Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
CHEMICAL INDICES, ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY AND ANTI‐INFLAMMATORY EFFECT OF EXTRACTS OF THE MEDICINAL RICE “NJAVARA” AND STAPLE VARIETIES: A COMPARATIVE STUDY

Chemical indices, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity of extracts of bran of medicinal rice – Njavara “black glumed” type (NBb) and its rice (NBr), were studied in comparison with bran and rice of staple varieties: Sujatha and Palakkadan Matta. Total oryzanol, phenolic, flavonoid, proanthocyanidin and phytate contents of NBb (1.84 mg/g, 27.16 mg of gallic acid/g, 4.50 mg of quercetin/g, 0.98 mg of catechin/g and 8.77 mg/g dry weight of bran, respectively) were higher compared with NBr and staple varieties. NBb showed greater reducing power and significantly higher scavenging activity with 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picryl hydrazyl radical, superoxide and hydrogen peroxide with values of concentration of NBb required to scavenge 50% of respective radicals (IC50): 84.66, 203.16 and 73.55 µg/mL, respectively. The anti-inflammatory effect (in vivo) of NBb was 83.3%, whereas NBr and staple varieties showed activity in the range 16–66%. The higher oryzanol content, chemical indices, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity for Njavara compared with staple varieties corroborates with its medicinal use in Ayurveda. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS Medicinal plants are a source of antioxidants and bioactive compounds responsible for the prevention of oxidative stress that leads to many degenerative diseases and conditions. The present study indicates that the extracts of “Njavara” (black glumed), a medicinal rice variety, contains significant amounts of oryzanols, phenolic acids, flavonoids, proanthocyanidins and phytic acid compared with staple varieties. These extracts are potential free radical scavengers and have anti-inflammatory effect compared with staple varieties. Njavara, identified as a source of bioactive compounds, can be consumed as a health food in addition to its medicinal uses; thus, benefiting consumers. Higher oryzanol content in Njavara is beneficial for lowering plasma cholesterol, reducing platelet aggregation, nerve imbalances and aortic fatty streak formation. Higher antioxidants in Njavara are also beneficial against the diseases initiated by free radicals. These promising results also open up newer areas of research for developing improved varieties of rice containing more bioactive compounds.
Control of Bovine Papillomavirus E2 Function By Acetylation and the Novel E2 Interacting Protein RINT1: A Dissertation

Human papillomavirus infection is the cause of more than 99% of cervical cancer cases. The current vaccine is ineffective therapeutically; highlighting the need for continued papillomavirus research. One avenue that could be explored in this regard is the function of the papillomavirus E2 regulatory proteins. HPV E2 represses expression of the viral E6 and E7 oncoproteins. Reintroduction of E2 into cervical carcinoma cells results in growth arrest and cellular senescence. Understanding the mechanism of how E2 regulates the early promoter may be key to developing new therapeutic and prophylactic vaccines. Here, we describe regulation of E2 through acetylation and possibly through direct interaction with a novel cellular interacting protein, RINT1. Histone acetyltransferase (HAT) proteins have been demonstrated to interact with Bovine Papillomavirus (BPV) and Human Papillomavirus (HPV) E2 proteins as well as enhance E2 dependant transcription luciferase reporter plasmid containing E2 binding sites. We demonstrate that HATs p300, CBP, and pCAF are limiting for E2 dependant transcriptional activation and that each protein functions independently. We have also identified that BPV-1 E2 is a substrate for acetylation by p300. Mutants of E2 that cannot be acetylated on lysines 111 or 112, display abnormal transcriptional phenotypes. Cells deficient in p300 display similar transcriptional defects that are intensified by CBP depletion. We propose that acetylation of BPV-1 E2 is necessary for transcriptional activation.
Biparental mating in early segregating generation of aromatic rice (Oryza sativa)

