Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
STAT-1α and IFN-γ as Modulators of TNF-α Signaling in Macrophages: Regulation and Functional Implications of the TNF Receptor 1:STAT-1α Complex1

TNF-α and IFN-γ cooperate in the activation of macrophages. TNF-α-dependent activation of NF-κB is stronger in the presence of IFN-γ. STAT-1α associates with TNFR1 in TNF-α-treated cells, and this association attenuates TNF-α-mediated NF-κB activation. We hypothesized that nuclear localization of STAT-1α due to IFN-γ signaling would preclude it from being recruited to the TNFR1 and therefore enhance TNF-α-induced NF-κB activation. In the RAW264.7 macrophage cell line, TNF-α treatment indeed recruits STAT-1α to the TNFR1, and this association is abrogated when cells are exposed to IFN-γ. TNF-α treatment induces a more robust activation of NF-κB in STAT-1α-deficient cells, and restoration of STAT-1α inhibits TNF-α-dependent NF-κB activation. Our results suggest that a receptor-proximal level of cross-talk exists between these two cytokine pathways: IFN-γ limits STAT-1α availability to the TNFR1 by depleting STAT-1α from the cytoplasm, thus allowing for optimal NF-κB activation upon TNF-α ligation.
Study on Vertical and Lateral Leaching of Nitrate from a Wheat Field in China

Vertical and lateral leaching of nitrate from a wheat field was studied through one season in a field in China by applying increasing amount of N fertilizers (e.g. 90, 180, 270 and 360 kg ha-1). Results showed that nitrate leaching was the dominating way of nitrate loss from wheat land during the first two month after sowing seeds. After irrigation, the nitrate concentration in the leachate of 30 cm soil layer was higher than that of 60 cm, while the concentration of nitrate leaching at the five N treatments through the two depth soil layer came into the same level with the value of 13.48 mg l-1 to 27.91 mg l-1 for 30 cm soil layer and 16.48 mg l-1 to 28.65 mg l-1 for 60 cm soil layer, respectively. As the plot scale (20 m2) concerned, the amount of nitrate loss varied from 101.13 mg l-1 to 209.35 mg l-1 for 30 cm and from 123.63 mg l-1 to 214.89 mg l-1 for 60 cm. Peak nitrate concentration was 3.47 mg l-1 during the third rainfall event. However, nitrate losing by lateral leaching in subsoil was less than that by vertical leaching. At the position that has 0.5 m distances from one side of each plot, the highest nitrate concentrations in lateral leachate among the plots was 10.75 mg l-1 and only has 13.43 mg l-1 the highest lose amount value. By comparison of nitrate concentration in two position of 0.5 m and 1.5 m from one side of each plot, it was not easy for nitrate that transported by lateral leaching from wheat land, in that, nitrate horizontal movement potential in shallow subsoil could be negative. Based on these results, it was suggested that the nitrate vertical leaching had a greater pollution potential to water body than the lateral leaching during the wheat growth period in the fields.
Un ensayo sobre regionalización biogeográfica

Palabras clave: biogeografia, jerarquia, provincia, region, naturalidad, homologia biogeografi ca, endemismo. Abstract. A biogeographical regionalization is a hierarchical system to categorize geographic areas in terms of their biotas. This hierarchy involves the levels of realm, region, dominion, province and district, with province being the basic level. Many regionalizations have been proposed to categorize biogeographic areas. Some of them are based on the total similarity of their biota; however, the identifi cation of patterns of geographic homology (through the search for successively nested areas of endemism) is a basic requirement for proposing schemes of natural regionalizations. In this paper, I describe the main concepts and methods to identify biogeographical patterns used to build natural biogeographical regionalizations.
IBISCA-Panama, a large-scale study of arthropod beta-diversity and vertical stratification in a lowland rainforest: rationale, study sites and field protocols

