Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
CO2 bio-sequestration by Chlorella vulgaris and Spirulina platensis in response to different levels of salinity and CO2

The limitation of fresh water and the exorbitant cost of land to grow such plants, algae are the most optimum organisms for CO2 bio-sequestration and also microalgae cultures avail many characteristics that make them an arguable option for higher productivities as compared to higher plants. The aim of this study was the sequestrate CO2 by Spirulina platensis and Chlorella vulgaris under the different levels of salinity and CO2. The highest growth rate obtained during the first 4 days and higher biomass concentration at CO2 concentration from0.03% to 10% respectively. The significant (p<0.05) biomass productivity, growth rate and CO2 sequestration rate under different level of CO2 and EC between Spirulina platensis and Chlorella vulgaris were detected. The ultimate CO2 sequestration rate of Spirulina platensis and Chlorella vulgaris were 0.49 and 0.152 g/L/d in natural water respectively, although in artificial sea water 0.419 and 0.097 g/L/d were recorded at 10% CO2 concentrations respectively.
Генетическое разнообразие растений-регенерантов пшеницы (Triticum aestivum L.), созданных методом культуры пыльников

The study of genetic diversity of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) plants-regenerants produced by anther culture method from hybrids involved in the Latvian wheat breeding programme was performed. Flow cytometry was used to test ploidy of 3×103 cells of each green plantregenerant, and universal retrotransposon based iPBS (inter primer binding sites) method were used to establish genetic diversity of plants-regenerants. Progenies of 13 genetically distant hybrids were involved in the study. Most of plants-regenerants have leaves with mixoploid cells. Seeds were formed only by plants-regenerants that had cells with (2n = 6x) ploidy. Majority of fertile plantsregenerants have more than 40 % of hexaploid (6x) cells. The percentage of 6x cells in plants-regenerants and diversity in cell ploidy demonstrated association with mother plant (hybrid) genotype. Percent of spontaneous diplodization was also genotype-dependent. In this experiment colchicine treatment had no significant influence on outcome of fertile plants- regenerants. New dominant allele in a hybrid plant was found in comparison with both parents what indicated possible retrotransposon moving. Genetic diversity of the plants-regenerants obtained in anther culture is a combination of parent’s allele segregation and somaclonal variation.
Effects of Dietary Fatty Acids on Intestinal Tumorigenesis in Apc Min/+ Mice

Dietary fat is thought to be an important environmental factor influencing colorectal cancer risk. n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) have been linked to a lower risk of colorectal cancer and it has been presumed that this effect is due to their ability to interfere with synthesis of 2-series prostaglandins from arachidonic acid (AA, 20:4 n-6). However, the specific mechanism has not been clearly established. Therefore, we hypothesized that select dietary fatty acids would modulate intestinal tumorigenesis through interference with AA metabolism in the Apc mouse, a unique model system bearing many similarities to human intestinal cancer. a-linolenic acid (ALA, 18:3 n-3), stearidonic acid (SDA, 18:4 n-3), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5 n-3), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6 n-3) significantly reduced phospholipid AA concentrations and prostaglandin levels compared to controls, but only SDA and EPA significantly reduced overall tumor number and size. Two other PUFA also proposed to be anti-tumorigenic, conjugated linoleic acid (cLA, 18:2 n-6 and n-7) and y-linolenic acid (GLA, 18:3 n-6), did not significantly alter AA concentrations, prostaglandins, or tumorigenesis. The effects of EPA on phospholipid AA levels, prostaglandins, and tumorigenesis were eliminated when equivalent amounts of AA were provided concomitantly in the diet, indicating that EPA exerts its anti-tumorigenic effect, at least in part, through antagonism of arachidonic acid and/or its metabolism. Selective inhibition of Li-6 desaturase, the rate-limiting step in de novo AA biosynthesis, likewise resulted in 37% fewer tumors compared to controls and this was normalized when AA was provided concomitantly in the diet, indicating that inhibition of de novo AA biosynthesis inhibits tumorigenesis in this model. Finally, the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) piroxicam and sulindac, which are also inhibitors of prostaglandin biosynthesis, are able
Retention of Water by Plant Cell Walls and Implications for Drought Resistance

