Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Concentrate and crude protein levels in diets for dairy Gyr lineage cows grazing elephant-grass during the rainy season

The objective of this work was to evaluate the effects of three levels of concentrate (2.0, 4.0 and 6.0 kg/cow/day) and two levels of crude protein (CP) (14 and 16% total dietary dry matter), in comparison to mineral mixture (control) on the intake, apparent digestibility, milk composition and yield and on feed efficiency and use of concentrates of cows grazing elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum, Schum) in the rainy season. Twenty-one milking Gyr cows with average body weight of 426 kg and yield of 13.0 kg of milk/cow/day at 55 days of lactation were distributed in randomized blocks design, with seven diets (treatments) in a 3 × 2 + 1 factorial arrangement and three replications, in a period of 84 days. Forage dry matter intake was not influenced by the diets, but total dietary dry matter intake increased by 45% with the inclusion of concentrate in the diet. However, milk yield increased by only 17% (1.76 kg more milk per day) with the use of concentrate. For dairy Gyr cows grazing elephant-grass during the rainy season, 2 kg of concentrate/cow/day and 14% of CP in the total diet provided the best productive response without harming body weight.
Homology and Comparative Methods in the Study of Avian Cooperative Breeding

In an earlier article (Edwards and Naeem 1993), we presented a comparative analysis of cooperative breeding (CB) in perching birds (order Passeriformes). Using both discrete (categorical) and continuous data sets, we illustrated a number of ways in which comparative methods could help clarify the temporal origins of CB in various clades, ecological correlates of CB, and patterns of interspecific variation in attributes such as group size. The commentary on our article by McLennan and Brooks (1993) makes three main points, each of which raises important issues about the biology and ecology of CB in birds as well as the application of comparative methods to behavioral data. The first point is that comparative analyses of behavioral traits based on trees derived from taxonomies or noncladistic methods (phenetic clustering), "neither of which produces a robust phylogenetic hypothesis of genealogy" (McLennan and Brooks 1993, p. 790), are nonetheless useful for those researchers recognizing the importance of examining evolutionary hypotheses in a phylogenetic context. This point echoes our own plea for increased interest in building robust trees for ecologically and behaviorally diverse groups of birds (see, e.g., Richman and Price 1992), particularly for cooperative breeders (see, e.g., Edwards and Wilson 1990). The analyses in our article were based on trees built with varied sources of data and methods of analysis: cladistic analysis of morphology (fairy wrens, Malurus), phenetic analysis of morphology (New World wrens, Campylorhynchus), taxonomy (e.g., Australian treecreepers, Climnacteris), phenetic analysis of molecular distance data (e.g., New World jays), and cladistic analysis of DNA sequence data (Australian babblers, Pomatostomus). We agree that phylogenies are always preferable to taxonomies in comparative analyses, and, to the extent that it is difficult o model morphological evolution phenetically (Felsenstein 1988), our analysis in these cases should be treated as tentative. But to state that "phenetic" analyses categorically do not produce "robust" phylogenetic hypothesesthereby implying that cladistic methods categorically produce better trees-is simply outdated. The philosophical underpinnings of cladistics are different from those of other methods, but this does not mean that "noncladistic" methods cannot yield truth in practice. Uncertainties in phylogenetic inference often lie more in limitations of data than in the particular method used (Miyamoto and
Hepatic P4501A activity, plasma sex steroids, and gonadal steroidogenesis in vitro in yellow perch exposed to 3, 3′, 4, 4′, 5‐pentachlorobiphenyl

Yellow perch were given a single intraperitoneal injection of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) 126 dissolved in cornoil at nominal concentrations of 0, 10, 100, and 500 μg/kg body weight. Following the injection, the fish were held for four weeks under photothermal conditions characteristic for Ohio, USA, and fed a commercial fish food. Thereafter, they were sacrificed to examine the PCB 126 concentrations in the liver and to assess the contaminant effects on hepatic P4501A activity, reproductive hormones in plasma, and steroidogenic potential of gonads. The administered doses resulted in liver concentrations of 0.8 (corn oil control), 12.1, 38.9, and 174.5 μg/kg wet tissue weight. Hepatic P4501A indices were differentially affected depending on both the PCB 126 dose and fish gender. In untreated fish, the P4501A protein and ethoxyresorufin‐O ‐deethylase activity were several times lower in females than in males. In treated males, the hepatic P4501A was inhibited by all three PCB 126 doses. In females, a significant P4501A induction occurred in those dosed with 10 μg/kg, while no changes were found in the two higher‐dosed female groups in comparison to controls. A significant negative correlation was observed between hepatic P4501A indices and gonad somatic indexes values and plasma estradiol concentrations. The PCB 126 administration produced alterations in concentrations of plasma sex hormones in females but not in males. The in vitro steroidogenic potential of the female and male gonads was not affected by the in vivo PCB 126 treatment.
The pattern of infection and in vivo response to Chloroquine by uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria in northwestern Nigeria