IBISCA-Panama ("Investigating the biodiversity of Soil and Canopy Arthropods", Panama module) represents a large-scale research initiative to quantify the spatial distribution of arthropod biodiversity in a Neotropical forest, using a combination of (1) international collaboration, (2) a set of common research questions, and (3) an integrated experimental design. Here, we present the rationale of the programme, describe the study sites, and outline field protocols. In the San Lorenzo Protected Area of Panama, twelve 20 x 20 m sites, all less than 2 km apart, were surveyed for plants and arthropods, from the ground to the upper canopy. Access to the canopy and its fauna was facilitated by fogging, single-rope techniques and a variety of devices such as a canopy crane, the "SolVin-Bretzel" canopy raft, the canopy bubble and Ikos. IBISCA-Panama represented the first attempt to combine these complementary techniques of canopy access in a large-scale investigation. Such techniques provided spatial replication during initial field work performed in September-October 2003. Temporal replication across seasons consisted of subsequent field work of varying intensity during dry, early wet and late wet periods in 2004. Arthropods were surveyed using 14 different protocols targeting the soil, litter, understorey, mid-canopy and upper canopy habitats. These protocols included: WINKLER sifting; BERLESE-TULLGREN; hand-collecting of galls and social insects; fogging; beating; wood-rearing; baits; and various types of traps such as pitfall, small and large flight-interception, sticky, light, and Malaise traps. Currently, analyses of arthropod distribution in this forest concentrate on a set of 63 focal taxa representing different phylogenies and life-histories. IBISCA-Panama may be considered as a model for large-scale research programmes targeting invertebrate biodiversity. Its collaborative modus operandi can be applied to answer a variety of pressing ecological questions related to forest biodiversity, as evidenced by the recent development of further IbiSCA programmes in other parts of the world. (Resume d'auteur)
Identification and Characterization of Novel Drug Resistance Loci in Plasmodium falciparum

Malaria has plagued mankind for millennia. Antimalarial drug use over the last century has generated highly drug-resistant parasites, which amplify the burden of this disease and pose a serious obstacle to control efforts. This dissertation is motivated by the simple fact that malaria parasites have become resistant to nearly every antimalarial drug that has ever been used, yet the precise genetic mechanisms of parasite drug resistance remain largely unknown. Our work pairs genomics-age technologies with molecular biology, genetics and molecular epidemiology in order to identify and characterize novel genes that contribute to drug resistance in P. falciparum. In the Introduction, we highlight relevant opportunities and challenges in trying to identify and understand the genetic basis of malaria drug resistance as it emerges to currently used therapies. In Chapter One, we demonstrate how genome-wide association studies (GWAS) can be applied to P. falciparum in order to identify novel drug resistance loci. Functional followup revealed that overexpression of the novel candidate gene PF10_0355 made parasites more resistant to the drugs halofantrine, lumefantrine and mefloquine. These findings show that PF10_0355 plays a role in parasite drug response, as well as provides validation of our GWAS approach. In Chapter Two, we further characterize PF10_0355 and show that modulation of the
Afyon'da paketlenmeden satılan piliç karkaslarında termofilik campylobacter türlerinin saptanması ve C. jejuni izolatlarının PCR ile doğrulanması

Detection of Thermophilic Campylobacter spp. in Unpackaged BroilerCarcasses in Retail Markets of Afyon and Confirmation of C. jejuni IsolatesUsing PCRThis study was undertaken to determine the thermophilic Campylobacterspecies with classic culture technique in chicken carcasses, saled in Afyon, andconfirme with PCR, as determined C. jejuni isolates. ISO (ISO, 10272) method usedfor isolation and identification of samples. It was determined that 141 samples(67.1%) of a total of 210 carcasses were contamined with Campylobacter spp.A total of 419 thermophilic Campylobacter spp. isolates were obtained from141 broiler carcasses with culture technique. These 419 thermophilic Campylobacterisolates were determined as 57 % of C. jejuni (239), 40.50 % of C. coli (170) and2.30 % of C. lari (10). As C. jejuni and other thermophilic species were identified from 101carcasses within 141 as isolated thermophilic Campylobacter spp. , it was identifiedonly other thermophilic Campylobacter spp. (C. coli, C. lari) from 40 carcasses.PCR techinique was applied to 101 isolates selected from among the 239 C.jejuni isolates determined from 101 carcasses with culture technique. According tothis, 62 isolates (61.38 %) were confirmed as C. jejuni, 39 (38.61 %) didn? tconfirmed among the 101 isolates.As a conclusion, it was determined the large amount of broiler carcasses (67.1%) as saled unpackaking in Afyon, were contaminated with thermophilicCampylobacter specieses and potansiyel public health risk was arised. It wassuggested that applied food safety programs and HACCP system in the stage ofbreeding, slaughtering and retail places from started to farm were important forprevented public health and non occured of potential health risk of food infectionscaused by Campylobacter specieses.
Tolerance of staphylococcus aureus to ß-lactam antibiotics