A field experiment was carried out during kharif 2009 to study the genetic variability created through biparental mating in the F2 of Improved Pusa Basmati 1( P 1460)×Pusa Sugandha 4 (P 1121) cross of basmati rice (Oriza sativa L.). The biparental population (BIP) had higher mean performance than the F3 self’s for all the characters under study. The lower limit of range was, in general smaller for all the characters in the biparental population. The upper limit had also increased in the desired direction for all the characters. A sufficient high genetic variation was maintained in the BIP population for most of the characters. Highest value of genetic and phenotypic coefficient of variation were recorded for grain yield/plant (34.00 and 35.21), followed by no. of spikelets/ panicle (22.05 and 23.26). Whereas, high heritability (%) and genetic advance (% as mean) were found for 1 000-grain weight (g) and panicles/m2 respectively. The utility of biparental mating in early segregating generation in aromatic rice is emphasized.
Expression of G protein α subunits in the lateral wall of the rat cochlea

Expression of five G protein α subunits was investigated in the rat cochlea by reverse transcription‐polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) in order to understand their role in the cochlear signal transduction mechanisms. Immunohistochemical techniques were employed to study their distribution in the lateral wall of the cochlea. Total RNA was extracted with guanidine thiocyanate from cochleas and brains of 14–21‐day‐old rats. The extract was treated with DNase to degrade genomic DNA. After RT, the resulting cDNA was amplified by PCR using primers specific for the nucleotide sequences representing α subunits of heterotrimeric G proteins. The results indicated that mRNA for all five α subunits was expressed in the brain and cochlear samples. For immunohistochemical localization, temporal bones of 6‐week‐old rats were fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde and 0.1% glutaraldehyde and processed for embedding in paraffin wax. The dewaxed, midmodiolar sections of the cochlea were incubated with subunit‐specific polyclonal antibodies. The pattern of immunoreactivity varied for the five G protein α subunits studied in the stria vascularis and spiral ligament. The significance of these findings and the role of G protein α subunits in cochlear fluid homeostasis are discussed.
A phylogenetic subclade analysis of range sizes of endemic woody seed plant species of China: Trait conservatism, diversification rates and evolutionary models

Adaptive radiation predicted that diversification rate of species and/or the divergence of trait evolution are declined from ancient to contemporary time due to reduced novel niches, namely the “early burst” model. It is still controversial whether the early burst model is ubiquitous over various taxa for species diversification and/or phenotypic evolution. The applicability of the model on plants has little been tested yet in current literature. To address this question, in the present study, a subclade‐level phylogenetic comparative analysis of range size evolution and diversification rates of 6885 endemic woody seed plant species in China (i.e., species only found in China) was performed. My study showed that phylogenetic signals of range sizes depend on the phylogenetic scope and the sampling of subclades. Early burst model was not supported for the range size evolution for endemic woody plants of China, while the simple Brownian motion model of adaptive radiation had the best fit. Diversification of species over the subclades of the phylogeny showed that young clades have higher diversification rates than old clades, being contradictory to the “early burst” prediction of adaptive radiation. However, a whole‐phylogeny diversification analysis suggests that the BOTHVAR model where speciation rate is decreasing while extinction rate is increasing is the best one to describe the time‐dependent trend of diversification of endemic woody plants of China. Moreover, the evolution of range sizes of woody plants is found to be largely independent to diversification rates of species, deprecating the positive range sizes‐diversification hypothesis. At last, a strong positive relationship between phylogenetic mean and variance of range sizes was observed. In conclusion, the “early burst” model predicted by adaptive radiation might be applied to the diversification rates, but not the range size evolution of endemic woody plants of China. Further studies are required by sampling more taxa and building a high‐quality phylogeny to test and verify the patterns found in the present study.
Molecular systematics of the endemic Hawaiian blowfly genus Dyscritomyia Grimshaw : Diptera : Calliphoridae

greenbottle fiies, although the exact systematic position ofthe genus has never been known. This is part of a larger problem in that the limits and systematic position of many calliphorid species are unclear, and the monophyly of the Calliphoridae itself is in dispute. As part of a larger investigation of calliphorid systematics, we perfbrmed a phylogenetic analysis of Ilyscritonryia nd members of the greenbottle genus Lueilia based on rnitochondrial cytochrome oxidase (COI+II) sequence data, The resulting cladogram had }l87% bootstrap support for all branches and it recovered the Lucilia species-groups that are supported by morphological criteria, llyseritoayia was the sister lineage to Lucilia. Therefbre it is unlikely that the Hawaiian genus evolyed from any Lucilia speeies. Although these results are preliminary it appears that COI+II sequence data will provide a strong phylogenetic signal for any future investigation f Ilyscritonryia and other greenbottle flies.
Heterosis for yield and yield components in sesame.