The pattern of infection and in vivo response of uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria to Chloroquine as first line drug and Quinine, Halofantrine or Sulfadoxine-Pyrimethamine as second line medications was evaluated at nested sentinel points, including Government and Private Practices, for three consecutive months. 559 cases were evaluated of which 22.5% failed on Chloroquine therapy. The age range of P. falciparum malaria cases was 4 months to 48 years, with a mean and median age of 9.2 and 3 years, respectively. There were significantly more female patients than male. Also, ages 5 years and below accounted for 63.2% of cases and as a group had an increased risk of treatment failure with Chloroquine compared to older patients. In general, male patients also had a higher relative risk of treatment failure on Chloroquine. Patients treated in Government practices were more likely to fail than those treated in Private practices. All cases of failure to Chloroquine treatment responded to Quinine, Halofantrine or Sulfadoxine-Pyrimethamine. Key Words: Plasmodium falciparum malaria, Chloroquine, resistance. African Journal of Biotechnology Vol.4(1) 2005: 79-82
Inhibition of photosynthesis by Colletotrichum lindemuthianum in bean leaves determined by chlorophyll fluorescence imaging

Infection of bean leaves by Colletotrichum lundemuthianum causes vein necrosis and subsequent localized wilting of the blade. The effect of infection on photosynthesis was investigated by imaging leaf chlorophyll fluorescence as a means of mapping stomatal and metabolic inhibition of photosynthesis. During infection, CO2 assimilation (An), stomatal conductance to water vapour, and photosynthetic electron transport rate (Jt) decreased, whereas dark respiration increased. An decreased more than was expected from the reduction in green leaf area, showing that photosynthesis was inhibited in apparently healthy areas. Under subsaturating irradiance, images of Jt in air showed that photosynthesis decreased gradually, with this effect shifting from green to necrotic areas. Sudden increase in CO2 concentration to 0·74% in the atmosphere around the leaf only partially reversed this inhibition, showing that both stomatal and metabolic inhibition occurred. Under limiting irradiance, decreases in Jt and in maximal Jt during high CO2 exposure as leaf damage severity increased suggested that metabolic inhibition was mediated through an inhibition of Ribulose 1·5-bisphosphate (RuBP) regeneration. Finally, the importance of our data in terms of assessing the loss of photosynthetic yield from visible symptoms – as is currently performed in epidemiology – is discussed.
UV RADIATION, PHOSPHORUS, AND THEIR COMBINED EFFECTS ON THE TAXONOMIC COMPOSITION OF PHYTOPLANKTON IN A BOREAL LAKE 1

We examined how UV radiation and phosphorus (P) affect the taxonomic composition, abundance, and biomass of phytoplankton in an oligotrophic boreal lake. We exposed phytoplankton to three different solar radiation regimes (PAR + UV‐A radiation [UVAR]+ UV‐B radiation [UVBR], PAR + UVAR, and PAR only) and to five levels of P. The biomass of small chrysophytes was reduced by 350% after exposure to PAR + UVAR + UVBR compared with PAR only. No other taxa were found to be negatively affected by exposure to UVBR. Several taxa (e.g. Chry‐ sochromulina laurentiana Kling) were sensitive to UVAR, whereas others (e.g. Tabellaria flocculosa (Roth) Kutzing) were not affected by UV radiation exposure. Principal components analysis ordination separated phytoplankton that were negatively affected by UV radiation and/or positively affected by P treatments (e.g. small chrysophytes, Cryptomonas rostratiformis, T. flocculosa) from those that generally were unaffected by either treatment (e.g. desmids, some Cyanobacteria). Richness, Shannon‐Weaver diversity, and evenness were significantly higher in phytoplankton communities shielded from UVAR and UVBR. The relationship between diversity and richness was positive in all phytoplankton samples except in those exposed to UVBR. Thus, UVBR‐exposed phytoplankton communities were dominated by a few species even though the number of taxa remained relatively unchanged. Consequently, alterations in the UV environments of lakes resulting from climate warming (e.g. drought) and land‐use change (e.g. increased P export) will likely promote shifts in the community composition of lake phytoplankton.
Detection of Hydrocarbons Induced by Electron Beam Irradiation of Almond (Prunus amygosalus L.) and Peanut (Arachis hypogaea)

