Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Drought‐induced spikelet sterility is associated with an inefficient antioxidant defence in rice panicles

Water stress-induced spikelet sterility limits rice production under upland conditions. The causes of spikelet sterility under drought stress are poorly understood. In this study the role of antioxidant defence management in drought-induced spikelet sterility was investigated in two rice (Oryza sativa) genotypes differing in drought resistance. Drought-resistant N22 genotype showed less water stress-induced spikelet sterility when compared to the susceptible N118 genotype under upland conditions. The N22 panicles maintained higher RWC and turgor potential and lower H 2 O 2 levels across the developmental stages under water stress than that of N118 panicles. Drought-induced enhancement in superoxide dismutase (SOD, EC 1.15.1.1) activity coupled with higher ascorbate (AsA), glutathione (GSH) content and enhanced ascorbate peroxidase (APX, EC 1.11.1.11) and glutathione reductase (GR, EC 1.6.4.2) activities resulted in lower H 2 O 2 levels in N22 panicles. In contrast, insufficient enhancement in SOD, APX and GR activities resulted in relatively higher H 2 O 2 levels under water stress in N118 panicles. The N22 panicles exhibited a higher number of SOD and APX isozymes in comparison with N118 panicles that might provide better reactive oxygen species scavenging. Hence it is concluded that well-equipped antioxidant defence plays an important role in minimizing water stress-induced spikelet sterility in upland rice.
In-vitro antioxidant activity of the ethyl acetate extract of gum guggul (Commiphora mukul)

Free radicals are implicated for more than 80 diseases including Diabetes mellitus, arthritis, cancer, ageing etc. In treatment of theses diseases, antioxidant therapy has gained an utmost importance. Current research is now directed towards finding naturally occurring antioxidant of plant origin. In Indian system of medicine Commiphora mukul is an important medicinal plant its resinous part has been used in various ailments and as health tonic. To understand the mechanisms of pharmacological actions, the in vitro antioxidant activity of ethyl acetate extract of Commiphora mukul was investigated for reducing power activity and total antioxidant activity. The ethyl acetate extract C. mukul exhibited good reducing power activity at higher concentration, which was measured at 700 nm. Gallic acid was used as standard antioxidant. Total antioxidant activity was determined by thiocyanate method, which was measured at 500 nm. -tocopherol was used as standard, the standard, showed 76.38 % inhibition at 500 μg/ml concentration while C.mukul extract showed 51.16 % inhibition at the same concentration. In these testing, a significant correlation existed between concentrations of the extract and percentage inhibition of free radicals and reducing power. The antioxidant property may be related to the antioxidant vitamins, phenolic acids and micronutrients present in the extract. These results clearly indicate that Commiphora mukul is effective against free radical mediated diseases
Comparative phylogeography of salmonid fishes (Salmonidae) reveals late to post‐Pleistocene exchange between three now‐disjunct river basins in Siberia

Abstract. We use a comparative phylogeographical framework to evaluate the hypothesis of hydrological exchange during the Pleistocene among the now disjunct Lena, Amur, and Enisei basins in Siberia, and to provide evidence on the causal mechanism of their present day faunal dissimilarities. Approximately 600 bases of the mitochondrial control region were sequenced in five distinct lineages among three genera of salmonid fishes, Hucho, Brachymystax and Thymallus. All three basins were fixed for divergent (2–5.4%) lineages of Thymallus whereas a single shared haplotype was present in all three basins for Hucho taimen ( Pallas, 1773 ) and one shared haplotype between the Lena and Amur basins out of a total of five for blunt‐snouted and one out of five for sharp‐snouted Brachymystax lenok ( Pallas, 1773 ). For both blunt‐ and sharp‐snouted lenok the haplotypes found within each basin did not form clades, so no relationship between genotypes and geographical occurrence was found. Our data support relatively recent hydrological mixing of the major river drainage systems in eastern and far‐eastern Siberia, congruent with the hypothesis of large‐scale palaeo‐hydrological exchange stemming from glacial advance, retreat and melting during Pleistocene climate fluctuations. Furthermore, these results in conjunction with a comparison of overall faunal composition suggest that environmental differences rather than historical contingency may be responsible for the faunal dissimilarities of the Amur, Lena, and Enisei river basins.
Molecular Population Genetics of the Alcohol Hawaiian Drosophilid D. mimica

