Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Glutathione S-transferase gene polymorphism, cigarette smoking and DNA damage

Several factors such as smoking habits, diet, occupational, and environmental exposure to chemical carcinogens influence the overall level of DNA damage. In 69 healthy adult volunteers’ polymorphisms of glutathione S-transferase (GST), an enzyme which participates in the metabolism of a broad range of carcinogens and endogenous compounds were determined. The level of DNA damage was assessed by comet assay and classified according to GSTT1/M1 genotype and smoking habits. GSTM1 null genotype was recognized in 48% of studied subjects and GSTT1 null genotype in only two cases (3%). In subjects carrying GSTT1/M1 alleles a significantly lower degree of DNA damage, determined as % DNA in the comet's tail, than in null individuals was noted. However, the results obtained did not indicate that in studied subjects an elevated endogenous level of DNA damage may be significantly related to smoking habits.
Perennial grass response to 10-year cattle grazing in the Mendoza plain, mid-west Argentina

Abstract Basal area (cm2 m−2) and density (plants m−2) for total, undesirable, intermediate and preferred perennial grasses were monitored in 1990 and in 2000 in response to two grazing strategies (yearlong continuous and rotational) and four grazing intensities (ungrazed; light, moderate and heavy grazing). Grazing intensity had a significant effect on basal area of perennial grasses. Basal area and density for all the grass groups tended to be higher in 2000 than in 1990 for all grazing intensities but the grazed treatments did not show significant differences in basal area and density increases from 1990 to 2000 for all the mentioned grass groups. Several hypotheses could be advanced to explain the limited grass response to treatments. The stocking rates applied may have been too light to cause significant effects. Grasses appear to be resistant under the grazing intensities used and the annual drought occurring during 7 of the 9 last years of the study. Given the history of heavy grazing in this environment, it is possible that what has been observed is natural temporal variation in basal area and plant density.
A newly discovered sperm transport system in the female of Lygaeidae bugs.

In the female reproductive system of the relatively large hemipteran, the western conifer seed bug Leptoglossus occidentalis (Heidemann), a cuticle-lined tube extends medially along the surface of the vagina from the proximal end of the spermathecal complex anteriorly to the base of the common oviduct. This medial tube houses the proximal end of the spermathecal duct, thereby enabling the transport of material from the spermatheca at the distal end of the spermathecal complex, past the vagina (or bursa copulatrix) and directly to the common oviduct. The proximal portion of the spermathecal complex also contains an insemination duct that is separate from the spermathecal duct. The insemination duct allows the male intromittent organ to extend from the vagina to the spermatheca without navigating through the spermathecal duct. The reproductive systems of two previously studied Hemiptera, the milkweed bug Oncopeltus fasciatus (Dallas) and the box elder bug Leptocoris trivittatus (Say), possess a similar cuticle-lined medial tube housing the spermathecal duct. This new information provides a clearer understanding of sperm transport in the female reproductive system of Lygaeidae bugs, and helps to clarify the path of the male organ during copulation, as well as the movement of sperm during egg laying.
Testing and training lifeguard visual search