Asbstract Food irradiation has recently become one of the most successful techniques to preserve food with increased shelf life. This study aims to analyze hydrocarbons in almonds (Prunus amygosalus L.) and peanuts (Arachis hypogaea) induced by electron beam irradiation. The samples were irradiated at 0, 1, 3, 5 and 10 kGy by e-beam and using florisil column chromatography fat, and content was extracted. The induced hydrocarbons were identified using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The major hydrocarbons in both irradiated samples were 1,7-hexadecadiene (C16:2) and 8-heptadecene (C17:1) from oleic acid, 1,7,10-hexadecatriene (C16:3) and 6,9-heptadecadiene (C17:2) from linoleic acid and 1-tetradecene (C 14:1 ) and pentadecane (C 15:0 ) from palmitic acid. Concentrations of the hydrocarbons produced by e-beam were found to be depended upon the composition of fatty acid in both almonds and peanuts. The Cn-2 compound was found to be higher than C n-1 compound in oleic acid and palmitic acid, while in case of linoleic acid, C n-1 compound was higher than Cn-2 compound. The radiation induced hydrocarbons were detected only in irradiated samples, with 1 kGy or above, and not in the non-irradiated ones. The production of 1,7-hexadecadiene (C 16:2 ), 8-heptadecene (C 17:1 ), 1,7,10hexadecatriene (C16:3) and 6,9-heptadecadiene (C17:2), in high concentration gave enough information to suggest that these may be the possible marker compounds of electron beam irradiation in almonds and peanuts.
Unveiling below‐ground species abundance in a biodiversity experiment: a test of vertical niche differentiation among grassland species

1. Plant diversity has profound effects on primary production. Plant diversity has been shown to correlate with increased primary production in nutrient‐limited grassland ecosystems. This overyielding has been attributed to vertical niche differentiation among species below‐ground, allowing for complementarity in resource capture. However, a rigorous test of this longstanding hypothesis is lacking because roots of different species could not be distinguished in diverse communities.
Parasitemia in PCR‐detected Plasmodium and Haemoproteus infections in birds

Most comparative studies of avian blood parasites based on visual inspection of smears have reported Haemoproteus infections to be more prevalent than Plasmodium infections in both tropical and temperate locations. Recently, molecular techniques have increased our ability to detect infections often missed on blood smears. Here we quantify the bias in prevalence resulting from unrecognized infections by examining blood smears of infected passerine birds from the West Indies (312 individuals) and the Ozark Mountains of southern Missouri (134 individuals) for which we could identify parasites based on cytochrome b sequences. In the West Indian sample, 63 of 179 Haemoproteus infections (35%) and 121 of 133 Plasmodium infections (91%) were not detected among ca. 2,800 red blood cells examined per smear. In the Missouri sample, 19 of 77 Haemoproteus infections (25%) and 31 of 57 Plasmodium infections (54%) were not detected among ca. 10,000 red blood cells examined. Clearly, visual inspection of blood smears at this level of effort fails to recognize many malaria parasite infections ascertained by PCR screening, and this bias for Plasmodium parasites exceeds that for Haemoproteus parasites. The lower prevalence of Plasmodium compared to Haemoproteus reported in comparative studies based on blood smears likely reflects differences in detection rather than infection rates. Estimates obtained from visual inspection of blood smears would appear to be more indicative of parasite virulence and how well host individuals control infections than of the prevalence of infections in host populations.
GENOME-WIDE CO-EXPRESSION PATTERNS OF HUMAN CIS-ANTISENSE GENE PAIRS

