Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Increased community compositional dissimilarity alleviates species loss following nutrient enrichment at large spatial scales

Anthropogenic activities have drastically increased nutrient availability, resulting in declines in species richness in many plant communities. However, most previous studies have explored only species-loss patterns and mechanisms over small sampling areas, so their results might overestimate species loss at larger spatial scales. The aim of this research was to explore species diversity change patterns and species-loss rates at multiple scales in alpine meadow communities following nutrient enrichment. Specifically, we asked two closely related questions: (i) do changes in species diversity and species-loss patterns differ among spatial scales? and (ii) how does community compositional dissimilarity and species turnover change among spatial scale? This study was implemented in an alpine meadow community, which is regarded as one of the most sensitive and vulnerable terrestrial ecosystems to anthropogenic nutrient enrichment. We conducted a fertilization experiment that involved the addition of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and a mixture of both to a series of quadrats ranging from 1 to 16 m² over 5 years to study the variations in the patterns of species diversity in response to nutrient additions at different spatial scales. Our results showed that the changes in species diversity and species loss were dependent on the type of fertilization and the spatial scale. After N and NP fertilization, species diversity significantly decreased at the small scale but not at the large scale, and the rate of species loss decreased as the spatial scale increased. In contrast, the differences between the P addition and control communities were negligible at both the small and large spatial scales. N fertilization caused species to be lost from the small sampling scale, but because different species were lost from different samples, there was an increase in compositional dissimilarity at larger spatial scales, which reduced the total number of species lost when measured at larger scales. These findings highlight spatial scale in evaluating the biodiversity loss after fertilization and suggest that the compositional dissimilarity might play an important role in mediating species loss after fertilization. Our study significantly improved our understanding of changes in species diversity and species loss at different spatial scales under nutrient-enrichment scenarios.
The effect of production systems on beef fatty acid composition

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of different production systems on fatty acids (FA) composition of three beef muscles (longissimus thoracis, semitendinosus and diaphragmae). The first group (MGSC) included 8 bulls of Slovenian Brown breed that were fattened with maize, grass silage and concentrates. The second group (MCS) included 8 bulls of Slovenian Simental breed that were fattened with maize silage, ensiled corn grain and concentrates. The third group (GS) included 6 Limousine × Simmental crossbreed bulls that have been fattened on pasture in cow-calf production system until slaughter. In fourth group (G) 8 bulls of Slovenian Simmental breed were fattened on pasture from spring to autumn when they were slaughtered. Bulls from MSC and MGSC had similar carcass weight (316 kg, 308 kg, respectively), whereas bulls from GS had the lightest (215 kg) and bulls from G the heaviest carcass weight (371 kg). Carcass fatness was similar for bulls in MSC, MGSC and G groups and slightly lower in GS group. The percentage of saturated FA differed among groups only in semitendinosus muscle. Bulls from G and GS had lower percentage of monounsaturated FA (MUFA) and higher percentage of polyunsaturated FA (PUFA) in all three muscles. Bulls from grazing production systems had higher n-3 PUFA values in all muscles and higher n-6 PUFA values in semitendinosus and diaphragmae. Bulls fattened on pasture had lower n-6/n-3 ratio in all three muscles. Bulls from GS had a higher percentage of conjugated linolenic acid in comparison to MGSC and MCS groups in all muscles except in semitendinosus where percentage of CLA was higher only from MGSC group.
Limited-Information Cooperative Shared Control for Vehicle-Manipulators