Sequence variation among 10 alleles of the alcohol dehydrogenase (Adh) gene of the Hawaiian drosophilid D. mimica was analyzed with reference to the evolutionary history of the Hawaiian subgroup as well as to levels and patterns of polymorphism of the Adh gene in continental drosophilid species. The Adh gene of D. mimica is less polymorphic than that of other drosophilid species, and no replacement substitutions were found. Statistical analyses of the Adh alleles suggested the action of balancing selection and revealed significant linkage disequilibrium among three of the variable sites. The effective population size was estimated to be only slightly smaller than that of continental species and, surprisingly, on the same order of magnitude as the actual size.
A note on purebred performance of Belgian Piétrain pigs

In an analysis of data from 211 litters in a Pietrain herd, litter size at birth and at weaning was lower than is generally found in indigenous breeds. Mortality in growing and breeding pigs was high with circulatory failure accounting for 23% and 95% of deaths respectively. Pietrains, fed ad libitum over the live-weight range 27 to 87 kg, grew more slowly by 130 g/day than contemporary Large Whites on the same feeding regime, had higher killing-out percentages (by 3 to 4 units) and larger eye muscles in cross-section (by 9·9 cm 2 ) but tended to have higher feed conversion ratios. There was no breed difference in backfat measurements but Pietrain carcasses were shorter by 83 mm and their muscle quality was markedly inferior to that of the Large Whites.
Gender and development: roles of rural women in livestock production in Pakistan.

Livestock contribute about 50% of the Agricultural GDP. In most of the rural area of the Pakistan women are actively involved in the livestock production activities. Present study was planed to investigate the role of rural women in the livestock production in Teh. Faisalabad. A multistage random sampling method was used to collect the data form 8 villages regarding the livestock production activities. Pre-testing was used to get relevant information and improve the interview schedule. Data from the 768 respondents was subjected to the analysis to obtain the frequencies; these frequencies were used for analysis of variance. Most of the families (70.6%) were intact with joint family system. Out of total 768 respondents, more number of wives (37 5%) participated in livestock production activities as compared to the husbands (17%).
Development of long-term larval indices for Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) on the northeast US continental shelf

Richardson, D. E. , Hare, J. A. , Overholtz, W. J., and Johnson, D. L. 2010. Development of long-term larval indices for Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) on the northeast US continental shelf. - ICES Journal of Marine Science, 67: 617-627.The incorporation of data from ichthyoplankton programmes into the stock assessment process has lagged far behind the use of data from comparable adult-monitoring programmes. This can in part be attributed to a mismatch between established analytical approaches to larval-index development and the inconsistencies in sampling for many long-term ichthyoplankton datasets. Along the northeast US continental shelf, ichthyoplankton surveys have been carried out by the Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NMFS/NOAA) multiple times annually since 1971, but the spatial and seasonal allocation of sampling has varied substantially. Here, we present a non-linear least-squares approach to larval-index development. We use the age structure and abundance of larvae on each survey to derive the larval index, along with parameters describing the survival of larvae and the seasonal cycle of hatching. Application to Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) revealed a large drop in the index around 1976, an increase in the index through the late 1980s, and another large drop in 2004. This index was correlated with the stock assessment estimate of Atlantic herring spawning-stock biomass from 1971 to 2003, but differed substantially during 2004. Our results demonstrate that our approach to larval-index development is flexible to the inconsistencies in sampling effort.
Evaluation of a mixture of carvacrol, cinnamaldehyde, and capsicum oleoresin for improving growth performance and metabolizable energy in broiler chicks fed corn and soybean meal

