Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Physico-Chemical and Sensory Quality of Tigernut (Cyperus Esculentus) –Coconut (Cocos Nucifera) Milk Drink

Physico-chemical and sensory qualities of blends of milk drink from tigernut (Cyperus esculentus) and coconut (Cocos nucifera) were evaluated. Twelve blends (Sample A – K) were formulated using different ratios of tigernut to coconut milk as follows: 100:0, 90:10, 80:20, 70:30, 60:40, 50:50, 40:60, 30:70, 20:80, 10:90 and 0:100. The pH, total titratable acidity, specific gravity and viscosity ranged between 5.86-6.37, 0.10-0.15%, 0.99-1.08, and 0.25-0.69 centipoise (cP) respectively. Viscosity decreased with increase in coconut milk. The solid non-fat, protein, crude fibre and carbohydrate content decreased with increase in Coconut milk substitution and the values ranged from 8.45 - 13.70%, 2.39 - 3.93%, 0.46 – 0.87% and 4.10 - 8.65% respectively. The moisture content ranged between 83.80% for Sample A and 89.50% for Sample I. The fat (2.09 – 3.64%) and ash content (0.13 – 3.00%) varied significantly among blends. The colour, flavor, mouth feel, taste and overall acceptability had increase in likeness with increase in coconut milk. The result indicated that the tigernut-coconut drink is of good quality and the 10% Tignernut substitution based on the sensory properties was more acceptable. This forms a baseline data for further studies.
Global analysis of gene expression dynamics identifies factors required for accelerated mRNA degradation

Cellular responses to changing environments frequently involve rapid reprogramming of the transcriptome. Regulated changes in mRNA degradation rates can accelerate reprogramming by clearing or stabilizing extant transcripts. Here, we measured mRNA stability using 4-thiouracil labeling in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae during a nitrogen upshift and found that 78 mRNAs are subject to destabilization. These transcripts include Nitrogen Catabolite Repression (NCR) and carbon metabolism mRNAs, suggesting that mRNA destabilization is a mechanism for targeted reprogramming. To explore the molecular basis of destabilization we implemented a SortSeq approach to screen using the pooled deletion collection library for trans factors that mediate rapid GAP1 mRNA repression. We combined low-input multiplexed Barcode sequencing with branched-DNA single-molecule mRNA FISH and Fluorescence-activated cell sorting (BFF) to identify that the Lsm1-7p/Pat1p complex and general mRNA decay machinery are important for GAP1 mRNA clearance. We also find that the decapping modulator SCD6, translation factor eIF4G2, and the 5’ UTR of GAP1 are important for this repression, suggesting that translational control may impact the post-transcriptional fate of mRNAs in response to environmental changes.
Identification of new avian Infectious Bronchitis virus variants in Iranian poultry flocks by High Resolution Melting curve analysis

Avian Infectious bronchitis (IB) is a common coronavirus infection of chickens and responsible for performance reduction and increasing mortality due to subsequent respiratory, renal and/or reproductive disorders. Classification of causative agent is necessary to plan successful vaccination strategies to prevent the infection due to poor inter-strains cross-reaction. To identify dominant circulating strains in Iran, a Real-time PCR combined with 3’ Un-Translated Region (3’ UTR) High Resolution Melting (HRM) analysis designed as a rapid and reliable method for IB Virus (IBV) detection and differentiation. Samples collected from 20-suspected flocks and after PCR products, HRM curves of samples as well as 6 commercial IB live vaccines with 2 standard strains, were analyzed as references. IBV genomes detected in 11 samples while according to HRM analysis and calculating Genotype Confidence Percentage (GCP), 6 positive specimens identified as 793/B field strains and the left 5 found as new IBV variant strains. Then obtained PCR products sent for nucleotide sequencing to determine genotype relativity. All five infectious agents, related to QX-like type and indicating circulation of new variants in Iran as a probable cause of vaccination failures and consequent economical losses.
Effect of Injection Site on Carbenicillin Pharmacokinetics in the Carpet Python, Morelia spilota

