Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Mating strategy and isolation between the two forms, macrogyna and microgyna, of Myrmica ruginodis (Hym. Formicidae)

Abstract. 1 It is shown that the size distribution and degree of overlap between individual queens of the two forms of Myrmica ruginodis, microgyna and macrogyna, is exactly the same in southern England as was originally described from Scotland. 2 Distinguishing colonies of the two forms is not as easy as distinguishing between individuals, both types can be polygynous and approximately 25% of colonies contain a mixture of queens. 3 Males of the two forms can be distinguished solely on the basis of size and, in general, macrogyna colonies produce larger males, workers and gynes than microgyna colonies. There is little correlation between the sizes of males, workers and gynes in colonies within the macrogyna and microgyna groups. 4 If the two forms are separate species and mixing is a parasitic association (as suggested elsewhere), then there should be breeding isolation between the forms. This is tested by examining data from nine mating‐swarms. 5 All the swarms contain a significant proportion of the microgyna form. There is no evidence of assortative mating, although larger males are more likely to get a mate than smaller ones. This behaviour, combined with the possibility that microgynes mate near to the nest, might prevent complete mixing during mating. 6 The status of the forms is discussed. Besides the possibility of a‘pre‐parasitic’relationship it is suggested that the forms might represent a polymorphism, present in all populations, the balance between them being the result of selection determined by local environmental factors.
Anal and Oral Intake of Water by Crustacea

In the majority of small and transparent Crustacea water can be seen to be pumped into the alimentary canal through the anus by rhythmic antiperistaltic swallowing movements of the rectum. This anal drinking is continuous in small species and in the young of larger species, but occurs in intermittent bursts in the adults of larger species. In prawns the intermittent anal intake of water acts as an enema, for it occurs only at the time of defaecation, which is preceded by one or two dozen rapid rectal gulps of water. The continuous anal intake of water by smaller Crustacea acts likewise as an enema, being continuous because of the more frequent defaecations, due to the higher metabolism and therefore greater food requirements of small animals. The water acts as an enema as in man, stretching the gut-wall muscles until they contract. In prawns the rectal swallowing of water initiates and maintains intestinal antiperistalsis, which moves the swallowed water forwards in the intestine towards the thorax. A further function of the anal intake of water is thus to stretch the gut-wall muscles until they contract antiperistaltically. This is comparable with the initiation and maintenance of the heart beat in molluscs by hydrostatic pressure. In the past it has been thought that the rectal swallowing of water by Cladocera is respiratory. This opinion was apparently strengthened by experiments showing that a deficiency of dissolved oxygen increases the rate of rectal swallowing movements. These experiments have not been confirmed, and other reasons are given which make a respiratory function unlikely. Two further possible functions of the intake of water through the anus, namely the collection of salts necessary for osmoregulation, and a hydrostatic maintenance of body turgor, are discussed, tested and rejected. Water can be seen to be swallowed more or less continuously through the mouth, by rhythmic peristaltic movements of the gullet, in the majority of small and transparent Crustacea. A function of this oral drinking appears to be the same as that of anal drinking, namely to stretch the muscles of the gut wall. In Daphnia the antiperistaltic contractions of the midgut wall, which mix food and digestive enzymes, seem to be maintained by the hydrostatic pressure of water pumped into the gut by both gullet and rectum, defaecation occurring when this pressure rises to a certain value. A second function of the rhythmic oral drinking by Daphnia and perhaps other Crustacea is to force the food in the midgut back towards the rectum. The gullet and rectum of Crustacea have dilator muscles inserted into the exoskeleton. These muscles suck in water through mouth and anus, and by stretching the circular muscles they enable the latter to pump the water into the gut. Much more water is taken into the gut of Crustacea than makes its exit at defaecation. Evidence is given that this water passes through the gut wall into the blood and out of the body by way of the excretory organs.
Different postharvest dehydration rates affect quality characteristics and volatile compounds of Malvasia, Trebbiano and Sangiovese grapes for wine production

