Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The effect of dietary humic substances on the fattening performance, carcass yield, blood biochemistry parameters and bone mineral profile of broiler chickens

Humic substances are currently being considered as a new feed component in replacement of antibiotic growth stimulators to improve growth and health in animals. The aim of our work was to evaluate the effect of the addition of humic substances to the feed at concentrations of 0.8% and 1.0% on the growth parameters, carcass yield, selected blood enzymes, minerals, and the bone quality in broiler chickens. One hundred fifty COBB 500 one-day-old male broiler chicks were randomly divided into one control and two experimental groups (n = 50) with three replications (16, 16 and 17 per pen), and fattened for 35 days. The broilers of the experimental groups (H0.8 and H1.0) were fed commercial feed mixtures with added humic substances (at 8 g·kg-1and 10 g·kg-1). The control group was fed a diet without the addition of humic substances. A slight increase in the final body weight and feed conversion ratio was noted in the experimental groups (P> 0.05). Significantly higher yields of breast and thigh meat (P< 0.05) were recorded for the experimental group H1.0. The blood cholesterol level was lower for both experimental groups. A lower concentration of alkaline-phosphatase was observed in group H1.0. A decrease in aspartate aminotransferase and calcium was recorded for group H0.8. A significantly higher content of calcium and lower content of phosphorus was found in the bones of experimental animals. The 1% addition of humic substances had a positive impact on growth parameters (P> 0.05), improved selected blood indices and increased the calcium content in the bones of broilers (P< 0.05).
Intergenerational transmission of longevity is not affected by other familial factors: Evidence from 16,905 Dutch families from Zeeland, 1812-1962

Studies have shown that long-lived individuals seem to pass their survival advantage on to their offspring. Offspring of long-lived parents had a lifelong survival advantage over individuals without long-lived parents, making them more likely to become long-lived themselves. We test whether the survival advantage enjoyed by offspring of long-lived individuals is explained by environmental factors. 101,577 individuals from 16,905 families in the 1812-1886 Zeeland cohort were followed over time. To prevent that certain families were overrepresented in our data, disjoint family trees were selected. Offspring was included if the age at death of both parents was known. Our analyses show that multiple familial resources are associated with survival within the first 5 years of life, with stronger maternal than paternal effects. However, between ages 5 and 100 both parents contribute equally to offspring’s survival chances. After age 5, offspring of long-lived fathers and long-lived mothers had a 16-19% lower chance of dying at any given point in time than individuals without long-lived parents. This survival advantage is most likely genetic in nature, as it could not be explained by other, tested familial resources and is transmitted equally by fathers and mothers.
Using artificial intelligence on dermatology conditions in Uganda: a case for diversity in training data sets for machine learning

Introduction Artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare has gained momentum with advances in affordable technology that has potential to help in diagnostics, predictive healthcare and personalized medicine. In pursuit of applying universal non-biased AI in healthcare, it is essential that data from different settings (gender, age and ethnicity) is represented. We present findings from beta-testing an AI-powered dermatological algorithm called Skin Image Search, by online dermatology company First Derm on Fitzpatrick 6 skin type (dark skin) dermatological conditions. Methods 123 dermatological images selected from a total of 173 images retrospectively extracted from the electronic database of a Ugandan telehealth company, The Medical Concierge Group (TMCG) after getting their consent. Details of age, gender and dermatological clinical diagnosis were analyzed using R on R studio software to assess the diagnostic accuracy of the AI app along disease diagnosis and body part. Predictability levels of the AI app was graded on a scale of 0 to 5, where 0-no prediction made and 1-5 demonstrating reducing correct prediction. Results 76 (62%) of the dermatological images were from females and 47 (38%) from males. The 5 most reported body parts were; genitals (20%), trunk (20%), lower limb (14.6%), face (12%) and upper limb (12%) with the AI app predicting a diagnosis in 62% of image body parts uploaded. Overall diagnostic accuracy of the AI app was low at 17% (21 out of 123 predictable images) with varying predictability levels correctness i.e. 1-8.9%, 2-2.4%, 3-2.4%, 4-1.6%, 5-1.6% with performance along individual diagnosis highest with dermatitis (80%). Conclusion There is a need for diversity in the image datasets used when training dermatology algorithms for AI applications in clinical decision support as a means to increase accuracy and thus offer correct treatment across skin types and geographies.
Adaptive Resetting of Tuberoinfundibular Dopamine (TIDA) Network Activity during Lactation in Mice

