scent production.
Avaliação genética de populações naturais e de estoques de um programa de repovoamento de pacu (Piaractus mesopotamicus) utilizando marcadores microssatélite

This study used microsatellites markers to determine the genetic diversity of pacu (Piaractus mesopotamicus) groups collected at passage ladders of the hydroelectric plants (HEP) Canoas I (CI) and Canoas II (CII) - Paranapanema River - and of a broodstock and a progeny in stock enhancement programs in that river. The microsatellite loci produced 16 alleles and a similar heterozygosity between the individuals of the river at both times of collection (CI14 = 0.7356, CI28 = 0.7361, CII14 = 0.7442, and CII28 = 0.7507), as well of the broodstock and the progeny (0.7261 and 0.7287, respectively). Deviations were observed in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium and negative values of fixation index with excess of heterozygosity indicated endogamy absence. The genetic diversity analyses (distance and genetic identity, Shannon index, FST, and AMOVA) were signs of low genetic differentiation, and they led to the clustering of river individuals, suggesting that the species is genetically structured as a single population. Low genetic differentiation and high values of numbers of migrates among the river, the stock, and the progeny individuals were verified, suggesting a common origin derived from the constant stocks enhancement programs accomplished in that river with those stock populations.
The Needs of the Army

Recent research suggests that pollution has a large impact on asthma and other respiratory and cardiovascular conditions. But this relationship and its implications are not well understood. I use changes in location due to military transfers, which occur entirely to satisfy the needs of the army, to identify the causal impact of pollution on children’s respiratory hospitalizations. I use individual-level data of military families and their dependents, matched at the zip code level with pollution data, for the period 1989–95. I find that for military children only ozone appears to have an adverse effect on health, although not for infants.
15-Deoxy-Δ12,14-prostaglandin J2

Prostaglandin D2(PGD2), a major cyclooxygenase product in a variety of tissues, readily undergoes dehydration to yield the cyclopentenone-type PGs of the J2 series, such as 15-deoxy-Δ12,14-PGJ2 (15d-PGJ2), which have been suggested to exert anti-inflammatory effects in vivo. Meanwhile, the mechanism of these effects is not well understood and the natural site and the extent of its productionin vivo remain unclear. In the present study, we raised a monoclonal antibody specific to 15d-PGJ2 and determined its production in inflammation-related events. The monoclonal antibody (mAb11G2) was raised against the 15d-PGJ2-keyhole limpet hemocyanin conjugate and was found to recognize free 15d-PGJ2 specifically. The presence of 15d-PGJ2 in vivo was immunohistochemically verified in the cytoplasm of most of the foamy macrophages in human atherosclerotic plaques. In addition, the immunostaining of lipopolysaccharide-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophages with mAb11G2 demonstrated an enhanced intracellular accumulation of 15d-PGJ2, suggesting that the PGD2 metabolic pathway, generating the anti-inflammatory PGs, is indeed utilized in the cells during inflammation. The activation of macrophages also resulted in the extracellular production of PGD2, which was associated with a significant increase in the extracellular 15d-PGJ2 levels, and the extracellular 15d-PGJ2production was reproduced by incubating PGD2 in a cell-free medium and in phosphate-buffered saline. Moreover, using a chiral high performance liquid chromatography method for separation of PGD2 metabolites, we established a novel metabolic pathway, in which PGD2 is converted to 15d-PGJ2 via an albumin-independent mechanism.
Organochlorines in bottlenose dolphins Tursiops truncatus from the east coast of South Africa

Concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), t-DDT (DDT + DDE + DDD) and dieldrin were determined in blubber samples of 105 bottlenose dolphins inhabiting the coastal waters of the east coast of South Africa. Residue concentrations increased with age and, in males, reached levels that may impair testosterone production. In females, however, there was a decline in concentrations of all three residues in animals with between 8 and 10 dentinal growth layer groups. A significant difference was found between residue levels in females before and subsequent to their first or second ovulation, suggesting that first-born calves receive the majority of the mother's load through lactation. Evidence is presented to indicate that primiparous females impart the majority of their load within seven weeks post-partum. Levels of PCBs, t-DDT and dieldrin differed significantly in different geographical areas, suggesting a degree of isolation of sections of the population.
Productivity and Chick Growth Rates of Royal Tern (Thalasseus maximus) and Sandwich Tern (Thalasseus sandvicensis) on the Isles Dernieres Barrier Island Refuge, Louisiana

Abstract. Barrier islands in Louisiana and elsewhere in the northern Gulf of Mexico region provide valuable breeding habitat for numerous waterbird species; however, these islands are also deteriorating at an alarming rate. Management and conservation of waterbird species in these dynamic environments require a better understanding of the breeding biology for northern Gulf of Mexico populations. Productivity parameters were investigated for Royal (Thalasseus maximus) and Sandwich (T. sandvicensis) terns at the Isles Dernieres Barrier Island Refuge in Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana, during the 2009 and 2010 breeding seasons. Mean hatching success for Royal Tern was 77% (n = 169 nests), while Sandwich Tern hatching success was 75% (n = 130 nests). For both Royal and Sandwich terns, the estimated probability that a chick survived from hatching to fledging age was 55% (n = 630 nestlings). Overall, estimated breeding success for Royal and Sandwich terns was 42.3% and 41%, respectively. Chick growth rates were similar for both species and among islands, suggesting similar habitat quality among islands of Isles Dernieres Barrier Island Refuge. Growth rates (K) for both Royal and Sandwich terns were greatest for tarsus (K = 0.194 and K = 0.184, respectively), followed by mass (K = 0.143 and K = 0.164, respectively), and then wing cord (K = 0.125 and K = 0.110, respectively). Future studies evaluating causes of chick mortality would provide insight into the quality of habitat provided during this life stage. Chick growth rates may also be a useful indicator of ecological change and response to disturbances such as the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
CHEMISTRY OF PUFFER FISH TOXIN

Tetrodotoxin (TTX) is well known as the puffer fish toxin. Naturally occurring analogs of TTX have been isolated from puffer fish, newts and frogs, and their structures have been determined by spectroscopic methods. Additionally, TTX analogs have been prepared by chemical modification to investigate its binding site on sodium channels and the structure-activity relationship of TTX. In this article, the NMR data of TTX analogs are listed, and the chemical modification methods for preparation of TTX probes are summarized.