ABSTRACT The premise that drugs should not be injected into the caudal body of reptiles because they will be carried by the renal portal system to the kidneys and rapidly excreted was tested by comparing the pharmacokinetics of carbenicillin in carpet pythons, Morelia spilota, injected anteriorly with those injected posteriorly. Seven carpet pythons were treated with 200 mg/kg carbenicillin administered intramuscularly. Three were injected anteriorly and four posteriorly. Serial blood samples were withdrawn over a period of 120 hr. Carbenicillin blood levels were measured over each time period and results used to calculate maximum carbenicillin plasma level, time of maximum plasma level, terminal half-life, area under the curve, volume of distribution and total body clearance. The study was repeated five months later with those snakes that were previously injected anteriorly now being injected posteriorly and vice versa. Blood was taken and the same parameters calculated. Following all calculations no sig.
A Comparative Study of the Composition of Discs and of Proteoglycans from Different Spinal Levels of Sheep

Summary Compositional analyses were undertaken on lumbar (L2L3 - L5L6) and lumbosacral (L6S1) intervertebral disc tissues from young adult (2-year-old) merino wethers. The proteoglycan level in the nucleus pulposus of the lumbosacral disc was significantly lower than that found in the nucleus pulposus of lumbar levels (p<0.05). The annulus fibrosus was richer in collagen compared to the nucleus pulposus in all discs examined, and the lumbosacral disc consistently had both higher annulus fibrosus and nucleus pulposus collagen levels than lumbar discs (p<0.05). Aggregation of the high buoyant density proteoglycans, with hyaluronic acid, was generally higher in annulus fibrosus proteogly-cans than nucleus pulposus proteogly-cans irrespective of the spinal level examined. Examination of the inter-vertebral disc proteoglycans, by composite agarose polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, demonstrated three proteoglycan subpopulations and that the nucleus pulposus generally contained a greater proportion of higher mobility more polydisperse proteoglycan species than the annulus fibrosus. Ovine intervertebral disc collagen and proteoglycan composition varies with spinal level. Lumbosacral intervertebral discs contain greater levels of non-aggregatable more polydisperse proteoglycan species than lumbar discs, which may reflect their relative proximities to the pelvis and the variable levels of stress experienced by the respective tissues.
Identification and antibiogram profiles of bacteria associated with diseased oreochromis niloticus in Lake Kariba, Zambia

The recent intensified aquaculture projects in Lake Kariba have brought about disease outbreaks in cultured Oreochromis niloticus. This has brought on an awakening to the scientific knowledge gap surrounding these events. This study aimed at identifying bacteria associated with diseased O.niloticus and establishes theirantibacterial resistance patterns. The diseased fish in cages were identified based on behavioural and physical abnormalities including swimming in circles, swimming in lateral or dorsal recumbency, ocular opacity, hyperpigmentation, fin erosions and ulcerations. A total of 25 sick and 4 apparently healthy fish were sampled. Samples from the liver, kidney, spleen, brain, abdomen, blood and ulcers were inoculated on 10% sheep blood agar and nutrient agar. Isolates were then classified by genera using standard culture and biochemical tests. The bacterial isolates were also tested for resistance to commonly used antibacterial compounds in aquaculture using the disc diffusion technique. The eyes, spleen and liver were found to have the highest number of pathologies, in descending order. A total of 15 bacteria genera were identified. Lactococcus/Streptococcus genera had the highest prevalence with 46.2% followed by Aeromonas at 11.5%. Multiple drug resistance was observed in all isolates, with two isolates each of Aeromonas and Lactococcus/Streptococcus exhibiting complete resistance to majority antibiotics tested. The results suggest that an increased biomass in diseased cages may be the main risk factor for the disease, with the immune and regulatory organs being first to succumb. The lake environment has been shown to be a mixing vessel of various microorganisms that are already showing multiple antibacterial resistance. Risk factors surrounding the presence of these bacteria genera must be accessedand a more comprehensive,comparative study in antibiotic resistanceon farmed,in contrast to wild species in the Lake Kariba.
Métodos para avaliação in vitro da atividade antimicrobiana de plantas medicinais : a necessidade da padronização.