Giving birth triggers a wide repertoire of physiological and behavioral changes in the mother to enable her to feed and care for her offspring. These changes require coordination and are often orchestrated from the CNS, through as of yet poorly understood mechanisms. Giving birth triggers a wide repertoire of physiological and behavioral changes in the mother to enable her to feed and care for her offspring. These changes require coordination and are often orchestrated from the CNS, through as of yet poorly understood mechanisms. A neuronal population with a central role in puerperal changes is the tuberoinfundibular dopamine (TIDA) neurons that control release of the pituitary hormone, prolactin, which triggers key maternal adaptations, including lactation and maternal care. Here, we used Ca2+ imaging on mice from both sexes and whole-cell recordings on female mouse TIDA neurons in vitro to examine whether they adapt their cellular and network activity according to reproductive state. In the high-prolactin state of lactation, TIDA neurons shift to faster membrane potential oscillations, a reconfiguration that reverses upon weaning. During the estrous cycle, however, which includes a brief, but pronounced, prolactin peak, oscillation frequency remains stable. An increase in the hyperpolarization-activated mixed cation current, Ih, possibly through unmasking as dopamine release drops during nursing, may partially explain the reconfiguration of TIDA rhythms. These findings identify a reversible plasticity in hypothalamic network activity that can serve to adapt the dam for motherhood. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Motherhood requires profound behavioral and physiological adaptations to enable caring for offspring, but the underlying CNS changes are poorly understood. Here, we show that, during lactation, neuroendocrine dopamine neurons, the “TIDA” cells that control prolactin secretion, reorganize their trademark oscillations to discharge in faster frequencies. Unlike previous studies, which typically have focused on structural and transcriptional changes during pregnancy and lactation, we demonstrate a functional switch in activity and one that, distinct from previously described puerperal modifications, reverses fully on weaning. We further provide evidence that a specific conductance (Ih) contributes to the altered network rhythm. These findings identify a new facet of maternal brain plasticity at the level of membrane properties and consequent ensemble activity.
Rouxiella chamberiensis gen. nov., sp. nov., a new Enterobacteriaceae isolated from parenteral nutrition bags

HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access archive for the deposit and dissemination of scientific research documents, whether they are published or not. The documents may come from teaching and research institutions in France or abroad, or from public or private research centers. L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires publics ou privés.
Comparing Locus of Control, Assertiveness and General Health among Young Drug Dependent patients in Iran

Corresponding author: Shahriar Shahidi,, Associate Professor in Health and Clinical Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, Shahid Beheshti University, Evin, Tehran 19839, Iran. Tel:+98-21-29903262 Fax:-98-21-22431688 Email: s-shahidi@sbu.ac. ir Objective: The aim of this research was to compare the characteristics of assertiveness, locus of control and general health among young drug dependent patients in Iran. Methods: Three groups of Iranians: were choosed. The first group included drug dependent patients who had volunteered for treatment and had registered in the local Welfare Organization; the second group included dependent patients who were in the prison; and the third group held nondependent patients. All the participants were male and were matched for age and educational level . The following instruments were used in the present study: locus of control Questionnaire , Assertiveness Scale and the General Health Questionnaire, GHQ. Results: The results of the present research showed that there were significant differences among the three groups in assertiveness, locus of control and GHQ scores. It was found that participants in the non addictive group were more assertive and more internal in their locus of control and had higher GHQ scores than the other two groups. The participants in the prison group reported less assertiveness and lower GHQ scores than the non addictive group ; and their locus of control was more external. Conclusion: The results this study may be useful in terms of possible strategies for changing an attributive style in young adults in the framework of psychotherapy.
Ultra-high field imaging reveals increased whole brain connectivity underpins cognitive strategies that attenuate pain

