Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fermentative and microbiological profile of marandu-grass ensiled with citrus pulp pellets

High-wet roughages with low content of soluble carbohydrates, such as tropical grasses, should be inappropriate for producing silages of adequate quality. This study aimed to evaluate the fermentative and microbiological profiles of Marandu-grass ensilaged with pelleted citric pulp (PCP). Brachiaria brizantha (Hochst ex. A. Rich) Stapf cv. Marandu with 58 days of vegetative growth was harvested for producing experimental silages in PVC silos provided with Bunsen valves and density capacity of 900 kg m-3. Treatments were three PCP levels (0, 50 and 100 g kg-1 of fresh forage) and seven times (1, 4, 7, 14, 21, 28 and 56 days) after sealing. PCP inclusion increased soluble carbohydrate concentrations by 15 to 20% and reduced pH (5.3 to 4.2) and N-NH3 levels of experimental silages. An increase of the population size of the enterobacterium (mean of 3 CFU g-1) was observed only at the first day of fermentation, small growth (mean 0.5 of CFU g-1) of clostridium and the dominance of homo in relation to hetero-fermentative bacteria. Citric pulp addition during Marandu-grass ensilage was benefic, its utilization being recommended, especially when associated with economical advantages.
Plant Community Structure and Conservation of a Northern Peru Sclerophyllous Forest

The vegetation near El Bosque Petrificado Piedra Chamana, in the northern Peruvian Andes, is evergreen sclerophyllous forest with significant shrub, epiphyte, and mat components. Important/characteristic genera include Dodonaea, Polylepis, Oreopanax, Oreocallis, Myrcianthes, and the mat‐forming orchid Pleurothallis. A vegetation survey including 12 transects and 240 plots in high‐ and low‐grazed areas documented 96 plant species. Compared with low‐grazed areas, high‐grazed areas had significantly fewer tree species, more herbs, and higher density of individuals. Both grazing categories exhibited high connectedness (as seen in network metrics) and positive biotic associations (nestedness), suggesting facilitation of some species by others, but high‐grazed areas showed greater indications of positive associations (as seen in the C‐score and V‐ratio). These positive biotic associations may relate to the harsh environment and the role of keystone taxa such as Dodonaea viscosa, canopy trees, and mat‐forming elements in moderating conditions and promoting species establishment. Only in the low‐grazed areas was there any indication of competitive interactions (negative C‐score/ less than expected species‐pair occurrence). The shift in sign of the C‐score, from negative in low‐grazed areas to positive in high‐grazed areas, indicates a loss of competitive interactions as a factor influencing community structure where grazing pressure is higher. Conservation of the area's natural resources would be advanced by protection of areas where the vegetation structure is more intact, better controls on grazing animals, and identification of development alternatives that would reduce pressure on the area's unique vegetation.
The place of culture in sociology

Despite intense debate regarding the `cultural turn', there has been very little framing of these intellectual conflicts in terms of the sociology of ideas or knowledge. Following Gouldner, the article proposes that sociology has oscillated between two major styles of thought: Classicism and Romanticism. The latter stimulated an interest in culture amongst social scientists and also led to an emphasis on the cultural properties of social life. Yet Romanticism has its equal in the opposing tendency to see the sociological study of culture as no different from other forms of social scientific explanation (Classicism). The notion of `style wars' is used to frame debates about the `cultural turn' and its consequences for sociology. Divisions within the sociology of art — a subfield within the sociology of culture — are used to demonstrate that one major fault line in these debates is the notion of aesthetics. It is suggested that theoretical and methodological debates about culture, and its role in sociology, require some degree of sociological reflexivity about the predominant styles of thought present in the discipline.
Uncertainties in the 20th century carbon budget associated with land use change