Heterosis was high, significant and positive for yield and its important attributes in 6 out of 17 hybrids of sesame involving 8 diverse parents. Heterosis lor yield was genecally accompanied by heterosis for yield components. The study reveals good scope for commercial exploitation of heterosis as well as isolation of pure lines among the progenies of other heterotic F1.
Seasonal differences in smolt traits and post-smolt survival of wild Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar, migrating from a northern boreal river

Seasonal differences in smolt traits and the post-smolt survival of wild Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar L. , were investigated by smolt trapping and Carlin-tagging in the River Simojoki, northern Finland between 1991 and 2004. The annual trapping season was divided into two halves based on the median catch date. Smolt length was significantly higher during the first half of the season, while differences in smolt weight were typically small. Smolt age was always significantly higher during the first half of the season because older smolts tended to migrate earlier in the season. Many smolts migrating during the early season and almost all smolts migrating later had started their new growth, indicating that smolts grow in the spring before sea entry. The differences in recaptures between smolts tagged during the first and second halves were insignificant. Although variations in smolt traits and environmental conditions can produce inter-annual variation in post-smolt survival, their seasonal differences seem to be too small to have an effect.
SPEISEOELE AUF HANFBASIS UND IHR EINFLUSS AUF DIE ERGEBNISSE VON URIN- UND BLUTANALYSEN

Im Rahmen der Wiederbelebung des Hanfanbaus etabliert sich in juengerer Zeit auch ein Markt fuer Koerperpflegeprodukte und Lebensmittel auf Hanfbasis. Am Beispiel von Hanfoel wurde der Frage nachgegangen, inwieweit der Verzehr solcher frei verkaeuflicher Hanfprodukte die Ergebnisse von Urin- und Blutanalysen beeinflussen kann. In zwei auf dem Markt frei verkaeuflichen Speiseoelen auf Hanfbasis wurden Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) und Cannabidiol, in einem der Produkte zusaetzlich noch Cannabigerol und Cannabinol, nachgewiesen. Bereits wenige Stunden nach oraler Aufnahme des Hanfoels war im Urin 11-nor-delta(hoch 9)-THC-9-Carbonsaeure, der Hauptmetabolit von delta(hoch 9)-THC, nachzuweisen. Nach einer Einnahme von 40 bis 90 ml Oel konnte im Urin bis zu 80 Stunden THC-Carbonsaeure gefunden werden. Nach Aufnahme von 40 ml Hanfoel konnten in Blutproben THC-Serumspiegel von bis zu 6 ng/ml nachgewiesen werden. Bisher wurde bei einem positiven THC- beziehungsweise THC-Carbonsaeure-Befund bei Blut- und Urinuntersuchungen von einer vorangegangenen Aufnahme von Cannabis, in der Regel in Form von Haschisch oder Marihuana, ausgegangen. Wenn ein Beschuldigter nun angibt, er verwende Hanfoel, und den positiven THC-Befund dadurch zu erklaeren versucht, koennte man dies nicht zweifelsfrei widerlegen. Da unter anderem eine Aenderung des Strassenverkehrsgesetzes vorgesehen ist, wonach ein positiver THC-Nachweis im Blut eines Autofahrers als Ordnungswidrigkeit geahndet werden soll, muesste der Gesetzgeber fuer klare Regelungen sorgen. Titel in Englisch: Oils containing hemp and their influence on the results of urine and blood analysis.
Intra mammary challenge of dairy goats with a low dose of Staphylococcus aureus