textabstractPenicillin has a bactericidal action on actively dividing bacteria. If protein synthesis of bacteria exposed to penicillin is inhibited, for example by the addition of chloramphenicol or the omission of an essential amino acid from the medium, the bactericidal action of penicillin changes into bacteriostasis (6). Rogers (10) and Shockman (11) found with S. aureus and Streptococcus faecalis respectively that inhibition of protein synthesis by chloramphenicol was accompanied by a sharp decline in the autolytic activity of the cells. These results supported their hypothesis that bacteria are lysed under the influence of penicillin because the equilibrium between peptidoglycan synthesis and autolysis shifts in the direction of the latter process as a result of the action of the s-lactam antibiotic. The correctness of the hypothesis of Rogers and Shockman was supported by the work of Tomasz et al. (13), who isolated an autolysin-deficient mutant of Streptococcus pneumoniae which was not killed after exposure to penicillin. Tomasz et al. (13) called the absence of the bactericidal action of penicillin, tolerance for this agent. Since then, tolerant strains belonging to various species of bacteria have been isolated from clinical material. In previous studies (3,4) we showed that S. aureus strains can be divided into tolerant and nontolerant strains on the basis of their survival in vitro in the presence of high concentrations of methicillin ( >:- 64 .ug/ml). According to the observations of Rogers (10), the mechanism of the reduced lysis in tolerant S. aureus strains exposed to high concentrations of methicillin could be based on inhibition of protein synthesis. The existence of such a link has already been demonstrated by Mychajlonka et al. (8) for tolerant Streptococcus mutans strains. In the present study we investigated peptidoglycan, RNA and protein synthesis in two tolerant and two nontolerant S. aureus strains after exposure to a low and a high concentration of methicillin.
Transmission and evolution of "Mycobacterium tuberculosis" studied by whole genome sequencing and single nucleotide polymorphism-typing

Each year close to 9 million cases of tuberculosis (TB) are caused by bacteria of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC). The genetic and phenotypic diversity of the pathogen has been underestimated for a long time. Recently, large-scale whole genome sequencing (WGS) became available and has revealed thousands of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). In contrast to other molecular markers, these SNPs can be used to construct robust phylogenies and to characterize the population structure of MTBC. WGS also shows great promise as the new method of choice for molecular epidemiology of TB. WGS has a higher discriminatory power than classical genotyping methods, and additionally allows for the studying of MTBC micro-evolution during chains of TB transmission. However, for both research and clinical applications, the costs of WGS are still high and the analytical challenges numerous. Routine application of WGS to large collections of MTBC isolates is not yet feasible. Particularly in settings where the burden of TB is highest, the capacities to generate and analyse WGS data are limited. Hence, innovative approaches are needed to identify the subset of MTBC isolates for which WGS brings the highest level of added value. Due to the strictly clonal nature of the MTBC, we can often use single mutations (i.e. SNPs) to identify isolates of a specific genotype. In this thesis, we first aimed at developing new, cost-effective strategies for MTBC strain classification based on SNP-typing. We then aimed at applying a combination of SNP-screening and targeted WGS to study the transmission and micro-evolution of MTBC in a local TB outbreak during 20 years. Third, we aimed at using a similar combination of SNP-typing and WGS to infer the global evolutionary scenario of one particular lineage of MTBC, Lineage 4, during historical times.
Conservação de sementes de espécies dos gêneros Nectandra, Ocotea e Persea (Lauraceae)