The water·retaining properties of cell wall materials from the roots of two monocotyledons (Ehrharta calycina Sm. and Triticum vulgare Vill. cv. Gabo) and two dicotyledons (Salicornia australis Banks & Soland and Vicia faba L.) have been studied.
The influence of aphid parasitoids on the development of their hosts

Changes in wing development and development through the stadia of Aphis fabae are examined after parasitisation by Aphidius colemani along with the underlying mechanisms. Parasitoid oviposition into nymphs of winged gynoparae of A. fabae shows that wing development is inhibited and the earlier parasitism takes place, the stronger the effect. Consideration of the timing of events indicates that the active component(s) is most likely injected during oviposition and is not related to hatching and growing of the parasitoid larva. When extracts of venom glands are injected into late-second stadium aphids, many develop to fourth-stadium possessing rudimentary wingbuds, show developmental arrest and often die while moulting to the adult stage. Injections with extracts of female or male parasitoids into later stadia give similar results with regard to development to the adult but aphids injected in the late-fourth stadium develop normally. Experiments with long-day winged virginoparae reveal similar results in development to the adult but injections into long-day wingless aphids, which develop more rapidly, show this effect only when performed early in the third stadium. The earlier the injection before the final moult the greater the effect of the extract on preventing adult development. The results indicate that there is an active factor(s) in the female parasitoid’s venom that disrupts wing development and/or inhibits development to the adult; the loss of activity after treatment at 100 °C or with protease makes it likely that the factor(s) is a protein. Surprisingly, injections of extracts from male parasitoids have similar effects. The location and function of such a factor(s) in males are unknown. Fast Protein Liquid Chromatography is used to fractionate the parasitoid extracts and bioassays reveal activity in fractions 16-25. Aphidius ervi venom also inhibits development of A. fabae (a non-host) whereas A. colemani venom has no effect on the development of Megoura viciae (a non-host). Injection with lipopolysaccharides and infection with a fungal pathogen are used to test whether stimulation of the immune response affects wing development in the host and the possibility that the host is in control of inhibiting its own wing development in order to support its immune system is discussed.
Inferring Viral Dynamics from Sequence Data

One of the primary objectives of infectious disease research is uncovering the direct link that exists between viral population dynamics and molecular evolution. For RNA viruses in particular, evolution occurs at such a rapid pace that epidemiological processes become ingrained into gene sequences. Conceptually, this link is easy to make: as RNA viruses spread throughout a population, they evolve with each new host infection. However, developing a quantitative understanding of this connection is difficult. Thus, the emerging discipline of phylodynamics is centered on reconciling epidemiology and phylogenetics using genetic analysis. Here, we present two research studies that draw on phylodynamic principles in order to characterize the progression and evolution of the Ebola virus and the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). In the first study, the interplay between selection and epistasis in the Ebola virus genome is elucidated through the ancestral reconstruction of a critical region in the Ebola virus glycoprotein. Hence, we provide a novel mechanistic account of the structural changes that led up to the 2014 Ebola virus outbreak. The second study applies an approximate Bayesian computation (ABC) approach to the inference of epidemiological parameters. First, we demonstrate the accuracy of this approach with simulated data. Then, we infer the dynamics of the Swiss HIV-1 epidemic, illustrating the applicability of this statistical method to the public health sector. Altogether, this thesis unravels some of the complex dynamics that shape epidemic progression, and provides potential avenues for facilitating viral surveillance efforts.
Investigations on the genus Phycopeltis (Trentepohliaceae, Chlorophyta) from South-East Asia, including the description of two new species