The perception of pain activates a number of brain regions and processes that are involved in its sensory, emotional, cognitive, and affective aspects; all of which require a flexible functional connectivity between local and distant brain regions. Here, we investigate how the attenuation of pain with cognitive interventions affects the strength of these connections by pursuing a whole brain approach in order to assess every cortical connection that contributes to successful pain relief. While receiving 40s trials of tonic cold pain, 22 healthy participants were asked to utilise three different pain attenuation strategies: (a) non-imaginal distraction by counting backwards in steps of seven, (b) imaginal distraction by imagining a safe place, and (c) cognitive reappraisal. During a 7T fMRI recording, participants were asked to rate their pain after each single trial. We related the trial-by-trial variability of the attenuation performance to the trial-by-trial functional connectivity of the cortical data. Across all three conditions, we found that a higher performance of pain attenuation was predominantly associated with higher functional connectivity between all regions. Of note, we observed an association between low pain and high connectivity for regions that belong to the core areas of pain processing, i.e. the insular and cingulate cortices. For one of the cognitive strategies (safe place), the performance success of pain attenuation was explained by diffusion tensor imaging metrics of increased white matter integrity. Therefore, successful cognitive interventions to ameliorate pain and improve clinical outcomes would require the strengthening of cortical connections.
Genetic variability, heritability and genetic advance of yield and related traits in F3 generation of groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.)

Groundnut is a highly self-pollinated crop and due to the uniformity of the traits imposed by the peanut growers, it is losing its genetic base. Hence, there arises a concern for creating more genetic variability in the population. With this information in background, the present study was carried out to examine the variability of prominent yield and yield attributing traits in this unpredictable legume crop. This will provide insight into the expression of traits and the influence of environment on those traits. High GCV, PCV values were recorded for the number of pods per plant, 100 pod weight, 100 kernel weight, shelling percent and number of mature kernels in the present study. This indicates the presence of ample variability for these traits. Hence these traits can be opted for selection as they contribute more towards variability with least influence of environment over it. Most of the traits recorded high heritability and high GAM, which is a positive sign for least influence of environment on population and presence of additive gene action.
Trade-offs and selection conflicts in hybrid poplars indicate the stomatal ratio as an important trait regulating disease resistance

Natural selection can remove maladaptive genotypic variance from populations, leaving reduced phenotypic variation as a signal of its action. Hybrid populations offer a unique opportunity to study phenotypic variance before selection purifies it, as these populations can have increased genotypic and phenotypic variance than can reveal trade-offs and selection conflicts not visible, or visible to a lesser extent, in unadmixed populations. Here, we study the interactions between a fungal leaf rust disease (Melampsora medusae) and stomata and ecophysiology traits in a set of hybrid and unadmixed individuals formed by natural matings between Populus balsamifera, P. trichocarpa, P. angustifolia, and P. deltoides. Phenotypes were measured on cloned genotypes grown in a common garden and genotyped at 227K SNPs with GBS. Our analyses indicate hybridization decreases disease resistance and increases the variance of stomatal ratio (SR), or the ratio of upper leaf surface stomata density to total stomata density. Heritability of SR was high in admixed populations (H2 = 0.72) and covaries strongly with the proportion of P. balsamifera ancestry in a genome; thus, selection could effectively reduce disease by selecting for low values of stomatal ratio. However, selection conflicts present in some admixed populations may prevent adaptation to pathogens as a result of these populations being unable to occupy adaptive trait space along the growth-defense spectrum. These results suggest an important role for SR and stomatal patterning traits as a target of pathogen induced selection to achieve local fitness optima. Additionally, we demonstrate that hybridization is capable of generating, or magnifying maladaptive intermediate phenotypes to reveal trade-offs and selection conflicts.
Intermittent lighting program does not hinder the performance of broiler chickens and promotes energy economy