Experiments were carried out using an innovative technology for dehydration based on the passage of air through a tunnel. It was possible to study the postharvest behaviour, at different rates of dehydration, of Malvasia, Trebbiano and Sangiovese grapes. Malvasia and Trebbiano grapes were picked with 17.5% SSC (soluble solids content), while Sangiovese grapes were harvested fully ripe with 26% SSC. All the grapes, in different experiments, were placed in the tunnel with an air speed of 1–1.5 m s−1, 42% RH (relative humidity) and a temperature of 21 °C. After 18 days the weight loss was 50 and 34% respectively in tunnel-treated Malvasia and Trebbiano grapes, while it was only 13–14% in control grapes (outside the tunnel: RH around 65% and temperature about 20 °C without ventilation). The SSC rose to 35 and 27% respectively in tunnel-treated Malvasia and Trebbiano grapes compared with 23 and 21% respectively in control grapes. In the case of Sangiovese grapes, after 7 days (the end of treatment) the weight loss was 20.5% in tunnel-treated grapes and 10.5% in control grapes. The SSC rose to 32% and the acidity increased from 4.8 to 5.8 g l−1 in tunnel-treated grapes compared with 29% and 5 g l−1 respectively in control grapes. Total phenols and anthocyanins almost doubled in tunnel-treated Sangiovese berries. Volatile compound analysis revealed a higher ethanol concentration in all tunnel-treated grapes but a lower concentration of ethyl acetate and acetic acid. Copyright © 2004 Society of Chemical Industry
Effects of Planting Dates and Varieties on Growth and Yield of Broccoli During Rainy Season

Broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. italica) is one of the most popular vegetable crops in many countries of the world as its nutritional importance. It has the most exacting climatic and cultural requirements, which limit its commercial production to a few favored locations. In Thailand, broccoli has been expending in recent years and amount of increasing production. It is best planted in the North where the weather is cool or in the Northeast during winter season. The South has tropical climates and raining all year round, but farmers can produce broccoli during early summer by using the heat-tolerant varieties. Although the broccoli is highly priced and still wanted by consumers in the rainy season, the farmers might not choose to grow as the problems with low productivity. Thus, the selection of suitable planting dates and varieties is crucial for successful cultivation during rainy season in the South. The experiment was performed to evaluate the effects of planting dates and broccoli varieties on their growth and yield responses during rainy season. Four broccoli varieties: ‘Top Green’, ‘Green Queen’, ‘Yok Kheo’ and ‘Special’ were plated for six planting dates: July, August, September, October, November and December at Prince of Songkla University, Thailand, between July, 2011 and January, 2012. Split-plot in a randomized complete block design was used in this experiment with four replications. This study showed that four broccoli varieties had highly seedling survival rates of 70.31-99.22% when planting in July-December except ‘Special’ of 54.68% when planting in August. ‘Yok Kheo’ had plant diameter of 67.54-75.24 cm when planting in July and December, not significantly different from ‘Top Green’ planting in July, August and November of 69.15-71.24 cm and ‘Green Queen’ in July and September of 68.69-68.88 cm. The highest total yield was obtained by ‘Yok Kheo’ when planting in July and December of 7.73-7.87 t.ha-1. It is anew interesting hybrid variety producing higher yields than ‘Top Green’ which is popular variety planted in southern Thailand. Therefore, ‘Yok Kheo’ is the suitable variety for production during rainy season in southern Thailand because it provides high growths and yields, especially in July and December.
Nutritional Value of Guajillo as a Component of Male White-Tailed Deer Diets