Studies on seed storage behaviour allows the establishment of suitable conditions to maintain seed viability, in order to support programs of ex situ conservation and seedling production. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the seed storage behavior of five species of Lauraceae which grow in south of Minas Gerais State, Brazil. Seeds of Nectandra grandiflora, Nectandra lanceolata, Nectandra oppositifolia, Ocotea corymbosa and Ocotea pulchella were assessed regarding germination and moisture content before and after artificial drying. The seeds show recalcitrant behaviour due to their desiccation sensitivity.
Fungi infecting cultivated moss can also cause diseases in crop plants

Bryophytes (mosses) are non-vascular plants inhabited by a large number of fungal species, but whether mosses can act as reservoirs of fungal pathogens of crop plants has gained little attention. A few moss species including the Sunagoke moss (Racomitrium japonicum; family Grimmiaceae) are found to have modern economical applications in uses such as greening of urban environments. In a previous study, we identified fungi causing symptoms of varying severity in the commercially grown Sunagoke moss. The aim of this study was to test whether the same fungal isolates are pathogenic to vascular plants. An isolate of Fusarium avenaceum lethal to the Sunagoke moss caused root and crown rot in barley (Hordeum vulgare) and reduced germination of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) and carrot (Daucus carota) grown in the infested soil. An isolate of Cladosporium oxysporum causing mild symptoms in moss reduced growth and caused reddening and premature death of carrot seedlings. On the other hand, isolates of Alternaria alternata and Fusarium oxysporum lethal to the Sunagoke moss caused no detectable symptoms in any tested vascular plant, suggesting specialisation of these isolates to moss. Chloroplast repositioning was observed in the neighbouring cells towards the initially infected cell following infection with F. avenaceum and A. alternata in Physcomitrella patens (family Funariaceae), a model moss used to study microscopic symptoms. Infection of P. patens with a non-virulent Apiospora montagnei isolate induced formation of papillae in the moss cells, indicating activation of host defence as described in vascular plants. Results suggest that mosses and vascular plants may be linked by a common microbial interface constituted by pathogenic fungi. The findings have epidemiological implications that have gained little previous attention.
Global Mapping of Ecosystem Disservices: The Unspoken Reality that Nature Sometimes Kills us

Increasingly, we view nature through a utilitarian lens that leads us to attempt to measure and manage the services that species, habitats and ecosystems provide. Surprisingly, we have tended to consider only the positive values of ecosystems, their ecosystem services. In addition to providing our food and water, Nature also kills us, primarily through disease. If we are to effectively manage the terrestrial Earth, we need to also manage species, habitats and ecosystems so as to minimize such ‘ecosystem disservices’. I consider what we know about the spatial pattern of one disservice, pathogen prevalence and how changes in habitat influence it. I consider the effects of habitat changes on pathogen prevalence and, consequently, ecosystem disservices. In the end, we need to weigh both the costs and the benefits of particular ecosystems, habitats and species – to consider the bad with the good. Doing so requires that we learn much more about the biota than we currently know.
Stability of tallgrass prairie during a 19‐year increase in growing season precipitation

Summary 1. Precipitation is considered to be a key driver of ecosystem processes in mesic grasslands, and climate models predict changes in the amount and intensity of precipitation under future global change scenarios. Although most experimental rainfall studies decrease precipitation, seasonal rainfall is predicted to increase in the northern Great Plains under climate change. 2. We analysed changes in community composition and structure of upland and lowland native tallgrass prairie in central Kansas, USA, subjected to 19 years of irrigation designed to eliminate moisture stress throughout the growing season. 3. Irrigation had limited effects on species richness in both upland and lowland prairie. Total cover increased significantly and consistently with irrigation in drier uplands and in more mesic lowlands. Abundance of rhizomatous, tall, perennial species as well as C3 forbs increased with irrigation. 4. The strongest response to irrigation came within the dominant functional type, C4 perennial grasses. Panicum virgatum became the dominant species in irrigated lowlands, whereas Andropogon gerardii remained the dominant species in irrigated uplands and in control plots. Overall, irrigation had less effect on community composition and structure than other known drivers of grassland structure and function. 5. In comparison with other studies, our results demonstrate that water addition has less of an impact than fire, grazing or nitrogen addition on composition and dynamics in this mesic grassland. The strongest response to long-term irrigation occurred within the dominant functional type: tall, perennial, rhizomatous, C4 grasses. Thus, functional redundancy will buffer this ecosystem from potential increases in rainfall due to climate change. Finally, our results highlight the limited utility of qualitative functional traits to predict how this mesic grassland will respond to climate change.
Effects of Cypermethrin Exposed to Host on the Developmental Biology of Pimpla turionellae (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae)