Abstract: The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance of broiler chickens in different lighting programs. Broiler chickens were fed on feeders of different colours at different breeding phases. In total, 240 Cobb500™ chicks mixed at 1 d of age were used. They were distributed in a completely randomized design. The treatments followed a 2 × 4 factorial design: two lighting programs (continuous and intermittent), and four colours of feeders (white, green, blue, and red). The birds were evaluated for weekly productive performance and the data were submitted to analysis of variance and later Tukey’s test for comparison of means. In the periods 1–7, 1–21, and 1–42 d of age, lighting programs and feeder colours affected weight gain, feed intake, and feed conversion. Intermittent red feeders influenced positively the performance of birds. It is possible to replace conventional lighting programs for intermittent lighting programs. Red feeders exert a positive influence on the performance of broiler chickens.
Effects of N-Acetyl-Leucine and its enantiomers in Niemann-Pick disease type C cells

N-Acetyl-DL-Leucine is an acetylated derivative of the essential amino acid leucine and a racemate (1:1) of N-Acetyl-L-Leucine and N-Acetyl-D-Leucine enantiomers. Previous observational clinical studies have demonstrated that N-Acetyl-DL-Leucine is effective in improving ataxia in patients with Niemann-Pick disease type C (NPC), a lysosomal storage disorder characterized at the cellular level by increased relative volume of the endosomal/lysosomal system. In this study, we sought to further characterize the potential therapeutic benefit of N-acetyl-DL-leucine and its enantiomers for the treatment of NPC. We investigated the effectiveness of N-Acetyl-DL-Leucine, N-Acetyl-D-Leucine, and N-Acetyl-L-Leucine in reducing lysosomal volume in non-neuronal NPC1 cells using LysoTracker, a fluorescent dye that accumulates in acidic organelles. We report that both N-Acetyl-DL-Leucine and N-Acetyl-L-Leucine reduced relative lysosomal volume in NPC1-/- Chinese Hamster Ovary cells in a dose-dependent manner. Subsequently, we confirmed that N-Acetyl-L-Leucine was most effective at reducing relative lysosomal volumes in fibroblasts derived from NPC patients with severe disease (***p <0.001), followed by N-Acetyl-DL-Leucine (**p <0.01). Treatment with N-Acetyl-D-Leucine did not achieve statistical significance. Taken together, these results suggest that N-Acetyl-L-Leucine is the most effective enantiomer in correcting relative lysosomal volume in non-neuronal NPC cells, and support further research and development of the L-enantiomer.
Diversification of a cryptic radiation, a closer look at Madagascar’s recently recognized bird family

Despite its status as a global biodiversity hotspot there is still much to be discovered about the birds of Madagascar, including a full accounting of species-level diversity and the avifauna’s origins. The Bernieridae is a Malagasy endemic family that went unrecognized by science for decades and unnamed until 2010. This cryptic family has long represented a missing piece of the puzzle of the avian tree of life. We present the first comprehensive phylogeny of Bernieridae in order to examine its diversification history on Madagascar and its place within Passeriformes. In light of recent discoveries of cryptic species-level diversity in Madagascar’s vertebrate fauna, we used broad geographic sampling and integrative taxonomic methods to investigate the potential for cryptic lineages within every known species of the Bernieridae. Our approach combines phylogenomics using ∼4500 loci of ultraconserved elements (UCEs), genetic clustering of thousands of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), and statistical analysis of morphological variation. These methods yielded the discovery of two unrecognized species in the previously monotypic genus Bernieria, along with new insights into patterns of fine-scale endemism in Madagascar’s humid forests. Our phylogenomic analyses provide conclusive support for Donacobiidae and Bernieridae as sister families, a biogeographically intriguing result given that the former is restricted to the Neotropics. We found a significant decline in the rate of speciation over time on Madagascar, consistent with a model of adaptive radiation. Bernieridae therefore joins the Vangidae as a second avian adaptive radiation on the island of Madagascar. These insights into the evolution of Bernieridae represent a step forward in understanding the origins and diversity of Madagascar’s endemic avifauna.
Bell Pepper (Capsicum annum L.) under Colored Shade Nets: Plant Growth and Physiological Responses