Lifeguards play a crucial role in drowning prevention. However, current U.K. lifeguard qualifications are limited in training and assessing visual surveillance skills, and little is known about how lifeguards successfully detect drowning swimmers. To improve our understanding of lifeguard visual search skill, and explore the potential for improving this skill through training, this thesis had the following aims: (a) to identify whether visual skills for drowning detection improve with lifeguard experience, (b) to understand why such differences occur, and (c) design and valid a visual training intervention to improve drowning detection on the basis of these results. The first two studies investigated drowning-detection skills of participants with differing levels of lifeguard experience in a dynamic search task with simulated drownings. Lifeguards were found to detect drownings faster and more often than non-lifeguards. In three follow-up studies these results were replicated with more naturalistic stimuli. Video footage from an American wave pool was extracted, which showed genuine instances of swimmer distress. Results again demonstrated lifeguard superiority in detecting the drowning targets. Eye tracking measures, recorded on both the simulated and naturalistic clips, failed to reveal any differences between lifeguards and non-lifeguards, suggesting that superior drowning detection for lifeguards did not result from better scanning strategies per se. Following this, two cognitive mechanisms that may underlie drowning-detection skill were investigated. Lifeguard and non-lifeguard performance on Multiple Object Avoidance (MOA) and Functional Field of View (FFOV) tests was assessed. Although lifeguards had better MOA task performance compared to non-lifeguards, only the lifeguards’ accuracy at detecting the central target in the FFOV task predicted performance on a subsequent drowning detection task. It was concluded that superior drowning detection was a result of better classification recognition of drowning swimmers (which was the central task in the FFOV test). Based on these findings the final experiment explored the effectiveness of an intense classification training task to improve drowning detection. An intervention was designed that required participants to differentiate between videos of isolated drowning and non-drowning swimmers. Non-lifeguards trained in this intervention showed greater improvement on a subsequent drowning-detection task compared to untrained control participants, who completed an active-control task. The results of this thesis suggest that drowning-detection skill can be reliably assessed, and that foveal processing of drowning characteristics is key to lifeguards' superior performance. Isolating and training this key sub-skill improves drowning-detection performance and offers a method for training future lifeguards.
Blood cell profiles of steer progeny from parents selected for and against residual feed intake

This study examined whether a single generation of divergent selection for residual feed intake was accompanied by differences in red and white blood cell parameters that could assist in the early identification of animals likely to perform well in a test for residual feed intake. Two cohorts of steer progeny born in 1996 (n = 74) and 1998 (n = 120) of parents selected for low residual feed intake (high efficiency) and high residual feed intake (low efficiency) were used. The steers grazed on pasture before feedlot entry and subsequent feed intake test. Blood samples were collected from the 1998 born cattle at pasture the day before feedlot induction, and for all cattle, at the start, middle and end of their feed intake test. Statistically significant regressions between sire estimated breeding value for residual feed intake and white blood cell count, haemoglobin level, haematocrit and percentage monocytes measured on their progeny over a feed intake test were evidence for a genetic association between these blood parameters and residual feed intake. Of the cell parameters measured in the blood samples collected from cattle at pasture before feedlot entry, only white blood cell count (r = –0.20, P 0.05) were correlated with sire estimated breeding value for residual feed intake. Cell parameters measured in the blood samples collected from cattle at the start of the feed intake test were not correlated (P>0.05) with steer residual feed intake in the feedlot or with sire estimated breeding value for residual feed intake. It is doubtful that blood parameters in a blood sample taken at pasture before feedlot entry or at the start of a feed intake test can be used to predict residual feed intake of individual steers or sire progeny groups in feed intake tests.
Morphogenesis and evolution in the Amphiroideae (Rhodophyta, corallinaceae)

Using light- and scanning electron microscopy of Lithothrix aspergillum and Amphiroa spp. , homologies in vegetative anatomy and morphogenesis in the two genera are resolved. The genicula of these genera are functionally comparable non-homologous structures. The long-celled medullary tiers are developmentally equivalent in Lithothrix and Amphiroa as are the short-celled tiers, the latter remaining meristematic to produce cortical sheaths. In Amphiroa the boundaries of the cortical sheaths are manifested at the macroscopic level by transverse markings across thalli in terminal intergenicula, and at the microscopic level by overlapping or otherwise disrupted cortical cells. Thus an intergeniculum of Amphiroa is equivalent to many fused genicula and intergenicula of Lithothrix. The evolutionary implications of this homology are discussed.
Bangiopsis subsimplex (Mont.) F. Schmitz (Stylonematales, Rhodophyta) on the northeastern coast of Brazil