Abstract Guajillo (Acacia berlandieri Benth.) is considered a medium- to high-quality forage for both wild and domestic ruminants. However, studies have shown that guajillo contains phenolic amines and alkaloids, and condensed tannins, which may cause toxicosis and reduced fertility, intake, and nutrient digestibility. To examine the nutritional value of guajillo to white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus Zimmermann) more thoroughly, we present a comparison of mixed diets of 0%, 25%, 50%, and 75% guajillo in male white-tailed deer. Four in vivo metabolism trials were completed with each diet. Dry matter intake and change in body mass did not differ among diets. Gross and digestible energy intakes did not differ among diets, whereas metabolizable energy intake decreased with increased dietary guajillo concentration. Nitrogen balance and digestibility decreased with increased dietary guajillo concentration. Urinary glucuronic acid excretion increased linearly with increased dietary guajillo concentration. Nitrogen requirements for body growth and antler development were met by diets containing < 60% guajillo, whereas energy requirements for maintenance and antler growth were met with diets containing < 20% guajillo. Therefore, concentrations of dietary guajillo < 20% will support the maintenance of white-tailed deer. The primary function of guajillo may be to facilitate maintenance of adult deer, which have fewer obligatory productive processes than young deer, during periods of drought.
Genetics of susceptibility to facial eczema in Friesian and Jersey cattle

Abstract A total of 528 calves from 3 calf crops, sired by 34 Friesian and 28 Jersey bulls, were challenged with sporidesmin, the toxin causing facial eczema (FE), in order to determine the genetic variation in susceptibility to FE. The challenge was either by grazing toxic pasture or by oral dosing, and the response was monitored by blood sampling to measure the elevations of serum gamma‐glutamyltransferase (GGT), glutamate dehydro‐genase (GDH), and other possible indicators (enzymes or metabolites: bilirubin, aspartate transaminase, ferroxidase, bile acids, and 5'nucleo‐tidase). The last calf crop was sired, in part, by bulls phenotypically selected from the second calf crop using GGT records. Data were analysed using the repeated records option of a restricted maximum likelihood programme. A sire model was used, with sires and maternal grandsires included to determine pedigree. The uni‐variate heritability estimates for logeGGT were 0.29 ± 0.15 in Friesians and 0.77 ± 0.13 in Jerseys, and for logeGDH t.
First record of the myxomycete genus Colloderma in Central America

The myxomycete genus Colloderma and the species Colloderma oculatum are reported for the first time in Central America. The species was recorded in the high elevations of the Talamanca Mountain Range in Costa Rica during 2014 in a location where the structure of myxomycete assemblages has been historically associated with temperate rather than tropical communities. Comments on the geographical distribution and ecology of the species are included. This record has increased the number of Costa Rican myxomycetes to 213 according to the most updated checklist.
Fine-Scale Population Structure of Rainbow Trout in the Spokane River Drainage in Relation to Hatchery Stocking and Barriers

Abstract We used 13 microsatellite loci to examine population structure in rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss collected from 20 tributaries and 3 main stems in the greater Spokane River drainage. Populations displayed some excess homozygosity and linkage disequilibrium, which was more pronounced in upper tributary collections and probably the result of small effective population sizes or structuring within tributaries. In general, population structure followed geographic structure; collections from creeks within sub-drainages were the most closely related, and collections from different tributaries were genetically distinct. Comparisons with cutthroat trout O. clarkii indicated little to no introgression. Comparisons with steelhead (anadromous rainbow trout), coastal rainbow trout O. mykiss irideus, and inland rainbow trout from hatcheries suggested introgression by hatchery fish into some wild populations. Introgression was suspected in populations from stocked tributaries and tributaries that lacked barr.
Brains on Beats

We developed task-optimized deep neural networks (DNNs) that achieved state-of-the-art performance in different evaluation scenarios for automatic music tagging. These DNNs were subsequently used to probe the neural representations of music. Representational similarity analysis revealed the existence of a representational gradient across the superior temporal gyrus (STG). Anterior STG was shown to be more sensitive to low-level stimulus features encoded in shallow DNN layers whereas posterior STG was shown to be more sensitive to high-level stimulus features encoded in deep DNN layers.
Studying species composition of microbial communities with the use of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry: microbial community of kaolin