Etudes sur le genre Phycopeltis (Trentepohliaceae, Chlorophyta) en Asie du Sud-Est, description de deux nouvelles especes. Lors de l'etude du genre Phycopeltis en Asie du Sud-Est tropicale, deux nouvelles especes (P. javaica et P. juarensis) ont ete decouvertes. P. javanica se caracterise par l'alternance obligee de generations, de gametanges et zoosporanges en position intercalaire, par l'absence de sporangiophore et la presence de papilles dorsales. P. juarensis se caracterise par l'alternance obligee de generations, gametanges en position intercalaire, zoosporanges en position terminale et la presence d'une sporangiophore de cinq cellules au maximum. L'auteur presente aussi les resultats des observations de P. arundinacea et P. dorsopapillosa, nouvellement recoltes dans la region. Pour P. dorsopapillosa, il s'agit d'une premiere recolte dans le Sud-Est de l'Asie tropicale; cette espece pourrait avoir une distribution pantropicale.
Effects of combining recombinant bovine growth hormone and anabolic implants on growth performance and dietary energetics of Holstein bull calves fed finishing diets

Twenty-one Holstein bull calves (368 ± 5.2 kg) were used in order to evaluate the effects of combining recombinant bovine growth hormone (bST) and anabolic implants on growth performance and dietary energetics. Steers were assigned (7 repetitions/ treatment) to individual pens (16 m2) equipped with automatic waterers and 1.2 m fence-line feed bunks. The experiment lasted 56 days. Treatments were: 1) no bST, no implant; 2) implant; and 3) bST + implant. Compared to implanted cattle, the combination of exogenous bovine somatotropin and anabolic implants did not enhance growth performance or observed dietary energy. Compared to nonimplanted cattle, anabolic implants increased dry matter intake (DMI, 8.3%), average daily gain (ADG, 18.5%), gain efficiency (ADG:DMI; 7.9%), dietary net energy (6%), and apparent energy retention per unit of DMI (7%). Implantation reduced the estimated maintenance coefficients of intact Holstein calves by around 17%. The combinations of exogenous bovine somatotropin and anabolic implants did not enhance the growth performance or dietary energy of intact Holstein cattle fed a high-energy finishing diet.
Migration strategies and annual space-use in an Afro-Palaearctic aerial insectivore - the European nightjar Caprimulgus europaeus

Obligate insectivorous birds breeding in high latitudes travel thousands of kilometres during annual movements to track the local seasonal peaks of food abundance in a continuously fluctuating resource landscape. Avian migrants use an array of strategies when conducting these movements depending on e.g. morphology, life history traits and environmental factors encountered en route. Here we used geolocators to derive data on the annual space-use, temporal pattern and migratory strategies in an Afro-Palaearctic aerial insectivorous bird species - the European nightjar Caprimulgus europaeus. More specifically, we aimed to test a set of hypothesises pertaining to the migration of a population of nightjars breeding in south-eastern Sweden. We found that the birds wintered across the central and western parts of the southern tropical Africa almost entirely outside the currently described wintering range of the species. The nightjars performed a narrow loop migration across Sahara, with spring Sahel stopovers significantly to the west of autumn stops indicative to an adaptive response to winds during migration. To our surprise, the migration speed was faster in the autumn (119 km d- 1) than in the spring (99 km d- 1), possibly due to the prevailing wind regimes over the Sahara. The estimated flight fraction in both autumn (14%) and spring (12%) was almost exactly as the theoretically predicted 1:7 time relationship between flights and stopovers for small birds. The temporal patterns within the annual cycle indicate that individuals follow alternative spatiotemporal schedules that converge towards the breeding season. The positive relationship between the spatially and temporally distant winter departure and breeding arrival suggests that individualś temporal fine-tuning to breeding may be constrained, leading to potential negative fitness consequences. Journal of Avian Biology
Effect of body size and temperature on respiration of Galaxias maculatus (Pisces: Galaxiidae)