We report here the first occurrence of Bangiopsis subsimplex (Mont.) F.Schmitz (Rhodophyta) for the northeastern coast of Brazil. The specimen was isolated from a laboratory sample of mollusk shells collected in Baia de Todos os Santos (Bimbarras Island, Brazil) and was held in sterilized seawater (33 UPS) enriched with 25% Provasoli solution. In the American Atlantic region, B. subsimplex presents a northern distribution limit at French Guiana and a southern limit at Sao Paulo. We conclude that the distribution of B. subsimplex has expanded, since the species was once known only to the southeastern Brazil, specifically to Sao Paulo.
3β-Hydroxy-Δ5-steroid dehydrogenase activity in the rapidly growing ovarian follicles of the domestic fowl (Gallus domesticus)

The total and specific activity of 3 beta-hydroxy-delta 5-steroid dehydrogenase, isocitrate dehydrogenase (NADP+) and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase were measured in ovarian follicles from the domestic fowl. The enzymes were assayed in the five largest yolk-filled follicles which were sampled twice during the ovulatory cycle, at 1 h and 16 h before an expected ovulation. The total and specific activity of granulosa enzymes increased throughout the hierarchy and reached a maximum in the largest follicle. The relative increase in 3 beta-hydroxy-delta 5-steroid dehydrogenase activity was greater than that of the other two enzymes examined. The total thecal 3 beta-hydroxy-delta 5-steroid dehydrogenase activity reached a maximum in the third and fourth largest follicles. Thereafter its activity decreased up to the time of ovulation. The activity of 3 beta-hydroxy-delta 5-steroid dehydrogenase and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase in follicles collected 1 h before and ovulation were significantly less than the activity in corresponding follicles collected 16 h before an ovulation.
Ecosystem variability in west Greenland waters

A review of the climate conditions off West Greenland during the past 50 years shows large variability in the atmospheric, oceanographic and sea-ice variables, as well as in fish stocks. A positive relationship is found between water temperature and the recruitment of cod and redfish, whereas the recruitment of shrimp and halibut is negatively related to temperature. Observed shifts in the hydrographic conditions during the second half of the 1990s indicate that some changes in the environment may be expected in the coming years. Relationships between the past variations in fish resources, hydrographic conditions, and the large-scale climatic conditions, as expressed by the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), strongly support the incorporation of environmental variability into prediction models for fish recruitment and therefore into the assessment of the fish resources.
Feeding Trials with Hatchery-Produced Gulf of Mexico Sturgeon Larvae

Abstract Survival and growth in larval Gulf of Mexico sturgeon Acipenser oxyrinchus desotoi fed live and formulated diets were evaluated. Live foods consisted of brine shrimp Artemia sp. and California blackworms Lumbriculus variegatus. Formulated diets consisted of commercially produced pellets and two experimentally formulated sturgeon starter diets (SS). Feeds were first offered at 5 d posthatch, 2 d before initiation of exogenous feeding. Significant differences (P 95%) and specific growth rate (12%; SGR, logarithmic growth per unit time). In contrast, commercially formulated feeds were poorly accepted at the onset of feeding, and their use resulted in nearly complete mortality (>99%) by 3 weeks. First-feeding larvae, however, displayed preference for an experimentally formulated sturgeon .
Habitat does not influence breeding performance in a long‐term Barn Owl Tyto alba study