The composition of microbial communities has been investigated avoiding conventional cultural techniques by chromatography-mass spectrometric analysis of chemical signature markers. Concentrations of fatty acids, hydroxy acids, aldehydes, sterols, and methanolysate of the biomass lipid fractions were used to determine the population size of the individual community members. The calculation is based on the information stored in a data bank about the chemical composition of the probable members of the community. An algorithm for rapid assessment of the genus or species composition from the total biomass GC-MS data is developed for a quantitative analysis of this community, treating them as a combination of chemical profiles of individual members. The microbial community in kaolin slurry was analyzed; it includes the following genera (in 105 cells/g): Nitrobacter (4), Bacillus (0.9), Pseudomonas (0.3), Burkholderia (0.1), Nocardia (0.4), Caulobacter (3), Deinococcus (4), Arthrobacter (0.7), Clostridium (4), Bacteroides (0.08), Desulfovibrio (1), Desulfobacter (0.3). Analyses of the profiles of unassigned components revealed the presence of two as yet unknown organisms, one being an iron-reducing bacterium designated strain FeRed, the other a microscopic fungus.
Phyllode Structure, Taxonomy and Distribution in Some Australian Acacias

The phyllode anatomy of 144 species of Acacia belonging to sections Juliflorae, Plurinerves, Lycopodiifoliae and Phyllodineae was examined in respect of variation in structure of the outer mesophyll. Using the ratio of central mesophyll thickness to outer rnesophyll thickness as an index of xeromorphy, a relationship was established between higher xerornorphy and an arid environment and lower xeromorphy and a more humid environment. Both features are related to infrageneric groupings, the Juliflorae and the Plurinerves being more xeromorphic in structure than the Phyllodineae.
Aspects of the growth, recruitment, mortality and reproduction of the scallop Amusium pleuronectes (Linné) in the Lingayen Gulf, Philippines

Abstract Growth, recruitment, mortality and reproduction were investigated in the Asian moon scallop, Amusium pleuronectes (Linne) from the Lingayen Gulf, Philippines. Allometric relationships were defined by comparing different shell dimensions, as well as body weight proportions including total weight with shell, visceral weight, adductor muscle weight and gonad weight. Use of the von Bertalanffy-based ELEFAN I program yielded estimates of growth parameters equivalent to H ∞ = 106Dimshell height and K = 0.92 per year, with approximate longevity for the species of about 2 years. Recruitment, as derived using the ELEFAN II program, occurred throughout the year, but showed a pattern consisting of one major and one minor pulse separated by an 8- and 4-months interval. Fishing mortality (F = 5.3) was higher than natural mortality (M = 1.9). Spawning occurred throughout the year, with one major peak in February and one minor peak between]uly and September, thereby providing some biological basis to the recrui.
Protective role of L-ascorbic acid against cypermethrin-induced oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation in Wistar rats

Cypermethrin is a synthetic pyrethroid insecticide used for pest control in agriculture and as an acaricide in man and animals. This study was undertaken with the objective to investigate the propensity of cypermethrin to induce oxidative stress in rats following repetitive dermal exposure and its possible attenuation by L-ascorbic acid. Results obtained showed that cypermethrin significantly (p < 0.05) increased malonaldehyde levels, activity of catalase in rat erythrocytes and plasma protein levels. Whereas, activities of glutathione (GSH), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) were significantly (p < 0.05) reduced in the cypermethrin exposed rats as compared to the control. Supplementation of L-ascorbic acid in cypermethrin-exposed rats decreased lipid peroxidation of erythrocytes, total plasma protein and catalase activity significantly (p < 0.05) compared to non-cypermethrin-exposed group. However, L-ascorbic acid did not alleviate the negative effects of cypermethrin on the activities of SOD and GSH. This study revealed that the presence of L-ascorbic acid diminishes the adverse effects of cypermethrin on some oxidative stress parameters.
Behavioral evidence for cone-based ultraviolet vision in divergent bat species and implications for its evolution