ABSTRACT Body mass and temperature are primary determinants of metabolic rate in ectothermic animals. Oxygen consumption of post-larval Galaxias maculatus was measured in respirometry trials under different temperatures (5–21 °C) and varying body masses (0.1–>1.5 g) spanning a relevant range of thermal conditions and sizes. Specific respiration rates (R in g O2 g−1 d−1) declined as a power function of body mass and increased exponentially with temperature and was expressed as: R = 0.0007 * W −0.31 * e 0.13 * T. The ability of this model to predict specific respiration rate was evaluated by comparing observed values with those predicted by the model. Our findings suggest that the respiration rate of G. maculatus is the result of multiple interactive processes (intrinsic and extrinsic factors) that modulate each other in ‘meta-mechanistic’ ways; this would help to explain the species’ ability to undergo the complex ontogenetic habitat shifts observed in the lakes of the Andean Patagonic range.
Comparative study of some parameters biological of Bactrocera dorsalis and Ceratitis cosyra (Diptera :Tephritidae) pests of mango (Mangifera indica) in Côte d’Ivoire

Bactrocera dorsalis and Ceratitis cosyra are the major pests of mango ( Mangifera indica ), in Cote d'Ivoire. The study of biological parameters of these pests has revealed that the development of B. dorsalis is higher than that of C. cosyra in the three agro-ecological areas. The experiments were performed in semi-natural conditions in the orchard and in the conditions of ambient laboratory environment. A specific breeding B. dorsalis and C. cosyra been taken. The duration of the life cycle of B. dorsalis are shorter (20.93 days in the South, 18.67 days and 17.93 days in the center and north respectively) than C. cosyra (22.53 days in the south, 20.2 days in the center and 19.5 days in the north). The male development time was shorter than this of females, as in B. dorsalis in C. cosyra . The number of eggs laid by the female of B. dorsalis (269 in the south, 347 in the center and north) was higher than this of the female of C. cosyra (186 in the south, 196 in the center, 197 in the north). Longest life was recorded in adult B. dorsalis . Adult males have lived longer than adult females, in both species. The study on the biology of these two fruit flies showed that B. dorsalis is a serious pest in all the views of the various parameters studied. These results allow a better determination of the periods and means of intervention in the control against B. dorsalis and C. cosyra .
Yield Performance and Quality of Fodder Turnip (Brassica Compestris var. Rapa) as Affected by Nitrogen Application and Weed Management.

A field experiment entitled “Yield performance and quality of fodder turnip (Brassica compestris var. rapa) as affected by nitrogen application and weed management” was conducted during rabi season in 2013 at Forage Research and Management Centre, NDRI, Karnal in split plot design with four levels of nitrogen (0, 50, 100, and 150 kg N/ha) and four weed management practices (pendimethalin @ 1.0 kg a.i./ha, hand weeding, isoproturon @ 0.75 kg a.i./ha and weedy check) consisted four replications. The soil of the experimental field was clay loam in texture, neutral in reaction, medium in organic matter and phosphorus (25.5 Kg/ha), high in potassium (256 kg/ha) and low in nitrogen (191 kg/ha). The plant height, leaf length, leaf width, number of leaf increased significantly with increase in level of nitrogen up to 150 kg/ha. However , green fodder and dry matter yield, crude protein, dry matter and ash content increased significantly with increase in level of nitrogen up to 150 kg/ha. The control treatment recorded maximum neutral detergent fibre, acid detergent fibre, organic matter and total carbohydrate content as compared to other treatments. Net returns and B:C ratio was highest with the application of 150kg N/ha. Uncontrolled weed treatment showed 26% less green fodder yield compared to pendimethalin. Hand weeding showed a significant increase in green forage yield at harvest compared to isoproturon application and weedy check. Isoproturon registered significantly higher weed density and weed dry weight as compared to pendimethalin and hand weeding. Higher weed density in these treatments allows higher nitrogen uptake by weeds and lower by turnip crop. Maximum crude protein values were recorded under pendimethalin due to higher N absorb by turnip forage and showed proportionally increase with nitrogen level. Maximum gross return, net return and B:C ratio was recorded with the application of pendimethalin @ 1.0 kg a.i./ha with 150 kg N/ha. चारा शलजम ( ब्रेसिका कम्पेसरिि प्रजासि रापा) की उपज और गुणवत्ता पर नत्रजन प्रयोग और खरपिवार प्रबन्धन
A new species of Endasys Förster (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae, Cryptinae) from Mexico