Capsule This study examines the relationship between habitat variables and various aspects of breeding and foraging performance for 257 Barn Owl breeding attempts involving both released and wild birds, at 86 different nest‐sites over a 14‐year period. Aims The study aimed to: (1) provide evidence for or against the importance of foraging habitat in Barn Owl breeding performance; (2) enable identification of areas which can, and those which cannot, be expected to sustain Barn Owl populations; (3) inform the compilation of any future guidelines such that Barn Owl release schemes are more likely to succeed; and (4) allow the revision of untested concerns in terms of the likely survival or otherwise of Barn Owls in a given area. Methods Three data sources are used to assess the proportions of various habitat types and lengths of linear features in the vicinity of each nest: (1) The Centre for Ecology and Hydrology Land Cover Map; (2) Ordnance Survey Strategi dataset; and (3) Agricultural Census data. These are linked to various aspects of breeding performance. Results Despite the size of the dataset, the number of significant correlations between habitat type and aspects of Barn Owl breeding success was similar to that expected by chance. Sites with more unimproved grassland within 1 km of the nest did not differ from those with less, except by a significant advancement of first‐egg date. Conclusion The paucity of significant results may be evidence that Barn Owls are in fact rather catholic and adaptable in their habitat requirements, and not as dependent upon large areas of Field Vole (or other) habitat as has often been stated.
Phenetic variability of stipe morphology in relation to season, exposure, and depth in the non-digitate complex of Laminaria Lamour. (Phaeophyta, Laminariales) in Nova Scotia

Abstract In the non-digitate complex of Laminaria in Nova Scotia two reported species, L. agardhii Kjell. and L. longicruris de la Pyl. are difficult to distinguish using the diagnostic criteria of stipe length and stipe hollow occurrence. A study was made of these traits in relation to season, exposure, and depth. A marked seasonal variability in stipe morphology was found. When only mature plants were examined there was found to be a definite tendency for stipe length and hollow occurrence to increase with decreasing exposure. The differentiation of populations in relation to exposure was clinal with overlap in the variation patterns. When stipe morphology was examined in relation to depth, significant differentiation was found only in a population sampled in a sheltered locality. In exposed localities, no such differentiation occurred. In the sheltered site, the variation with depth was attributed to differing developmental class structures at various depths. The major taxonomic finding of the analyses.
Isolation and biological activities of two host-specific toxins from the tangerine pathotype of Alternaria alternata

Two host-specific toxins (HSTs), ACT-toxin Ib and Ic, were isolated from culture filtrates of Alternaria alternata affecting tangerines and mandarins. The biological characteristics of ACT-toxin Ib matched the criteria for HST. ACT-toxin Ib was detected by HPLC (high-performance liquid chromatography) analysis and was one of the major components in the ethyl acetate extracts of culture filtrates and spore-germinating fluids of the pathogen. ACT-toxin Ib induced veinal necrosis and a rapid increase in electrolyte loss from susceptible leaves oF Emperor mandarin, at 2×10 -8 M, and from susceptible Japanese pear cv. Nijisseiki (a potential host), at 1×10 -6 M, but did not affect resistant citrus and Japanese pear, at 2×10 -4 M [. ]
Composition of the Odorous Secretion of Tribolium Castaneum

The abdominal and thoracic odoriferous glands of adult flour beetles, Tribolium castaneum (Herbst), T. confusum J. du V. , and T. destructor Uyttenb. , contain a pungent, irritating liquid (Roth, 1943; Palm, 1946). Flour in which the beetles have built up a large population becomes pink in color due to contamination by this secretion (Chittenden, 1896; Payne, 1925; Chapman, 1926). This substance has been variously described as similar to cresols and phenols (Palm, 1946), aldehydes (Chapman, 1926), and quinones (Roth and Howland, 1941). Roth and Howland (1941) isolated the odorous material of T. confusum by passing dry air into a flask containing the beetles and then through a dry-ice trap in which the secretion collected as yellow-brown crystals. At room temperature the substance was a fairly volatile liquid with a pungent, quinone-like odor; it reduced KI starch paper readily.
Invasive alien freshwater snail species in the Kruger National Park, South Africa

An account is given of all invasive alien freshwater snail species samples found in the Kruger National Park currently on record in the National Freshwater Snail Collection (NFSC) database. This report mainly focuses on samples collected during surveys of selected water bodies in the Kruger National Park (KNP) during 1964, 1995, 2001 and 2006. The progress made by four alien invasive freshwater snail species, Lymnaea columella, Physa acuta, Aplexa marmorata and Tarebia granifera, in colonising water bodies since first being recorded in the KNP is addressed. The results clearly show that all four species are in the process of becoming more widespread than they were when first recorded. However, T. granifera is the only one of these species of which exceptionally dense populations were encountered in several water bodies. All indications are that this species could already have had a negative impact on the species diversity of molluscs in these water bodies, and it is recommended that the situation be closely monitored.
Phenotypic and genotypic differences between certain strains of Clostridium acetobutylicum