Uncertainties in the 20th century carbon budget associated with the treatment of land use change (LUC) are assessed using the Canadian Centre for Climate Modelling and Analysis (CCCma) first‐generation Earth System Model (CanESM1). Eight coupled climate carbon cycle simulations are performed using different reconstructions of 1850–2000 land cover derived from historical information on changes in cropland and pasture area. The simulations provide estimates of the emissions associated with LUC, the relative contribution of changes in cropland and pasture to LUC emissions and the uncertainty associated with differences among historical data sets of crop area as well as in the manner in which the historical land cover data are constructed. The resulting estimates of the amount of biomass deforested over the 1850–2000 period range from 63 to 145 Pg C with cumulative implied LUC emissions ranging from 40 to 77 Pg C. These values of LUC emissions are considerably lower than Houghton's estimate of 156 Pg C. The year 2000 atmospheric CO2 concentration ranges between 371.1 ± 3.7 ppm depending on the data set used and the manner in which historical land cover is constructed. This compares to the observed value of 369.6 ppm at Mauna Loa and is 17.3 ± 6.3 ppm larger than for simulations without LUC. Although increases in cropland result in the expected increase in LUC emissions, changes in pasture area decrease these emissions because of carbon sequestration in soils.
Estimation of some heavy metals in polluted well water and mercury accumulation in broiler organs

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the concentrations of heavy metals in well water and bioaccumulation of the most abundant metals in chicken tissues in some areas in the province of Mecca Almokaramah, Saudi Arabia. Among the heavy metals (Cd, Zn, Cr, Mn, Cu Hg, Pb and Ni) studied, mercury (Hg) revealed highest in concentration in well waters. The concentration of mercury in the ground water, beside in liver, kidney, muscle and blood samples of ten chickens from each of four poultry- production farms were estimated using atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The results showed that the kidney followed by liver had the highest bioaccumulation of mercury in all farm samples. The level of mercury in the ground water was 7. 06µg/L. The relationship between mercury accumulation levels in the kidney and those in the liver tissues were proportionally correlated and altered with elevation in the antioxidant enzyme activities such as AST and ALT. These elevated enzymatic activities were induced by the level of toxicity. There was a significant elevation in the level of liver and kidney malondialdhyde (MDA), while the activities of antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase and catalase (SOD and CAT) were significantly decreased. Biochemical observations were supplemented by histopathological examination of liver and kidney sections.
An application of the annual egg production method to estimate the spawning biomass of cod (Gadus morhua L.), plaice (Pleuronectes platessa L.) and sole (Solea solea L.) in the Irish Sea

The spawning biomass of cod (Gadus morhua), plaice (Pleuronectes platessa) and sole (Solea solea) in the Irish Sea in 1995 was estimated by means of the annual egg production method (AEPM). The area surveyed corresponded to ICES assessment area VIIa. This paper describes the sampling design, methods of analysis, estimates of biomass, and sources of error in the estimates. Estimates are also presented for spatially separated spawning grounds of cod and plaice in the eastern and western Irish Sea, the first time that information at this scale has been available. The AEPM estimates of spawning biomass of cod, sole and plaice exceeded the corresponding estimates from Virtual Population Analysis of data from commercial fisheries and trawl surveys by factors of 2.3, 2.7 and 4.3 respectively. The sources of these large discrepancies are not yet resolved.
Influence of harvesting and concentration conditions on the physiological state and cryotolerance of lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus cfl1