We investigated the reactions of four bat species from four different lineages to UV light: Hipposideros armiger (Hodgson, 1835) and Scotophilus kuhlii Leach, 1821, which use constant frequency (CF) or frequency modulation (FM) echolocation, respectively; and Rousettus leschenaultii (Desmarest, 1820) and Cynopterus sphinx (Vahl, 1797), cave and tree-roosting Old World fruit bats, respectively. Following acclimation and training involving aversive stimuli when exposed to UV light, individuals of S. kuhlii and C. sphinx exposed to such stimuli displayed conditioned reflexes such as body crouching, wing retracting, horizontal crawling, flying and/or vocalization, whereas individuals of H. armiger and R. leschenaultii, in most cue-testing sessions, remained still on receiving the stimuli. Our behavioral study provides direct evidence for the diversity of cone-based UV vision in the order Chiroptera and further supports our earlier postulate that, due to possible sensory tradeoffs and roosting ecology, defects in the short wavelength opsin genes have resulted in loss of UV vision in CF bats, but not in FM bats. In addition, Old World fruit bats roosting in caves have lost UV vision, but those roosting in trees have not. Bats are thus the third mammalian taxon to retain ancestral cone-based UV sensitivity in some species.
Chemical Elemental Content/Calcium Ratios in Tissues of Human Hyperplastic Prostate Gland

Aims: The aim of this exploratory study was to evaluate whether significant deficiencies in the prostatic tissue levels of Ca and Mg, as androgen dependent chemical elements, and Br, K, Mn, and Na, as androgen independent chemical elements, exist in patients with BPH. Methodology: It was prospectively evaluated prostatic tissue levels of these chemical elements in 27 patients with BPH and 37 healthy male inhabitants. Measurements were performed using instrumental neutron activation analysis with high resolution spectrometry of short-lived radionuclides. Beside the measurements of Br, Ca, K, Mg, Mn, and Na mass fraction the calculations of Br/Ca, K/Ca, Mg/Ca, Mn/Ca, and Na/Ca mass fraction ratios were also performed. Results: There was no found significant difference in levels of Br, Ca, Mg, Mn, and Na contents between BPH and intact prostate. In the hyperplastic prostates, we have only observed a significant increase in value of K mass fraction ( p <0.0014) and K/Ca mass fraction ratio ( p <0.042). potential role of age-related chemical elements not etiology It was hypothesized that not only a high level of some chemical but also great disturbance in the relationships of chemical elements in
LACK OF EFFECT OF DDT ON FECUNDITY AND DISPERSION OF THE EUROPEAN RED MITE, PANONYCHUS ULMI (KOCH) (ACARINA: TETRANYCHIDAE), IN PEACH ORCHARDS

DDT did not increase the fecundity of females of the European red mite, Panonychus ulmi (Koch), exposed to it either before or after they had matured. The mites were repelled by DDT on leaves in the laboratory but their distribution on twigs in the orchard was not affected.
Toxicological Impact of Herbicides on Cyanobacteria

The use of herbicides in modern agriculture to eradicate weeds has led to serious environmental contamination resulting in a loss of growth and development of many beneficial micro-organisms. Low cost, easy availability, lax in regulatory mechanism have contributed to the continuous use of the herbicides in tropical and subtropical regions. The removal of these herbicides from soil and aquatic systems is a difficult task and as a result herbicides persist in these ecosystems for a long period of time. Cyanobacteria are a diverse group of gram-negative photosynthetic prokaryotes. Their life processes require only water, carbon dioxide, inorganic substances and light and these organisms contribute greatly to terrestrial as well as aquatic ecosystems through their ability to increase soil fertility by adding nitrogen, enhancing water holding capacity, releasing vitamins and plant stimulating hormones, adding extra cellular polysaccharides and by solubilizing phosphates. The present paper review responses of cyanobacteria to herbicides and impact of herbicides on photosynthetic pigments, photosynthesis and nitrogen assimilation by cyanobacteria. The tolerance mechanisms and herbicide biodegradation potential of cyanobacteria are also reviewed. Review Article Singh et al.; ARRB, 9(4): 1-39, 2016; Article no.ARRB. 22614 2