SUMMARY The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of a mixture of carvacrol, cinnamaldehyde, and capsicum oleoresin (XT, Pancosma S.A., Geneva, Switzerland) on the MEn of cornsoybean meal diets for broilers (experiment 1) and to confirm the energy effect in a growth performance trial (experiment 2). For experiment 1, 12 replicate groups of 5 chicks were assigned to each of the 4 treatments in a 2 × 2 factorial design. Factor 1 was diet type [corn-soybean meal or corn-soybean meal with 10% corn distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS)]. Factor 2 was XT (0 vs. 100 mg/kg of XT). Diets were fed from 1 to 22 d. For experiment 2, chicks were fed a corn-soybean meal diet (no DDGS) from 9 to 34 d of age. Two factors were again organized in a complete 2 × 2 factorial design. Factor 1 was dietary MEn content (3,000 vs. 2,950 kcal of MEn/kg), and factor 2 was XT (0 vs. 100 mg of XT/kg). For experiment 1, from d 1 to 8, XT significantly increased BW gain (P < 0.05). The XT also significantly increased MEn content at 22 d, with the increase being 68 kcal/kg for the corn-soybean meal diet with no DDGS. The 90% CI for the 68 kcal/kg value was 50 to 86 kcal/kg. The latter is the reason the value of 50 kcal/kg was selected as the energy difference between diets in experiment 2. The decrease in MEn from 3,000 to 2,950 kcal/kg significantly depressed BW gain (2.4%) and G:F (2.1%). Conversely, XT significantly increased BW gain (2.4%) and G:F (2.3%). We observed that a 100 mg/kg mixture of carvacrol, cinnamaldehyde, and capsicum oleoresin increased the dietary MEn of the corn-soybean meal diet. The MEn value of 50 kcal/kg for 100 mg of XT/kg corresponded to the lower limit of the 90% CI and was confirmed in a growth performance trial.
Growth rates of four Hawaiian deep slope fishes: a comparison of methods for estimating age and growth from otolith microincrement widths

Two methods were used to estimate the age and growth of four Hawaiian deep slope fishes. Otolith daily increment width estimates from radial sections of sagittal otoliths were integrated over the otolith radius to approximate age by (i) dividing interval length (micrometres) by mean increment width (micrometres per day) and summing this quotient for consecutive 500- µm radial intervals (S. Ralston and H.A. Williams. 1989. Fish. Bull. 87: 1-16) and (ii) fitting increment width (y) versus otolith radius (x) to a Gompertz rate curve and calculating the inverse integral of this curve (M.K. Smith and E. Kostlan. 1991. Fish. Bull. 89: 461-472). The methods also differ in the way the age-length key is generated. Ralston and Williams' method uses integrated age versus a regression-based estimate of fish length at 500- µm otolith radial intervals; Smith and Kostlan's method uses estimated age versus actual fish length. Neither method of integration produced significantly different age estimates; however, the use o.
Evidence for facilitated uptake of Hg(II) by Vibrio anguillarum and Escherichia coli under anaerobic and aerobic conditions

A mer‐lux bioreporter was used to study uptake of inorganic mercury, Hg(II), at trace concentrations by two facultatively anaerobic bacterial species, Vibrio anguillarum and Escherichia coli. Uptake of Hg(II) by these bacteria appeared to be facilitated, rather than by passive diffusion. Three lines of evidence support this conclusion. First, under anaerobic conditions Hg(II) uptake was greatly decreased compared with aerobic conditions, even though the chemical composition of the medium was identical except for the lack of oxygen (i.e., no reducing agents were used). Second, the uptake of Hg(II) under anaerobic conditions was not proportional to the abundance of lipophilic Hg species but was dependent on the total concentration of Hg in the samples. Third, at trace Hg(II) concentrations and under anaerobic conditions, Hg(II) uptake was enhanced by the addition of yeast extract and a variety of low molecular weight organic acids. In addition to demonstrating that Hg(II) uptake by these bacteria had the characteristics of facilitated transport, these lines of evidence also support the conclusion that processes under regulatory control of the cell affected Hg(II) uptake. If these findings apply to other bacteria as well, they mean that current models of Hg(II) uptake by microorganisms in aquatic systems, which are based solely on the role of lipophilic Hg species and passive diffusion, will need to be reconsidered.
Responses of ungulates to seasonal inundations in the Amazon floodplain