ABSTRACT We investigated egg-to-adult developmental time, adult longevity, adult body size, and wing and antenna length of Pimpla turionellae (L.) (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae) reared on Galleria mellonella L. (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) last instars that were fed various doses of cypermethrin in diet. The impacts of cypermethrin on larval behavior, pupal weight, and last instar-to-adult developmental time of host species also were examined. Percentage of pupation at doses >20 ppm and pupal weight of G. mellonella decreased, whereas last instar-to-adult developmental time prolonged gradually with increasing doses of cypermethrin. Cypermethrin treatment increased the intensity of abnormal behavior and the number of host larvae on diet at 1, 2, 4, 6, and 24 h posttreatments at doses >50 ppm. The differences in egg to adult developmental time, adult body size, wing, and antenna length of P. turionellae were not significant. However, cypermethrin exposure significantly affected the adult longevity of female wasps. Mean longevity of cypermethrin-treated females increased significantly at all doses of insecticide tested with respect to controls except for 100 ppm. This work suggests that parasitoid species as well as its host are susceptible to cypermethrin in terms of remarkable adverse effects on biological characteristics possibly due to metabolic, hormonal, and nutritional deficiencies.
The Effect of Dietary Selenium and Vitamin E on Biochemical Parameters and Survival of Young Among White-Tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus)

Thirty-two adult female white-tailed deer were assigned to four complete pelleted diets (+/- 45 ppm vitamin E; +/- 0.2 ppm selenium). Selenium and vitamin E concentration in the unsupplemented diet was 0.04 and 5.5 ppm, respectively. Biochemical parameters of the erythrocyte (RBC) glutathione peroxidase system and survival of off-spring to weaning were followed for 2 years. At the end of the second year, 12 male young (3 per treatment) and the remaining adults were killed, and liver and muscle parameters of the glutathione system determined. Plasma selenium (Se) and vitamin E (E) were significantly lower among unsupplemented adults within 6 months of treatment and remained essentially constant from 10 months on. In vitro hemolysis and mortality of young were affected by dietary E but not by Se. Tissue glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) was correlated with tissue Se in all tissues measured (RBC, liver and muscle). Tissue Se, in turn, was related to dietary Se. Thus, dietary Se deficiency (Se = 0.04 ppm) resulted in biochemical deficiency (depressed GSH-Px). This was not reflected in gross lesions among the adults, nor in increased mortality among young.
Characterization of Male Reproductive Organs in Durian : Anther Dehiscence and Pollen Longevity

We characterized the pollen germination and longevity in durian (Durio zibethinus Murr.) under in vitro conditions and observed the morphological changes during anther dehiscence. Approximately 10 anthers aggregate on a filament; these merge with others at the base to form five phalanges in the flower. Anther dehiscence occurred at 19:00, at the same time as floral anthesis. Observation with a low-vacuum scanning electron microscope revealed pollen grains clinging to the anther even after the anther had dehisced. In vitro pollen germination was highest at a sucrose concentration of 10%. In the test of pollen germination on Brewbaker and Kwack (BK) medium, the germination rate was highest (59.1%). The germination rate was decreased (5.0% to 46.0%) when any of the minerals of B, Ca, Mg, and K was removed. The pollen germination rate at anthesis was 40.4 to 50.6% in four cultivars (‘Mon Thong’, ‘Chanee’, ‘Kradum Thong’, and ‘Phaung Manee’), and the rate was maintained at more than 40% until 24 h after anthesis and then decreased gradually. When pollen was stored under desiccating conditions with silica gel, pollen following 120-h storage could germinate after rehydration. Rehydration for 12 h achieved the best results, with 47.0% germination occurring after this rehydration period.