This paper presents a novel cooperative control algorithm for vehicle-manipulators (VMs) with a human operator. VMs usually operate in unstructured environments, which means that a full automation of the overall system, combing a vehicle and a robotic manipulator is currently very challenging. Therefore, human operator controlled VMs are state-of-the-art. With current developments in autonomous driving, the automation of the vehicle platform is within reach. A cooperative shared control between the autonomous platform and the human controlled manipulator can happen through the coupling motion between the vehicle platform and the manipulator. An autonomous vehicle platform can furthermore be used to support the human operator with the control of the manipulator. However, the future trajectory of the manipulator intended by the human operator is in general not known to the autonomous vehicle. The main question is thus how the autonomous vehicle should act in order to support the human controlled manipulator in following its unknown trajectory. To solve this problem, we propose an approach that characterizes the cooperation and the unknown errors with an algebraic equation. The novel approach is compared to cooperative control methods with known errors of the manipulator, based on the theory of differential games. The benefits of the proposed method are that no sensors for the environment perception and for the state measurements of the manipulator are necessary, which are demonstrated in simulations.
Identification of novel anti-bacterial compounds from a chemically highly diverse pathways-based library using phenotypic screens in amoebae host models

Legionella pneumophila and tubercular Mycobacteria are the causative agents of potentially fatal diseases due to their pathogenesis but also to the emergence of antibiotic resistance that limits treatment strategies. The aim of our study is to explore the antimicrobial activity of a small ligand-based chemical library of 1,255 structurally diverse compounds. These compounds were screened in a combination of three assays, two monitoring the intracellular growth of the pathogenic bacteria, Mycobacterium marinum and L. pneumophila, and an additional anti-virulence “plaque” assay for M. marinum. We set up these assays using two amoeba strains, the genetically tractable Dictyostelium discoideum and the free-living amoeba Acanthamoeba castellanii. In summary, sixty-four compounds showed anti-infective/anti-virulence activity in at least one of the 3 assays. The intracellular assays hit rate varied between 1.7% (n=22) for M. marinum and 2.8% (n=35) for L pneumophila with 7 compounds in common between both pathogens. In parallel, 1.2 % (n= 15) of the tested compounds were able to restore D. discoideum growth in presence of M. marinum spiked in a lawn of Klebsiella pneumoniae. We also validated the generality of the hit compounds identified using the A. castellanii-M. marinum anti-infective screen in the powerful D. discoideum-M. marinum host-pathogen model. The characterization of anti-infective and antibacterial hits in the latter infection model revealed compounds able to reduce intracellular growth more than 50% at 30 μM. Our studies underline the relevance of using a combination of low-cost and low-complexity assays with full 3R compliance associated with a rationalized focused library of compounds to help identifying new chemical scaffolds and dissect some of their properties prior to run further compounds development steps.
Surface-Controlled Conversion of Ammonia Borane from Boron Nitride

“One-pot regeneration”, which is simple regneneration method of ammonia borane (AB) using hydrazine and liquid ammonia, enables conversion of AB from hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) after milling hydrogenation. Solution 11B-NMR revealed the presence of AB after NH3/N2H4 treatment of milled h-BN (BNHx) although the yield of AB was less than 5%. The conversion mechanism was clarified as B-H bonds on the h-BN surface created by ball-milling under hydrogen pressure have an ability to form AB, which was confirmed by Thermogravimetry-Residual Gas Analysis (TG-RGA) and Infrared (IR) analysis. The reaction routes are also the same as regeneration route of polyborazylene because intermediates of AB such as (B(NH2)3 and hydrazine borane were found by solution 11B-NMR after soaking BNHx in liquid NH3 and hydrazine, respectively. Because of the fact that all reactions proceed on the h-BN surface and no reaction proceeds when neat h-BN is treated, breaking of B3N3 ring structure and then creation of B-H bond is the key issue to increase conversion yield of AB.
CORE SIM+ SIMULATIONS OF COLIBRI FUEL RODS OSCILLATION EXPERIMENTS AND COMPARISON WITH MEASUREMENTS

At EPFL, the CROCUS reactor has been used to carry out experiments with vibrating fuel rods. The paper presents a first attempt to employ the measured data to validate CORE SIM+, a neutron noise solver developed at Chalmers University of Technology. For this purpose, the original experimental data are processed in order to extract the necessary information. In particular, detector recordings are scrutinized and detrended, and used to estimate CPSDs of detector pairs. These values are then compared with the ones derived from the CORE SIM+ simulations of the experiments. The main trend of the experimental data along with the values for some detectors are successfully reproduced by CORE SIM+. Further work is necessary on both the experimental and computational sides in order to improve the validation process.
Requirements for efficient cotranscriptional regulatory switching in designed variants of the Bacillus subtilis pbuE adenine-responsive riboswitch