*SUMMARY Motivation: To study possible mechanisms of cis-antisense regulation in human genome, we carried out a global microarray-based co-expression analysis of a large number of cis-antisense gene pairs. We focused on cis-antisense expression patterns in distinct breast cancer types. Results: We identified common positive co-regulation patterns which reproducibly expressed in the human breast cancer cells and specific positive co-expression patterns which uniquely associated with low- and in highly-aggressive types of breast cancer cells. The enrichment of co-regulation patterns of gene pairs in the same loci in compare to random gene pairs in different loci of the human genome and absence of other regulatory modalities allowed us to suggest that cis-antisense transcripts might be controlled by (i) distant mechanisms associated with chromatin remodeling and by (ii) local mechanisms due to mutual local de-repression of mRNA synthesis initiated by temporal triplexforming mRNA which can form DNA transcription bubbles.
Incomplete barriers to mitochondrial gene flow between pheromone races of the North American pine engraver, Ips pini (Say) (Coleoptera, Scolytidae)

The pine engraver Ips pini (Say) is known to include three pheromone races, but gene flow between these races has not been investigated. We used maternally inherited mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variation to infer gene flow between 22 widely distributed North American populations of I. pini for a total of 217 individuals, based on 354 bp of the cytochrome oxidase I gene. Gene flow was estimated cladistically as migrants per generation (Nm) and as haplotype variation between populations (Nst). Three distinct mtDNA haplotype lineages, generally corresponding to eastern (I), Rocky Mountain (II) and western (III) regions of North America, were resolved with a total of 34 distinct I. pini haplotypes. The distributions of these lineages were largely congruent with the geographical ranges of the ‘New York’, ‘California’ and ‘Idaho–Montana’ pheromone races. Only individuals with lineage I mtDNA were observed among eastern populations, whereas individuals with lineage II or III mtDNA predominated among western populations. Gene flow (Nm and Nst) was generally moderate between all populations. However, the presence of lineage I mtDNA on the eastern side of western North America and the absence of lineage II and III mtDNA in eastern North America suggest directional gene flow from east to west. These results indicate that female-controlled assortative mating among pheromone races may disrupt gene flow between conspecifics, reflecting incomplete pre-mating barriers.
Covert LdMNPV detected in Lymantria dispar larvae during a survey of potential hosts for DekiNPV production

Dendrolimus kikuchii nucleopolyhedrovirus (DekiNPV) is a biological control agent used to control the populations of D. kikuchii, which is a pest of variety of conifers, including Pinus kesiya, Pinus fenzeliana, Cedrus deodara, and Keteleeria evelyniana. However, D. kikuchii cannot be artificially reared which restricts the production and utilization of DekiNPV. In this study, the infectivity and replication of DekiNPV was demonstrated in Spodoptera frugiperda cell lines (sf9), Clostera anachoreta cell line (CAF-clan II), and Lymantria dispar (L.) to identify suitable alternative hosts for the production of DekiNPV. We also investigated the ability of DekiNPV to trigger the conversion of covert infections to overt infections. Results showed the absence of DekiNPV in the two cell lines and in L. dispar. However, polymerase chain reaction results indicated that L. dispar larvae harbored covert infection that could not be triggered by DekiNPV.
Prevalence of Anaplasma marginale, Babesia bigemina and Theileria annulata infections among cattle in Sargodha District, Pakistan

The objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence and distribution of tick-borne diseases in cattle in Sargodha district, Pakistan. Samples were randomly collected each month from selected small holders (n = 30) having 1 to 10 cattle and private livestock farms (n = 4) having ≥ 50 cattle. Indigenous and crossbred cattle of both sexes were sampled. Microscopic examination of the Giemsa stained blood smears revealed an overall prevalence of haemoparasites as 26.86%. Anaplasma marginale was the most prevalent (9.71%) hemoparasite of cattle followed by Theileria annulata (6.86%) and Babesia bigemina (6.57%), respectively. Crossbred cattle (29.1%) were more susceptible to tick-borne diseases (TBDs) as compared to the indigenous cattle (17.7%). Sex wise prevalence indicated that female animals (26%) were more prone to TBDs than males (17%). The highest prevalence of tick-borne diseases was recorded in July except for T. annulata which had a peak prevalence in June. The prevalence of tick-transmitted diseases was higher in small holders (31.3%) than large livestock farms (17.5%). Chi square analysis indicated a significant association among different breeds, seasons and farm size to selected tick-borne diseases. Whereas, the difference between different age groups and gender were not statistically significant. It was concluded that TBDs are prevalent in the Sargodha district, Pakistan. There is a need for further epidemiological investigations using advanced serological and molecular techniques. Key words: Anaplasma, Babesia, Theileria, Sargodha, cattle.
Likely future extirpation of another Asian river dolphin: The critically endangered population of the Irrawaddy dolphin in the Mekong River is small and declining