This study aimed at quantifying the effect of harvesting and concentration steps on Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus CFL1 cryotolerance. It intended to analyse the physiological mechanisms that explained the different levels of cryotolerance. Another goal of this work consisted to submit the cells to a moderate stress, thus allowing them to adapt themselves to better resist the stress during the freezing step. During the first part of this work, the effect of an acidification, at the end of the fermentation, was studied on cellular cryotolerance. An experimental design made it possible to identify the optimal acidification condition (pH 5.25 for 30 min) that permitted adaptation of the cells. This condition provided highly resistant cells to freezing and frozen storage at -20 °C. Two physiological mechanisms were found to explain this adaptation. The first one corresponded to the increase of the membrane fatty acid C18:1 content, and then to membrane fluidity. From proteome analysis, the second one was characterized by a reduction in protein metabolism, an increase in energetic and nucleotide metabolism and a higher synthesis of stress proteins. In the second part of this study, cells were concentrated according to different centrifugation conditions (speed, duration and temperature). These conditions did not affect the resistance of Lb. bulgaricus CFL1 to the concentration process itself. However, they had a small but significant effect on their cryotolerance. As the behaviour of cells resistance during freezing and frozen storage was opposite, the effect of centrifugation conditions on their activity after long time storage was not significant. The last part of this work made it possible to analyse the effects of microfiltration conditions on Lb. bulgaricus CFL1 resistance to concentration, freezing and frozen storage and on its physiological responses. Results show that cells were less resistant to microfiltration than centrifugation. In contrast, their resistance to freezing was significantly improved (in a range of 28% to 88%), according to the microfiltration conditions applied, as compared to the centrifuged cells. The higher cryotolerance was obtained with a cross flow velocity of 2.01 m.s-1 and a transmembrane pressure of 0.15 MPa. This improved resistance was related to an increase of C16:0, C18:1 and cycC19:0 membrane fatty acid concentrations and a reduction of the C14:0 content. Results obtained from proteome analysis displayed that cells exhibiting high activity and resistance were characterized by an increase in their energetic metabolism and, in contrast, by a reduction in their general and protein metabolisms. Finally, during this thesis, two interesting approaches were performed with the aim to adapt Lb. bulgaricus CFL1 for a better cryotolerance. Some general physiological responses, responsible for the cellular adaptation, were identified at membrane and cytosolic levels.
Physiological Factors Affecting Response of Mature `Valencia' Orange Fruit to CMN-Pyrazole. I. Effects of Young Fruit, Shoot, and Root Growth

Influence of young fruit, shoot, and root growth on response of mature 'Valencia' oranges ( Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck) to the abscission chemical CMN-pyrazole was examined in 1999 and 2000. CMN-pyrazole dramatically increased ethylene production in mature fruit and reduced the fruit detachment force (FDF), except during a period of reduced response to CMN-pyrazole in early May when spring vegetative growth, young fruit of the following year's crop, and mature fruit were all on the trees. Removal of spring flushes, which included spring vegetative shoots and leafy and leafless inflorescences, prevented any young fruit and shoot growth, but did not inhibit root growth. However, trunk girdling in combination with removal of spring flushes not only prevented growth of young fruit and shoots but also inhibited root growth. During the responsive period, there were no differences in either ethylene production or FDF of CMN-pyrazole-treated mature oranges between 1) the nonmanipulated trees and those manipulated by either 2) removal of spring flushes alone, or 3) in combination with trunk girdling. However, during the less responsive period, ethylene production in CMN-pyrazole-treated mature oranges was significantly lower while the FDF was higher in nonmanipulated trees than in trees treated by either removal of spring flushes alone, or in combination with trunk girdling. There was no difference in either fruit ethylene production or FDF between trees manipulated by (2) removal of spring flushes alone, and (3) removal of spring flushes in combination with trunk girdling regardless of CMN-pyrazole application. Shoot growth terminated at least 2 weeks before the onset of the less responsive period. Removal of young fruit increased response of mature fruit to CMN-pyrazole during the less responsive period. This suggests that hormones from rapidly growing young fruit may be responsible for the occurrence of the less responsive period. Chemical name used: 5-chloro- 3-methyl-4-nitro-1H-pyrazole (CMN-pyrazole).
EFFECT OF DIFFERENT BODY WEIGHT CATEGORIES ON THE PRODUCTIVE PERFORMANCE OF FOUR CLOSE -BRED FLOCKS OF JAPANESE QUAILS (Coturnix coturnix japonica )