Riboswitches, generally located in the 5’-leader of bacterial mRNAs, direct expression via a small molecule-dependent structural switch informing the transcriptional or translational machinery. While the structure and function of riboswitch effector-binding (aptamer) domains have been intensely studied, only recently have the requirements for efficient linkage between small molecule binding and the structural switch in the cellular and cotranscriptional context begun to be actively explored. To address this, we have performed a structure-guided mutagenic analysis of the B. subtilis pbuE adenine-responsive riboswitch, one of the simplest riboswitches containing a secondary structural switch. Using a cell-based fluorescent protein reporter assay to assess ligand-dependent regulatory activity in E. coli, these studies revealed previously unrecognized features of the riboswitch. Most importantly, it was found that local and long-range conformational dynamics in two regions of the aptamer domain have a significant effect upon efficient regulatory switching. Further, sequence features of the expression platform including the pre-aptamer leader sequence, a nucleation helix and a putative programmed pause have clear affects upon ligand-dependent regulation. Together, these data point to sequence and structural features distributed throughout the riboswitch required to strike a balance between rates of ligand binding, transcription and secondary structural switching via a strand exchange mechanism.
Mindfulness and Its Impact on Adaptive Coping and Psychological Well-Being: An Intervention for Undergraduate Students

MINDFULNESS AND ITS IMPACT ON ADAPTIVE COPING AND PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING: AN INTERVENTION FOR UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS Charles Bradley Freligh Virginia Consortium Program in Clinical Psychology, 2020 Director: Dr. Robin J. Lewis The concept of mindfulness has been shown to positively impact psychological well-being, and one application of mindfulness-based interventions has been the development and implementation of courses specifically for college students, a population that has been shown to be particularly vulnerable to the negative impacts of stress. While these interventions have displayed beneficial outcomes, the mechanisms of how mindfulness exerts its impact remain unclear. One potential mechanism of mindfulness’ enhancement of well-being may be through its cultivation of an adaptive coping style in which an individual becomes more likely to approach and investigate stressors rather than avoid them. In this study, an online mindfulness-based intervention for college students was developed and implemented. Course participants were assessed before and after the course to investigate the course’s impact on mindfulness, psychological well-being, and adaptive coping (defined as higher approach coping and lower avoidant coping scores), and to assess the potentially mediating role of adaptive coping in the relationship between mindfulness and psychological well-being. Results revealed significant increases in mindfulness and in one domain of psychological well-being (environmental mastery) following the course but did not reveal significant improvements in other well-being domains nor significant changes in adaptive coping. Therefore, the planned mediation analysis was not conducted. A post-hoc hierarchical regression analysis revealed significant relationships between mindfulness and adaptive coping in the hypothesized directions while controlling for participants’ scores before the course. This may indicate that participants who developed significantly in their capacity for mindfulness practice may indeed have demonstrated the impact upon adaptive coping hypothesized in this study. Future research should continue to investigate these potential changes and their impact on the often-stressful lives of college students.
Artificial Intelligence Strategy, Creativity-Oriented HRM and Knowledge-Sharing Quality: Empirical Analysis of Individual and Organisational Performance of AI-Powered Businesses