The aim of this pilot study was to induce a subclinical mastitis in dairy goats with a bovine Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) strain and to investigate the post infection (p.i.) response during the first 48 hours of this infection. The right udder halves of 2 goats were inoculated with approximately 58 Colony Forming Units (CFU) of S. aureus in 1 ml phosphate buffered saline (PBS) 45 days after parturition, The other 2 goats served as negative controls. General health examinations and milk samples were collected from all animals just prior to inoculation and 6, 12, 24 and 48 hours after inoculation. Blood samples were taken just before inoculation and 24 hours and 7 days after inoculation. The infected animals were treated with antibiotics 48 hours after inoculation. Bacteriological analysis were performed in the milk samples within two hours after collection. The total white blood cell count and a differentiation of these cells were obtained from the blood samples. According to the results of the bacterial counts the inoculation of the two goats lead to an infection of inoculated udder halves. One goat showed S. aureus in her milk at 6, 12 , 24 and 48 hours after inoculation while S. aureus was isolated from the milk of the other inoculated goat only at 24 and 48 hours after inoculation. The uninoculated animals did not show an intra mammary infection. Furthermore none of the animals (inoculated or not inoculated) showed any clinical signs nor significant differences in blood values during the trial. Based on these results can be concluded that the dose used in this pilot study has successfully induced a subclinical mastitis. Conclusion: this experiment shows that a subclinical mastitis can be induced in dairy goats with this low dose of S. aureus. This information can be used for other clinical mastitis trials. The main advantage of inducing a subclinical mastitis instead of using naturally infected animals is that the first hours after infection can now be studied. This can be very important in the development of practical diagnostic tools for the detection of subclinical mastitis in goats.
Lead toxicity and the protective role of Cupressus sempervirens seeds growing in Egypt.

The toxicological effect of lead acetate to the liver and the possible protective effect of Cupressus sempervirens (C. sempervirens) plant and its flavonoids (quercetin and rutin) was evaluated. 30 Male albino rats and divided into five groups (six per group). Group I, served as control, group II exposed to 0.5 mg/g concentrations of lead acetate in diet for 60 days. Group III was received daily doses of 8 mg/100g of rat b.wt of C. sempervirens (liophilized from methanol extract of seeds) two weeks prior to lead acetate administration. Group IV received daily doses of 0.3 mg/100g of rat b.wt of the flavonoid quercetin two weeks prior to lead acetate administration; Group V was received daily doses of 0.1 mg/100g of rat b.wt of the flavonoid rutin two weeks prior to lead acetate administration. Lead acetate caused a significant increase in serum and tissue AST, ALT, ALP, bilirubin, serum and tissue MDA, plasma and tissue NO, in addition to, highly significant increase in serum cholesterol, LDL, triglycerides and HDL. On the contrary, lead induced a significant decrease in serum and tissue total protein, albumin, globulin, albumin/globulin ratio, blood and tissue SOD and GPx compared to control group. The administration of C. sempervirens methanol extract, quercetin and rutin two weeks prior to lead acetate prevents these parameters to the normal levels. In conclusion, the treatment with C.sempervirens methanol extract and its flavonoids may provide a partial protection against the toxic effect induced by lead acetate. This indicates that C. sempervirens methanol extract may be capable of greatly modifying rodents’ susceptibility to blood and liver toxicity in addition to oxidative stress induced by lead acetate.
Towards a mechanistic understanding of dispersal evolution in plants: conservation implications

Aim A species’ dispersal characteristics will play a key role in determining its likely fate during a period of environmental change. However, these characteristics are not constant within a species – instead, there is often both considerable interpopulation and interindividual variability. Also changes in selection pressures can result in the evolution of dispersal characteristics, with knock‐on consequences for a species’ population dynamics. Our aim here is to make our theoretical understanding of dispersal evolution more conservation‐relevant by moving beyond the rather abstract, phenomenological models that have dominated the literature towards a more mechanism‐based approach.
The Influence of Audit Rotation, Audit Tenure and Workload on Audit Quality at Consumer Goods Sector Manufacturing Companies listed in Indonesia Stock Exchange

: This research is aims to study the Influence of audit rotation, audit tenure, and workload on audit quality. The population of this research are all of the Consumer Goofs Sector Manufacturing companies period 2012-2016. Sampling done by using purposive sampling method, and collect 26 companies for use in this research. This research using regression panel method that show the audit rotation, audit tenure, and workload can explain and effect 42,63% of audit quality, while 57,37% of audit quality caused by other factors that out of the model. Based on the results of research can be concluded that audit rotation and audit tenure had positive and significant impact on Audit Quality, that is, by doing audit rotation can improve audit quality and the longer of audit tenure can improve audit quality. Workload had a negative and insignificant relationship to Audit Quality, meaning that the higher the workload pressure, the audit quality will decrease.
The Role of Glycogen Synthase Kinase-3 (GSK-3) in Alzheimer’s Disease