A study was conducted to investigate the effect of different body weight categories on productive performance of four close-bred flocks of Japanese quails maintained at Avian Research and Training Centre, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore. For this purpose, a total of 432 adult (12 weeks-old) quails, comprising 108 males and 324 females were randomly divided into 108 experimental units, comprising one male and three females each. These experimental units were randomly assigned to 12 treatment groups having 4 close-bred flocks x 3 female body weights (heavy 300-350g, medium 250-300g and small 200-250g) with randomized complete block design in factorial arrangements having 9 replicates in each treatment. Significant differences were observed in mean body weight and egg weight among imported and all local flocks. Mean egg production percent, egg number, egg mass (g/bird) and FCR (g/egg) differed non-significantly among different close-bred flocks. With respect to body size categories, a significant (p<0.05) difference was observed in their mean body weight, egg number, egg weight and FCR (g/egg). However egg mass (g)/bird were found to be non-significant. Interaction between flocks and body sizes was significant in respect of all the above parameters. The average weekly body weight, egg weight and feed conversion ratio (g/g egg mass) in imported flock remained on higher side than that of local flocks. The heavy weight category birds had maximum body weight and egg weight followed by that of medium and small size groups. The average weekly egg production percent/bird, egg number and egg mass g/bird in the local-3 flock remained higher than that of imported, local-1 and 2 flocks. The small weight category birds had maximum egg production percent, egg number and egg mass g/bird than that of heavy and medium size. The average weekly FCR (g/egg) in local-1 flock remained on higher side than in the imported, local-2 and 3 flocks. The heavy weight category birds had maximum FCR (g/egg) than those from medium and small size birds.
Genomic selection in crops, trees and forages: a review

Abstract. Genomic selection is now being used at an accelerating pace in many plant species. This review first discusses the factors affecting the accuracy of genomic selection, and then interprets results of existing plant genomic selection studies in light of these factors. Differences between genomic breeding strategies for self-pollinated and open-pollinated species, and between-population level v. within-family design, are highlighted. As expected, more training individuals, higher trait heritability and higher marker density generally lead to better accuracy of genomic breeding values in both self-pollinated and open-pollinated plants. Most published studies to date have artificially limited effective population size by using designs of bi-parental or within-family structure to increase accuracies. The capacity of genomic selection to reduce generation intervals by accurately evaluating traits at an early age makes it an effective tool to deliver more genetic gain from plant breeding in many cases.
A kinase-independent function for AURORA-A in replisome assembly during DNA replication initiation

Abstract The catalytic activity of human AURORA-A kinase (AURKA) regulates mitotic progression, and its frequent overexpression in major forms of epithelial cancer is associated with aneuploidy and carcinogenesis. Here, we report an unexpected, kinase-independent function for AURKA in DNA replication initiation whose inhibition through a class of allosteric inhibitors opens avenues for cancer therapy. We show that genetic depletion of AURKA, or its inhibition by allosteric but not catalytic inhibitors, blocks the G1-S cell cycle transition. A catalytically inactive AURKA mutant suffices to overcome this block. We identify a multiprotein complex between AURKA and the replisome components MCM7, WDHD1 and POLD1 formed during G1, and demonstrate that allosteric but not catalytic inhibitors prevent the chromatin assembly of functional replisomes. Indeed, allosteric but not catalytic AURKA inhibitors sensitize cancer cells to inhibition of the CDC7 kinase subunit of the replication-initiating factor DDK. Thus, our findings define a mechanism essential for replisome assembly during DNA replication initiation that is vulnerable to inhibition as combination therapy in cancer.
Effect of requeening on fall populations of honey bees on the northern Great Plains of North America

Summary The effects of requeening honey bee colonies in the last week of July with newly mated queens, mature queen cells, or supersedure cells, on sealed brood, adult worker bee populations and colony population demographics were assessed at twelve day intervals until early December. Requeening altered brood rearing patterns, adult worker bee populations and colony demographics. Requeened colonies contained populations with higher proportions of young bees. By early December, colony population sizes converged amongst treatments and were not statistically different.
A macroevolutionary expansion of the modern synthesis and the importance of extrinsic abiotic factors