The increasing incidence of resistant pathogens to current drugs encourages the search for new antimicrobial agents. In this context, medicinal plants are an important source of new drugs. There are several methods for evaluating the antibacterial and antifungal activity of extracts, fractions, essential oils and isolated substances from the plant. The most known include diffusion, dilution and bioautography methods. The purpose of this paper is to present the most used methods currently, along with their advantages, disadvantages and interfering factors. Among the works available in the SciELO database, covering the last ten years, only 4,4% of research on medicinal plants are related to the antimicrobial activity. The most used method is microdilution (57,9%), the best recommended due to high sensitivity, the minimum quantity of reagents and sample and the possibility of a more significant number of replicates. In articles that used this method, differences were observed in factors that may affect the results. Thereby, there is the need for standardization of methods used by researchers to facilitate obtaining comparable and reproducible results. To achieve comparable and reproducible results, there is the need to standardize the methods used by the researchers. It is recommended to use as reference the standards established by CLSI for culture medium and inoculum concentration in the tests. It also recommended the inclusion of negative control of the solubilization of the samples with quantification of microbial growth to avoid interference with the results.
Character association and path coefficient analysis of bitter gourd (Momordica charantia L.) genotypes

Estimates of correlation and path coefficients can help the mutual relationship between various plant characters and determines component characters on which selection can be based or improvement in yield. It might be easier to increase yield by increasing the smallest yield components on an otherwise good cultivar. Thirty one genotypes of bitter gourd were evaluated for yield contributing characters to observe their associations and direct and indirect effect on fruit yield. The study revealed that in most of cases the genotypic correlation coefficient was higher than the respective phenotypic correlation coefficients. This indicated that the suppressive effect of the environment modified the phenotypic expression of these characters by reducing phenotypic correlation values. Fruit yield per plant (kg) showed significant positive association with average fruit weight (g) at genotypic and phenotypic level. Path analysis revealed that average fruit weight (g) and number of fruits per plant had the greatest direct effect on yield both at phenotypic and genotypic level suggesting their importance while imposing selection for correlation of yield in bitter gourd.
Combining Ability And Heterosis For Some Quantitative Traits In Experimental Maize Hybrids

In rabi season 2012, six diversed maize inbred lines were crossed in all possible combinations without reciprocals by using a half diallel mating design to obtain 15 single cross. Inbred parents and their F1 single crosses with a check were evaluated in rabi season 2013 to evaluate the role of general and specific combining ability and heterosis for some quantitative traits. Significant general combining ability variances was observed only for cob height and specific combining ability variances were observed for plant height, cob height, cob length, cob girth, number of kernels per cob, cob weight and hundred grain weight. The GCA/ SCA ratio was less than unity for all studied traits except shelling percentage; this means that these traits are pre-dominantly controlled by non-additive gene action. Based on GCA estimates, it could be concluded that the best combiners were ML01, ML05 and ML29 inbred lines for most of the studied traits. This result indicated that these inbred lines could be considered as good combiners for improving these traits. Significant positive SCA effects were found for all studied traits except number of kernels per row and shelling percentage. Based on SCA effects, it could be concluded that the crosses ML01×ML02, ML02×ML05, ML02×ML29 and ML05×ML15 could be exploited by the maize breeders to increase maize yield. Three F1 hybrids such as ML02×ML15, ML02×ML29 and ML05×ML15 proved to be the outstanding hybrids to immediate further steps for commercial cultivation. In a conclusive decision the F1 hybrid, ML02×ML29 was the best combination as evaluated through combining ability and standard heterosis.
MALDI-MS investigation of skin and its response to irritants and sensitisers.