It has become evident that several of the strains of Clostridium acetobutylicum that have been employed in physiological studies of the acetone-butanol fermentation, are heterogeneous. Studies of the phenotypic and genotypic characteristics of several of these strains (involving inter alia both pyrolysis mass spectrometry and 16S rRNA sequence determinations) demonstrated that the type strain obtained from ATCC was not identical with that supplied by NCIMB, and that NCIMB 8052T is in fact Clostridium beijerinckii. We therefore suggest that the name Clostridium acetobutylicum should be restricted to those strains that are genetically closely related to ATCC 824T (which include strains DSM 792 and DSM 1731 but not strain P262).
Mortality of Northern Bluefin Tuna Thunnus thynnus Due to Trauma Caused by Collision During Growout Culture

Abstract. — Indoor and outdoor experiments were conducted to improve the rearing techniques for artificially hatched northern bluefin tuna Thunnus thynnus during growout culture. Collisions with the walls of tanks or nets caused mass mortality that occurs during growout. The period when collisions frequently occur and the types of injury caused by collision were examined in this study. Juveniles were reared in indoor tanks from 30 to 120 d after hatching, and in an open sea net cage from 42 to 150 d after hatching. Dead fish were collected and counted daily in both of the experiments. In the indoor experiment, the sampled fish were preserved in 10% formalin solution, and each of 10 specimens of about 30, 50, 70, 85, 100, 130, 160 and 225 mm in body length (BL) were examined using x-rays to detect injury of the bones. Juvenile and young adult bluefin tuna showed a reduction in numbers caused by collision with the tank or the net wall during the experiments. In the indoor tank, there were 1,200 fish on day 30 but only eight on day 120. The daily mortality increased from day 30 after hatching, when juveniles reached 50-mm BL and remained over 4%/d until day 60 when juveniles grew to 300-mm BL. The proportion of dead fish with injuries of bone, especially of the vertebral column and the parasphenoid, increased after fish reached 50-mm BL, and exceeded 60% in fish with BL 85 mm or greater. In the open sea net cage, there were 3,841 fish at the start of the experiment on day 42 and only 65 on day 150. In this experiment, the reduction was greatest from the start of the experiment until day 80, when fish grew to approximately 25 cm in total length. Significant bacterial, viral or parasitic diseases were not observed in these fish; the only findings were dislocations of the vertebral column and injuries to the upper and lower jaws. These results show that the loss of juvenile and young adult bluefin tuna was caused by collision with the tank or net wall that fatally damaged the bones of the vertebral columns and the parasphenoid.
Penalty method for portfolio selection with capital gains tax

Many finance problems can be formulated as a singular stochastic control problem, where the associated Hamilton‐Jacobi‐Bellman (HJB) equation takes the form of variational inequality, and its penalty approximation equation is linked to a regular control problem. The penalty method, combined with a finite difference scheme, has been widely used to numerically solve singular control problems, and its convergence analysis in literature relies on the uniqueness of solution to the original HJB equation problem. We consider a singular stochastic control problem arising from continuous‐time portfolio selection with capital gains tax, where the associated HJB equation problem admits infinitely many solutions. We show that the penalty method still works and converges to the value function, which is the minimal (viscosity) solution of the HJB equation problem. The key step is to prove that any admissible singular control can be approximated by a sequence of regular controls related to the corresponding penalized equation problem that admits a unique solution. Numerical results are presented to demonstrate the efficiency of the penalty method and to better understand optimal investment strategy in the presence of capital gains tax. Our approach sheds light on the robustness of the penalty method for general singular stochastic control problems.