The population of Irrawaddy dolphins that occupies the Mekong River in southern Lao People's Democratic Republic and Cambodia is classified as Critically Endangered by the IUCN. Based on capture-recapture of photo-identified individuals, we estimated that the total population numbered 93 ± SE 3.90 individuals (95% CI 86-101), as of April 2007. The combined photo-identification and carcass recovery program undertaken from 2001 to 2007 established that the Irrawaddy dolphin population inhabiting the Mekong River has reached a critical point with regards to its continued survival, where immediate research and management actions are required to greatly reduce adult mortality, and establish the cause of newborn mortality. In addition, community consultation is required to initiate, and evaluate, urgently required conservation measures. An ongoing well-designed combined program of abundance estimation (i.e., photo-identification) and carcass recovery is required to monitor total population size and mortality rates, to inform and evaluate management initiatives. The conclusions of this paper are likely generic to river dolphin populations, particularly where photo-identification is possible.
Ureia polímero e ureia pecuária como fontes de nitrogênio sóluvel no rúmen: parâmetros ruminal e plasmático

Ruminal (pH, N-NH3) and plasmatic (urea) parameters were evaluated in crossbred cows no lactiferous (Holstein x Zebu), canulated in rumen and inoculated with 28 g/animal/day of nitrogen no protein. The animals had been estabulated and supplied with water, mineral supplement and ground hay of Brachiaria brizantha”, ad libitum”. The treatments were: TC (control - without inoculation of nitrogen source in rumen); TU (inoculation of urea source) and TUP (inoculation of urea polymer source. The times of observations were: 0; 0.5; . 1.0; 1.5; 2.0; 2.5; 3.0; 3.5; 4.0; 4.5; 5.0; 5.5; 6.0; 9.0; 12 and 24 hours after the inoculation of nitrogen source in rumen. The experimental design was Latin square 3x3 duplicate. The comparison between the averages was done the test of Scott-Knott in 5% of probability. The values of N-NH3, in treatment TUP was higher (P KEY WORDS: Additive, ammonia, NNP, pH.
Confirmation of Flixweed (Descurainia sophia) Resistance to Tribenuron-Methyl Using Three Different Assay Methods

Abstract Research was conducted to establish a method to investigate the resistance level of flixweed to tribenuron-methyl and the evolved biochemical resistance mechanism. Four resistant biotypes were collected from wheat fields in Mazhuangcun, Jiacun, Dishangcun, and Bafangcun in the Hebei province of China where tribenuron-methyl had been continuously used for more than 10 yr. Two susceptible biotypes were collected from wheat fields where tribenuron-methyl was never applied. Different biotypes were assessed by petri-dish bioassay, whole-plant bioassay, and acetolactate synthase (ALS) assay. Comparisons of data indicated a similarity between methods and that experiments demonstrated that petri-dish bioassay was a feasible method to identify flixweed resistant to tribenuron-methyl. Data indicated differences among the flixweed biotypes when assessed by the petri-dish bioassay, whole-plant bioassay, or ALS enzyme assay, and a close association was obtained for the three bioassay methods. ALS resistance varied by biotypes with Mazhuangcun > Jiacun > Dishangcun > Bafangcun. Target-site enzyme assay data indicated that the resistant biotype's enhanced ALS activity was the biochemical mechanism that induced flixweed's evolved resistance to tribenuron-methyl. The concentrations of tribenuron-methyl causing 50% inhibition of ALS activity of the four resistant biotypes were 1,359, 513, 184, and 164 nM; in the susceptible biotypes these concentrations were 64 and 65 nM. Resistance indexes were 21, 8, 3, and 3 for Mazhuangcun, Jiacun, Dishangcun, and Bafangcun biotypes, respectively. Nomenclature: Tribenuron-methyl; flixweed, Descurainia sophia (L.) Webb ex Prantl DESSO; wheat, Triticum aestivum L.