Purpose – To investigate the relationship between artificial intelligence strategy (AIS), creativity-oriented HRM (CHRM), and knowledge-sharing quality (KSQ). At individual and organisational levels, this paper measures also the innovative work behaviour (IIWB) and effective performance (OEP) of international organisations conducting AI-powered business practices in Egypt. Design/methodology/approach – The authors presented a multilevel-model, after reviewing the relevant literature, and tested it through employing mixed-methods approach. Data were collected from 168 questionnaires answered by AI-experts at IT departments of 20 international AI-powered organisations in Egypt in addition to 25 depth interviews, AI-based focus group and international forum. Findings – Following PLS-SEM approach, results revealed that AIS affects positively and significantly KSQ and CHRM. CHRM affects positively and significantly KSQ and IIWB. KSQ affects positively and significantly OEP and IIWB. The significant positive direct AIS-OEP relationship was not supported yet the significant positive indirect relationship via KSQ was supported. Originality/value – Empirically, it is the first research that assessed AIS-CHRM-KSQ relationship and its effect on IIWB and OEP of AI-powered businesses from 7 sectors of an emerging economy. Conceptually, the authors adopted an interdisciplinary approach while reflecting on the literature that studied AIS implementation in different business functions (production, operations and supply-chain management, human resources management, strategic management and marketing). Practical implications – Strategic leaders and managers of different functional areas can benefit from the empirical findings of this study as well as from the examples of best AI-enhanced practices drawn from the literature.
Competitiveness of Herbicide-Resistant Waterhemp (Amaranthus tuberculatus) with Soybean

Abstract Waterhemp [Amaranthus tuberculatus (Moq.) J. D. Sauer] is a troublesome weed occurring in cropping systems throughout the U.S. Midwest with an ability to rapidly evolve herbicide resistance that could be associated with competitive disadvantages. Little research has investigated the competitiveness of different A. tuberculatus populations under similar environmental conditions. The objectives of this study were to evaluate: (1) the interspecific competitiveness of three herbicide-resistant A. tuberculatus populations (2,4-D and atrazine resistant [2A-R], glyphosate and protoporphyrinogen oxidase [PPO]-inhibitor resistant [GP-R], and 2,4-D, atrazine, glyphosate, and PPO-inhibitor susceptible [2AGP-S]) with soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr. ]; and (2) the density-dependent response of each A. tuberculatus population within a constant soybean population in a greenhouse environment. Amaranthus tuberculatus competitiveness with soybean was evaluated across five target weed densities of 0, 2, 4, 8, and 16 plants pot − 1 (equivalent to 0, 20, 40, 80, and 160 plants m− 2) with 3 soybean plants pot − 1 (equivalent to 300,000 plants ha − 1). At the R1 soybean harvest time, no difference in soybean biomass was observed across A. tuberculatus populations. At A. tuberculatus densities <8 plants pot − 1, the 2AGP-S population had the greatest biomass and stem diameter per plant. At the R7 harvest time, the 2AGP-S population caused the greatest loss in soybean biomass and number of pods compared with the other populations at densities of <16 plants pot − 1. The 2AGP-S population had greater earlyseason biomass accumulation and stem diameter compared with the other A. tuberculatus populations, which resulted in greater late-season reduction in soybean biomass and number of pods. This research indicates there may be evidence of interspecific competitive fitness cost associated with the evolution of 2,4-D, atrazine, glyphosate, and PPO-inhibitor resistance in A. tuberculatus. Focus should be placed on effectively using cultural weed management practices to enhance crop competitiveness, especially early in the season, to increase suppression of herbicide-resistant A. tuberculatus.
Effectiveness of Various Solar Light Traps With and Without Sex Pheromone for Mass Trapping of Tomato Leaf Miner (Tuta absoluta) in a Tomato Field