ABSTRACT Terrestrial ungulates use different strategies to cope with widespread annual flooding of the Amazon basin. Red brocket deer (Mazama americana) and collared peccary (Tayassu tajacu) retreat to floodplain islands and shift from a frugivorous to a woody browse diet. However, both white-lipped peccary (Tayassu pecari) and lowland tapir (Tapirus terrestris) diets are unaffected by inundations; in the case of white-lipped peccary because they migrate into and out of flooded areas and in the case of lowland tapir because of their semi-aquatic nature. These-strategies of white-lipped peccary and lowland tapir enable them to exploit the greater fruit production of flooded forests more frequently than brocket deer and collared peccary.
Effects of Seed Size on Growth and Yield of Maize in the Kenya Highlands

SUMMARY Maize was grown from three batches of seed, with mean 1000-grain weights of 225, 432 and 649 g. Initial plant size was larger when grown from large seed, but development rates were similar for all three sizes and relative growth rates were similar during the early stages. Relative differences in plant size became smaller as the crop matured. Crop growth rates during the linear phase of dry matter production were the same, and there were no significant yield differences. Comparisons of leaf and spikelet initiation, and individual leaf size are also reported.
Genealogical relations and lexical distances within the Tupian linguistic family

In this paper we present the first results of the application of computational methods, inspired by the ideas in McMahon & McMahon (2005), to a dataset collected from languages of every branch of the Tupian family (including all living non-Tupi-Guarani languages) in order to produce a classification of the family based on lexical distance. We used both a Swadesh list (with historically stabler terms) and a list of animal and plant names for results comparison. In addition, we also selected more (HiHi) and less (LoLo) stable terms from the Swadesh list to form sublists for indepedent treatment. We compared the resulting NeighborNet networks and neighbor-joining cladograms and drew conclusions about their significance for the current understanding of the classification of Tupian languages. One important result is the lack of support for the currently discussed idea of an Eastern-Western division within Tupi.
Survival of apple rootstocks to natural infections of fire blight.

Survival of replicated rootstock plantings of apple trees (Malus ×domestica) to fire blight (Erwinia amylovora) infection shows that a wide range of rootstock susceptibility exists. Trees on ‘Malling 26’ (M.26), ‘Malling 9’ (M.9), and ‘Mark’ consistently had significant losses. Of the dwarfing rootstocks widely available commercially, ‘Budagovsky 9’ (B.9) survived well with productive trees, but was not resistant to fire blight infection. The following experimental rootstocks had good survivability with many live productive trees in one or more trials: ‘Poland 2’ (P.2), ‘Vineland 1’ (V.1), ‘Malling 27 EMLA’ (M.27 EMLA), ‘Budagovsky 491’ (B.491), ‘Budagovsky 409’ (B.409), ‘Vineland 7’ (V.7), ‘Vineland 4’ (V.4), and ‘Oregon Rootstock 1’ (OAR1).
Quality Assessment of Some Tea Samples Commonly Sold in FCT, Abuja-Nigeria

Background: Tea is a name given to a lot of brews; they are categorized as green tea, black tea, white tea, oolong tea and pu-erh tea which are derived from Camellia sinensis plant and herbal tea. They are made from herbs, fruits, seeds or roots and usually steeped in hot water and widely consumed worldwide as laxative or food. Tea varieties include ginger, hibiscus, gingko biloba, rosehip, jasmine, mint, Echinacea, rooibos and chamomile. The colour, brightness, strength and flavor of tea infusion are determined by chemical constituents and the plant used. Objective: The study aimed to assess the presence of chemicals contents and microbial load to ascertain quality of the tea samples using standard methods. Methodology: This study was carried out on twenty (20) brands of commonly consumed tea samples randomly collected from major markets in Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Nigeria. The samples were processed and analyzed for phytochemicals, proximate, elements and microbial loads using Treas and Evans, AOAC, AAS and Agar dilution methods respectively. Results: The results showed the presence of alkaloids, tannin, saponin, flavonoids, and anthraquinones, reducing sugars, steroids, terpenoids and carbohydrates. The proximate value of the samples ranges from 0.014-93.63%. While the micro-elements ranges from 1.2512801. 45μg/g and the macro-elements ranges from 1.00-332. 55μg/g where as Copper, Chromium and lead were not detected in all the samples analyzed. The microbial load of all the samples fell within the acceptable limits according to the World Health Organization recommendations which allows a maximum 10 7 per gram (aerobic bacteria), yeasts and moulds, maximum 10 4 per gram, Escherichi acoli, maximum 10 2 per gram, other entero bacteria, maximum 10 4 per gram, clostridia, absence per 1gram, Salmonellae, absence per 1gram and Shigella, absence per 1gram.
Fine root foraging strategies in Norway spruce forests across a European climate gradient