A new species of Endasys Forster (Ichneumonidae, Cryptinae), E. gibbosus sp. nov., is described. Material was collected with Malaise traps functioning along one year in a dry forest in southeastern Mexico. The new species is similar to E. julianus Luhman, 1990 and E. subclavatus Say, 1835, but differs by having a strongly raised median lobe of mesonotum, with rugulose sculpturing and coarse dense punctures, metapleuron aerolate-rugose, area superomedia with strongly elevated longitudinal wrinkles, and malar space very reduced. A complement is provided to Luhman’s key to the Nearctic species of Endasys.
Biodiversity Versus Stability: the Biological Effect of Plant Functional Traits on Ecosystem Functioning in Grasslands Dominated by Leymus chinensis

ABSTRACT Although diversity-ecosystem theory predicts that ecosystem functioning is strongly determined by species number, species traits play an important role in regulating ecosystem-level dynamics. We analyze responses of species attributes to diversity level and resource availability, and explore their consequences for ecosystem functioning and ultimately assess the contributions of five traits (vegetative plant height, clonal growth, root depth, cespitose habit and seed mass) to ecosystem functioning defined by spatial stability of community biomass. We found that functional traits disproportionately affected spatial stability. Relationships between species functional traits and spatial stability of community biomass indicated that diversity of vegetative plant height facilitated stability of a nitrogen fertilized undisturbed natural community (NAT), and that of a phosphorus fertilized forb, legume and bunchgrass community (FLB). The clonal growth form was also identified as a stabilizing trigger for a unfertilized undisturbed natural community (NAT), whereas diversity in root depth, cespitose habit and seed mass were related to destabilization of a nitrogen fertilized rhizomatous grass community (RRR). Studies quantifying interactions among plant traits, community structure and ecological functioning will contribute much more to understanding of the effects of the ecological behavior of specific traits on the ecosystem functioning.
Is the Antarctic Ophryotrocha orensanzi (Annelida: Dorvilleidae) a circumpolar non-specialized opportunist?

The dorvilleid polychaete Ophryotrocha orensanzi is reported from the vicinity of Casey station, East Antarctica, an astounding range extension from its previous records in the South Shetland Islands to the opposite side of the Antarctic continent, suggesting that it is a circumpolar species. Genetic studies confirmed the conspecificity and the inferred haplotype network suggests that the two populations studied are genetically connected. Morphological studies of the newly collected material revealed that the jaw apparatus consists of the P- and K-type, in accordance with other members of the ‘lobifera’ clade. We are reporting a previously undocumented button-like structure that we are referring to as ‘nuchal papilla’ for its association with the nuchal region, and present an emended diagnosis for the species. The Casey station population was collected in a clean, unpolluted intertidal environment associated with stones and seaweeds. We are challenging the generally held opinion that Ophryotrocha species are specialists of organically enriched substrates, suggesting that, at least for the particulars of O. orensanzi, they might also be unspecialized opportunists, able to exist in the most pristine environments and having the ability to rapidly increase their population sizes under favourable conditions.
Analysis of the sequence of ITS1 and ITS2 regions of Three Mentha species

Abstract Mentha (Nepetoideae, Lamiaceae) is a taxonomically complex genus consisting of 29 species and 11 different hybrids including a number of economically important species among them medical plants used for more than 250 years. Because of its high incidence of polyploidy, diverse morphology, high degree of chromosome number variations and interspecies hybridization, Mentha is considered to be a taxonomical challenge. In this paper, we describe cloning and sequencing of internal transcribed spacers (ITS) 1 and 2 of three mint species: Mentha aquatic L. , Mentha longifolia L. (Huds) and Mentha piperita L. , collected from natural habitats of Bulgaria. The applicability of ITS1 and ITS2 for molecular fingerprinting and further comparative studies, including the newly obtained ITS1 and ITS2 sequences, was tested in phylogenetic analysis of all eight Mentha species, found in Bulgarian flora.