Tuta absolute was a quarantine pest in Iran that has been recorded for the first time in 2009. The most conventional methods for control of this pest in Iran are chemical methods and mass trapping, although the efficiency of the latter method is not clear. In 2013, the efficiency of three common types of solar light traps with and without sex pheromone, along with water pan pheromone traps for control, were investigated. The experiment was performed in a randomized complete block design within in a tomato field. The treatments were Behroyan light trap (BL), Zist bani light trap (ZL), Russell light trap (RL), BL + pheromone, ZL+ pheromone, RL+ pheromone and water pan pheromone trap (WPT). Traps were checked weekly and the number of captured tomato leaf miner (TLM), Noctuid moths, Chrysopa sp. , Coccinella septempuctata and Syrphid flies were counted. Mean weekly capture of TLM in BL, ZL and RL traps without sex pheromone were 9.11 ± 1.16, 4.94 ± 0.24 and 1.66 ± 0.7, while within traps sex pheromone were 54.72 ± 11.8, 42.05 ± 6.47, 39.02 ± 2.82, respectively. The mean weekly capture of Noctuid moths in the traps without pheromone were 16.92 ± 1.39, 25.39 ± 0.57, 1.49 ± 0.27 and with pheromone were 21.04 ± 1.72, 28.09 ± 0.95, 2.76 ± 1.39, respectively. Mean weekly capture of TLM and Noctuid moths in WPT traps were 47.13 ± 3.06 and 0.73 ± 0.27, respectively. The total attracted numbers of predators by the three light traps were not significant. In conclusion, traps baited sex pheromone (especially BL and ZL) could be used as eco- friendly tools for mass trapping of TLM and some key Noctuid moth pests in isolated tomato fields.
IMPROVING GROWTH TRAITS AND ESTIMATING HETEROSIS, ADDITIVE AND MATERNAL EFFECTS A CROSS DIALLEL MATING AMONG THREE LINES SELECTED HEAVIEST BODY WEIGHT UNDER HEAT CONDITION

A crossbreeding experiment was executed between three breeds were selected three generation for heavy body weight under high temperature condition Sinai (SI) and Rhode Island Red (RI) and Fayoumi breeds. 900 crossing meals from each genotype were recorded singular body weight and body weight gain at hatch, 4, 8 and 12 weeks of age. crosses SI XRI and reciprocal RI x Si significant heaver body weight and body weight gain compared than other crosses and pure breed. On the other hand body weight and body weight gain were significant heaver for pure line Sinai or Rod iland read and crosses SI x F, F x RI, Fx SI and RI xF compared to Fayoumi pure line. Heterosis was positive significant on body weight at hatch, 4,8 and 12 weeks of ages. As the same trend results of body weight gain but, negative significant at the intervals from 4wks to 8wks only. It could be observed that the hybrid vigor of body weight was significant positive effect for crosses SI X RI and reciprocal crosses RI XSI and RI XF ones. While, the hybrid vigor of body weight gain was significant positive effect for all diallel crossing except F X RI crosses. the direct additive effects were negative for line Fayoumi both body weight and weight gain taits at diferent age of these study. But these reciprocal effect were significant positive for Sinai and Rodiland red lines both body weight and body weight gain. These resuls shown that the croses RI XSI beter than SI X RI for both body weight and body weight gain. Maternal effect of body weight and body weight gain were significant positive effect at hatcher , for FF and SI SI. While, it was significant negative effect for RIRI. On the other hand, were significant positive for body weight at hatcher and 4 weeks of age only. While, maternal effect was significan positive at the intervals 0-4weeks only. The last shown that the maternal effect had a play essential role on body weght and body weight gain. Recommended used crosses Sinai and rod Iland red to produce commercial meat strains in hot climated countery.
Effects of dietary 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 supplementation on growth performance, immune function and antioxidative capacity in weaned piglets

ABSTRACT The study evaluated the effects of different doses of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (25(OH)D3) on growth performance, immune function and antioxidative capacity in piglets. In a 21-d trial, 35 weaned pigs were divided into five groups and diets were supplemented with 5.5 (control), 43.0, 80.5, 118.0 and 155.5 μg 25(OH)D3/kg, respectively. No treatment effects were observed for average daily gain, average daily feed intake and feed to gain ratio. Increasing dietary 25(OH)D3 levels increased serum 25(OH)D3 concentrations linearly (p < 0.01), decreased the frequency of CD3+CD4+ and CD3+CD8+ T cells (p < 0.01), and the serum level of complement component 3 (p < 0.05). Supplementation of 80.5 and 118.0 μg 25(OH)D3/kg enhanced the activity of serum glutathione peroxidase (p < 0.05) and addition of 43.0 μg 25(OH)D3/kg increased the malondialdehyde concentration (p < 0.05). Overall, feeding high-dose 25(OH)D3 to weaned pigs partly improved immune functions and the antioxidative capacity.