Use of colored shade nets has shown benefits in bell pepper and other horticultural crops. There is still, however, limited information on plant growth and physiology of bell pepper crop grown under colored shade nets. The objective was to determine the effects of colored shade nets on plant growth, leaf gas exchange, and leaf pigments of field-grown bell pepper. Experimental design was a randomized complete block with four replications and five shade treatments (black, red, silver, and white nets, and an uncovered control). Mean and maximal air temperature and midday root zone temperature (RZT) were highest in the unshaded treatment. Differences in air temperatures between shade net treatments were smaller compared with the differences in RZT between treatments. Plant fresh weight and stem diameter were reduced in the unshaded treatment, and there were no plant fresh weight and stem diameter differences among shade nets. The incidence of Phytophthora blight (caused by Phytophthora capsici) was greatest in the unshaded treatment. Leaf stomatal conductance (gS) and photosystem II efficiency were reduced and leaf temperature increased in unshaded conditions. Leaf net photosynthesis, gS, internal CO2, and PSII efficiency decreased with increasing leaf temperature. Differences in leaf temperature among shade net treatments were because of differences in solar radiation captured by leaves. Leaf total carotenoids were lowest in unshaded conditions and there were no differences in total carotenoids among the shade nets. Chlorophyll a concentration and chlorophyll a/b ratio was lowest in unshaded conditions. Leaf total phenols, flavonoids, and cupric reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC) values were highest in red net and in unshaded conditions. Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) values were highest in red net and lowest in silver net. In conclusion, compared with unshaded conditions, shade nets resulted in improved bell pepper plant growth and leaf gas exchange. These responses were due primarily to the reduced leaf and root zone temperatures under shaded conditions, regardless of the color of shade net. The differences in plant growth and function due to color of shade net were inconsistent or minor for most of the plant variables measured.
Systematic Establishment of Robustness and Standards in Patient-Derived Xenograft Experiments and Analysis

The PDXNet Consortium shows that PDX drug responses and sequencing results are reproducible across diverse experimental protocols, establishing the potential for multisite preclinical studies to translate into clinical trials. Patient-derived xenografts (PDX) are tumor-in-mouse models for cancer. PDX collections, such as the NCI PDXNet, are powerful resources for preclinical therapeutic testing. However, variations in experimental and analysis procedures have limited interpretability. To determine the robustness of PDX studies, the PDXNet tested temozolomide drug response for three prevalidated PDX models (sensitive, resistant, and intermediate) across four blinded PDX Development and Trial Centers using independently selected standard operating procedures. Each PDTC was able to correctly identify the sensitive, resistant, and intermediate models, and statistical evaluations were concordant across all groups. We also developed and benchmarked optimized PDX informatics pipelines, and these yielded robust assessments across xenograft biological replicates. These studies show that PDX drug responses and sequence results are reproducible across diverse experimental protocols. In addition, we share the range of experimental procedures that maintained robustness, as well as standardized cloud-based workflows for PDX exome-sequencing and RNA-sequencing analyses and for evaluating growth. Significance: The PDXNet Consortium shows that PDX drug responses and sequencing results are reproducible across diverse experimental protocols, establishing the potential for multisite preclinical studies to translate into clinical trials.