Fine root acclimation to different environmental conditions is crucial for growth and sustainability of forest trees. Relatively small changes in fine root standing biomass (FRB), morphology or mycorrhizal symbiosis may result in a large change in forest carbon, nutrient and water cycles. We elucidated the changes in fine root traits and associated ectomycorrhizal (EcM) fungi in 12 Norway spruce stands across a climatic and N deposition gradient from subarctic‐boreal to temperate regions in Europe (68°N–48°N). We analysed the standing FRB and the ectomycorrhizal root tip biomass (EcMB, g m−2) simultaneously with measurements of the EcM root morphological traits (e.g. mean root length, root tissue density (RTD), N% in EcM roots) and frequency of dominating EcM fungi in different stands in relation to climate, soil and site characteristics. Latitude and N deposition explained the greatest proportion of variation in fine root traits. EcMB per stand basal area (BA) increased exponentially with latitude: by about 12.7 kg m−2 with an increase of 10° latitude from southern Germany to Estonia and southern Finland and by about 44.7 kg m−2 with next latitudinal 10° from southern to northern Finland. Boreal Norway spruce forests had 4.5 to 11 times more EcM root tips per stand BA, and the tips were 2.1 times longer, with 1.5 times higher RTD and about 1/3 lower N concentration. There was 19% higher proportion of root tips colonized by long‐distance exploration type forming EcM fungi in the southern forests indicating importance of EcM symbiont foraging strategy in fine root nutrient acquisition. In the boreal zone, we predict ca. 50% decrease in EcMB per stand BA with an increase of 2 °C annual mean temperature. Different fine root foraging strategies in boreal and temperate forests highlight the importance of complex studies on respective regulatory mechanisms in changing climate.
Epidemiological characteristics of Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection in hospitalized children in Beijing: 10-year retrospective analysis

Objective To investigate the season, age and gender distribution of Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP) infection in children in Beijing, and to analyze the epidemiological characteristics of MP infection. Methods A total of 4 271 children with community acquired pneumonia hospitalized at the Respiratory Department of Children′s Hospital Affiliated to Capital Institute of Pediatrics were collected between January 2006 and December 2015.MP 16S rRNA and tandem repeat locus-Mpn16 were amplified by nested polymerase chain reaction(PCR). Results Among 4 271 specimens, 1 042 were positive for MP by PCR, and the positive rate was 24.4% (1 042/4 271 cases). There were 3 MP outbreaks (2006-2007, 2012-2013 and 2015, respectively). The positive rate was up to 44.6% in the epidemic year, but as low as 13.0% in the non-epidemic year.The positive rates of MP in spring, summer, autumn and winter were 21.2% (217/1 022 cases), 22.0% (230/1 044 cases), 28.9% (320/1 108 cases) and 25.1% (275/1 097 cases), respectively.There were mild epidemic peaks in April to May and August to September every year.The infection rates of MP in autumn were significantly higher than those in other 3 seasons(χ2=16.50, 13.30, 4.07, all P 7 years old group, respectively.The positive rate of preschool and school-age children was 31.7% (757/2 387 cases), which was higher than that of the infants (15.1%, 285/1 884 cases), and there was a statistical significance (χ2=157.0, P<0.05). The positive rate of MP in girls was 28.3% (481/1 699 cases), which was significantly higher than that in boys [21.8% (561/2 572 cases)], and there was a statistical significance (χ2=23.4, P<0.05), especially during the epidemic years. Conclusions The detection rate of MP infection in children in Beijing is high in autumn and winter, and low in summer.The positive rate of MP increases with age.The high incidence of MP infection is in preschool and school-age children, especially girls.There is a significant difference between the prevalence of MP infection and the prevalence intervals.The prevalence of MP infection may be closely related to the long-term closed and semi-closed living habits. Key words: Mycoplasma pneumoniae; Epidemiology; Age; Season; Gender; Child