There is increasing interest in in-vitro methodology for testing chemical toxicity, one of the drivers for this is European legislation; specifically Directive 76/768 EEC, which prohibits animal testing in the cosmetic industry. In skin toxicological testing, an alternative methodology to in-vivo irritancy experiments already available uses a synthetic skin model and involves measurement of cell viability and release of cytokine interleukin (IL)-1a. There is currently no fully validated in-vitro test for sensitization, although there are a number that are in development. Some of these include the human cell line activation test (h-CLAT) (Sakaguchi et al., 2010), the direct peptide reactivity assay (DPRA) (Gerberick et al., 2009) and the myeloid U937 skin sensitization test (MUSST) (Ade et al., 2006). This study utilises ex-vivo human skin as an initial platform for method development. Areas of analysis have included the lipidomic and proteomic responses of ex-vivo human skin to sensitizers and irritants.Matrix assisted laser desorption ionisation-ion mobility separation-mass spectrometry (MALDI-IMS-MS) was used to identify peptides and lipids in-situ. Ion mobility separation allowed for discrimination between isobaric species due to the selection of specific precursor ions and cleaner MS/MS spectra. Many of the peptides identified belonged to serum albumin, keratin and collagen protein families, which are known to be abundant within human skin. Lipids identified included: sphingomyelin, glycerophospholipids, ceramide species anddi/triglycerides.In skin studies performed in other research groups, sphingomyelin and ceramide species were found to change expression in response to initiation of inflammation, thus making them of biological significance when investigating lipidomic responses to chemical sensitizers and irritants. Tryptic peptide MALDI-MS images have shown differences in human skin, as a result of chemical exposure. MALDI-MS images at 150pm and 30pm resolution have provided information on the localisation of detected species. Changes in expression of species in treated and untreated samples, as well as between different layers of human skin have also been visualised via multivariate statistical analyses. These analyses of ex-vivo human skin have demonstrated that MALDI-IMS-MS is a technique which can be used to detect changes in protein/peptide and lipid profiles in response to sensitisers and irritants. The technique also allows for the localisation of species detected within the different layers of human skin.
Exploring the prophage biology of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium ST313

In the past 30 years, Salmonella bloodstream infections have become a significant health problem in sub-Saharan Africa and are responsible for the deaths of ~390,000 people each year. The disease is largely caused by a recently described sequence type of Salmonella Typhimurium: ST313. Comparative genomic analysis showed that the ST313 lineage is closely-related to the ancestral gastroenteritis-associated Typhimurium sequence type ST19, but carries a distinct prophage repertoire. I hypothesised that prophages contribute to the biology of this clinically-relevant ST. In this thesis I show that the African ST313 representative strain D23580 contains 5 full length prophages. Prophage BTP1 and BTP5 are undescribed, novel prophages specific to African ST313 strains, whilst Gifsy-2, ST64B and Gifsy-1 are well-characterised prophages found in other strains of S. Typhimurium. Of the five prophages, only BTP1 and BTP5 showed evidence for functional phage production, and mutations responsible for the inactivation of Gifsy-2, ST64B and Gifsy-1 were identified. The BTP1 prophage spontaneously induced at a prolific rate, estimated to result in the phage-mediated lysis of approximately 0.2% of the lysogenic cell population. A GFP reporter system was developed to visualise the spontaneous induction of the BTP1 prophage at the single-cell level. Though the BTP5 phage could not be studied using traditional plaque assay methodology, there was evidence that the BTP5 prophage was capable of forming viable BTP5 phage that could lysogenise naive hosts. I analysed the genomes of recently discovered ST313 isolates from the UK and show that ST313 in the UK represents a distinct population of antibiotic susceptible strains associated with gastrointestinal infection. Additionally, analysis of the UK-ST313 genomes indicated that the BTP1 and BTP5 prophages were acquired independently by the two African ST313 lineages, showing convergent evolution to acquire and conserve the BTP1 and BTP5 prophages. Finally I present evidence that the prophages, in particular BTP5, effect the global gene expression of ST313, and the ST313-td gene of BTP1 mediates lysogenic conversion by functioning as a superinfection immunity factor against infection by Salmonella phage P22. The implications of these findings for understanding the pathogen in terms of ecological niche, host range and invasiveness in humans is discussed.
Larval development and behavior of Rhionaeschna marchali Rambur (Anisoptera: Aeshnidae) under captivity conditions