Despite its initial discovery as one of five protein kinases activities found to phosphorylate glycogen synthase (GS) in fractioned extracts of rabbit skeletal muscle (Embi et al., 1980; Hemmings et al., 1981), Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3 (GSK-3) is by no means restricted to a role in glycogen metabolism. Indeed, the enzyme targets a wide variety of proteins involved in signalling, metabolism, structural proteins and a remarkable number of transcription factors and plays a far more pleiotropic role than first imagined (Woodgett, 2006). Genetic analyses and the use of selective inhibitors have shown that GSK-3 plays critical roles in development, metabolic homeostasis, neuronal growth and differentiation (Hur & Zhon, 2010), cell polarity, cell fate and apoptosis. Its unique position in modulating the function of a diverse series of proteins in combination with its association with a wide variety of human disorders, from neurodegenerative diseases, stroke, bipolar disorder to diabetes and cancer, has attracted significant attention to the protein both as a therapeutic target and as a means to understand the molecular basis of these disorders. In particular, the involvement of GSK-3 in several key pathophyisiological pathways leading to Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and neurodegenerative diseases has placed this enzyme in a central position in this disorder. Thus, GSK-3 has recently been proposed as a link between the two major pathological pathways in AD, amyloid and tau (Hernandez et al., 2010; Muyllaert et al., 2008) and even a “GSK-3 hypothesis of AD”, suggesting that GSK-3 might be a casual mediator of the disease, has been put forward (Hooper et al., 2008). This review will focus on describing the key role that GSK-3 plays in AD pathobiology and the use of GSK-3 inhibition as a potential therapeutic approach to treat this disease.
Genome-wide RNAi screening reveals glial phosphoethanolamine ceramide is critical for axonal ensheathment

Glia play a major role in many processes during the development of the nervous system both in vertebrates and in invertebrates. One of the crucial functions of glia is the insulation of axons to provide them with trophic support. This insulation renders electrical isolation to allow faster conduction of nerve impulses. This project aimed to identify novel glia-specific functions that alter axonal morphology. In this study, we first characterized a Drosophila model to study glial specific functions in the mature nervous system. At first, we investigated the consequence of acute loss of glia on neuronal survival and for that UAS-GAL4 system in combination with GAL80ts, a temperature-sensitive suppressor of GAL4, was used to eliminate glia exclusively in the adult nervous system. Ablation of glia in the mature nervous system of Drosophila induced neuronal cell death and had a dramatic impact on survival and motor performance of the flies. This result underscores the pivotal role of glia in maintaining the normal physiological milieu in the nervous system. This model was further exploited to identify genes contributing glia-specific function in the mature nervous system. Hence, we performed a genome-wide RNAi screen with a sublibrary of human homologs in the adult Drosophila model that we characterized. Each shRNA was specifically expressed in the mature glial cells and lethality or reduced locomotor activity of adult flies were scored. Interestingly, metabolic pathways are predominantly represented in our primary hit list. Next, a systematic bioinformatic analysis followed by secondary assays unveils that glial sphingolipids are critical for axonal ensheathment. Furthermore, we have determined that a specific sphingolipid phosphoethanolamine-ceramide (PE-ceramide) is required for a subtype of glia namely wrapping glia in order to maintain axonal enwrapping to preserve axonal integrity and electrical insulation. The loss of PE-ceramide in wrapping glia is likely to interfere with glial differentiation or axon-glia interaction and therefore, errors in ensheathment processes occurs. Rearrangement of cytoskeleton in glia, that are necessary for insulation process might also be affected upon loss of PE-ceramide. In parallel, we report that the loss of two very long chain fatty acid elongases CG 18609 and baldspot in glia shows reduced viability and they are expressed in the brain. Morphological assay revealed that the loss of baldspot in glia altered glial morphology and subsequent axonal wrapping. baldspot is a homolog of mammalian Elovl6 that synthesizes short monounsaturated and saturated fatty acyl chain. Therefore, it is likely that PEceramide with short fatty acyl chain is critical for axonal ensheathment by glia. Moreover, these sphingolipids may influence the integrity or permeability of different physiological barrier present in the skin or nervous system.