This contribution examines the Modern Synthesis in the light of its historical underpinnings, attempts at expansion and treatment of macroevolutionary theory. Particular emphasis is given to the need to better understand the patterns and processes operating on species and higher‐level biological entities within a hierarchical framework, as they are often not congruent with lower‐level processes. We then focus on the oft‐overlooked importance of extrinsic abiotic drivers (e.g. tectonic change, sea‐level and climatic fluctuations, as well as factors resulting in mass extinctions) in directing evolution. We propose that the fundamental niche is a species‐level property useful in testing for the effects of extrinsic abiotic drivers on macroevolutionary patterns and potential instances of species‐level selection. Integration of a diverse array of fields requires both the addition of new information and a standardized theoretical framework for understanding how the effects of change at one level reverberate to other levels. These are some of the remaining ingredients necessary for building a truly synthetic theory of evolution.
The Practice of Biosecurity in Canada: Public Health Legal Preparedness and Toronto's SARS Crisis

The experience of the 2003 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome outbreak in Toronto, Canada provides an important example for understanding how the relationship between national security and public health is being defined in the contemporary context of emerging infectious diseases and the globalization of public health. This paper argues that Canada's public health legal framework is a critical part of Canada's practice of ‘biosecurity’ through which an unpredictable and continually emergent ‘new reality’, is mobilized to justify an ongoing state of emergency. Norms about state power and human rights are suspended in the interest of global capitalism and at the expense of those most vulnerable to the short-term and long-term effects of infectious disease.
Diagnostics for matched case control studies : SAS macro for Proc Logistic

Conditional logistic regression models have been extensively used in the field of medicine and mainly applied in matched case control studies. However, none of the major statistical packages, i.e. SAS, MINITAB, SPSS provide diagnostics to assess the goodness-of-fit of these models. In addition the freely downloadable package R provides no functions for this purpose. The objectives of this study are to review the available diagnostics for software for testing goodness-of-fit of conditional logistic regression models by the development of a computer programme and to test this programme which implements some of the reviewed methods on real data. The computer programme is implemented using Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) for Microsoft Excel and connected to the Statistical Analysis Software (SAS) version 9.1 using the Object Linking and Embedding (OLE) automation. The software thus developed is tested on a matched case control study on endometrial cancer. A conditional logistic regression model is fitted to these data and the risk factors for endometrial cancer are identified. MINITAB and SPSS are incapable of doing conditional logistic regression. For testing goodness of the fitted model Proc Logistic in SAS is only capable of giving delta-beta plots which explain the influence of each observation on the parameters of the model. Besides, plots obtained from the developed computer programme, in addition provide information on stratum specific lack-of-fit statistics. These plots were very successful in identifying 3 outlying strata which were quite different from the other strata. In these 3 strata the case had not received estrogen whereas one or more control had received estrogen. Keywords: Conditional logistic regression, dynamic data exchange (DDE), goodness-of-fit, matched case control studies, Object Linking and Embedding (OLE) automation. Doi: 10.4038/jnsfsr.v39i1. 2919 J.Natn. Sci.Foundation Sri Lanka 2011 39 (1): 13-23
Empirical determination of in situ target strengths of three loosely aggregated pelagic fish species

In situ measurements of target strength (TS) at 38 kHz have been taken from night-time scattering layers of anchovy, pilchard, and Cape horse mackerel in the course of routine surveys. These species have diVerent numerical packing densities, which necessitates treating the TS data diVerently in each case, as the performance of single-target detectors is strongly dependent on target densities. Evidence for the presence of multiple targets in their TS distributions is presented, and empirical methods of extracting mean target strengths from them described. After careful assessment of the quality of each data point, and the removal of unwanted influences where possible, the data were used to fit TS/length expressions for the three species. 1996 International Council for the Exploration of the Sea