Very little is known about the biology of larval odonates from the Neotropical region, and in particular there are no data on behavioral changes during ontogeny and growth ratios, though both are crucial to understanding the dynamics of Odonata communities. Here we study growth ratio, development patterns and behavior of Rhionaeschna marchali larvae. We characterized larval instars using morphometric variables and describe their general behavior. Larvae were obtained from eggs laid by two females in the laboratory. They were maintained in individual containers until their emergence or death. Larvae hatched between 26 and 30 days after laying, and total development time was 340.5 (±5.9) days, with 15 instars. Growth ratios between successive instars averaged 1.12 for head width, 1.25 for head length, 1.20 for antenna length, 1.76 for forewing–pad length, 1.74 for hind wing–pad length, 1.19 for metafemur length and 1.22 for total length. Rhionaeschna marchali larvae spent most time “resting” and “grooming”. As size increased, larvae became more active and time “resting” decreased. The behavior “upwards abdomen bend” showed a decreasing trend with size, while “body bend downwards” became more common with increasing size. The high altitude (2600 m) of the region acts as a limiting factor for growth, and therefore this species completes one generation per year, similar to many temperate species.
Effects of natural forest dynamics on vascular plant, bryophyte, and lichen diversity in primeval Fagus sylvatica forests and comparison with production forests

Stand structure, mean tree age, deadwood amount and microclimate all change markedly in the course of natural forest dynamics. The last remaining primeval forests of the temperate forest biome are valuable study objects to investigate the effects of forest dynamics and management on forest structure and function as well as phytodiversity, which is not sufficiently understood. Three pairs of Fagus sylvatica primeval and production forests in eastern Slovakia were selected for studying the effects of natural forest development stages on vascular plant, bryophyte, and lichen species richness and composition. We further compared the diversity patterns in the initial, optimal and terminal stages of forest development with those of nearby production forests. The plot‐level species richness of epiphytic bryophytes and lichens increased from the initial to the terminal stage, but only lichens exhibited a significantly higher cumulative species richness (γ diversity) in the later (optimal and terminal) stages. No increase in species richness from the initial to the terminal stage was found for deadwood‐inhabiting epiphytes and the ground‐layer vascular plants. Canonical correspondence analyses identified characteristic bryophyte and lichen species for the different development stages, while the bulk of vascular ground layer species occurred across all stages with no stage preference. Stem diameter was an even more important driver of epiphyte diversity and species composition than the development stage. All stages of the primeval forests (including the initial) were more species‐rich in epiphytes and, when investigating larger plot numbers, also in vascular plants than the production forests. Synthesis. In primeval forests of European beech, plant species richness did not differ significantly between the consecutive forest development stages, while species composition did. This is attributable to the small‐scale mosaic structure of the forest, rapid gap closure by beech, and the continuity of deadwood across the stages, which reduces spatio‐temporal differences in microhabitat availability in the forest. Bryophytes and lichens are species‐richer, and vascular plants at least similarly rich, in the primeval as compared to the production forests, if the study area is sufficiently large.
Effect of pruning and plant growth retardants spray on flower quality parameters of Jasminum sambac (L.)

An experiment on “Flower quality in Jasminum sambac (L.) as influenced by pruning and plant growth retardant spray” was carried out at the Department of Floriculture and Landscaping, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore to find out the ideal pruning time, growth retardants and also its concentration to improve the flower quality parameters of Jasminum sambac (L.) during off-season flowering. The flower quality parameters viz., total length of flower bud (2.64 and 2.85 cm), length of flower bud without corolla tube (1.37 and 1.47 cm), corolla tube length (1.27 and 1.38 cm) and diameter of flower bud (0.87 and 1.00 cm) were influenced significantly in plants pruned during last week of September along with foliar spray of MC @ 150 ppm. There is no interaction effect between pruning and growth retardant spray for these parameters. The biochemical parameters viz., chlorophyll index (48.42, 52.49 and 59.77 SPAD value), total phenol content (1.77, 2.11 and 2.48 mg g-1) and soluble protein (13.49, 14.55 and 16.95 mg g-1) were significantly influenced by pruning during last week of September along with foliar spray of MC @ 150 ppm. The interaction effect was also significantly influenced in plants pruned during last week of September along with foliar spray of MC @ 150 ppm against the flowering parameters.