Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Parasitism, longevity and progeny production of six indigenous Kenyan trichogrammatid egg parasitoids (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) at different temperature and relative humidity regimes

Abstract Six native Kenyan species/strains of Trichogramma and Trichogrammatoidea, recovered from Helicoverpa armigera were evaluated at six different temperatures (10, 15, 20, 25, 30 and 35°C) and two relative humidity levels (40–50 and 70–80%) with the aim of selecting strains adapted to warmer temperature regimes. The species/strains were collected from low (<700 m), medium (between 700 and 1200 m) and high altitude (>1200 m) locations and were evaluated for parasitism, adult longevity, progeny production and progeny sex ratio at the different environmental regimes. Eggs of the factitious host, Corcyra cephalonica Stainton (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) were used in the investigations. Temperature and humidity interactions affected parasitism and progeny production. The highest parasitism at the two humidity levels was at 25 and 30°C for all the strains evaluated. Adult longevity was also significantly affected by the interaction of temperature and relative humidity and was longer at the lower than higher relative humidity. Survival followed a type I survivorship curve at lower temperatures and a type III survivorship curve at the higher temperatures. Trichogramma sp. nr. mwanzai from low altitude, Trichogramma sp. nr. mwanzai from medium altitude and Trichogrammatoidea sp. nr. lutea also from medium altitude lived longer than other strains at all the temperatures and relative humidity levels evaluated, including the warmest regimes of 30 and 35°C. These strains appear promising as candidates for augmentative biocontrol of H. armigera in Kenya.
Desenvolvimento vegetativo em diferentes hastes da planta de mandioca em função da época de plantio

Studies on the vegetative development of cassava grown in subtropical conditions of Brazil are scarce. The objective of this study was to determine the phyllochron and the final leaf number on the main stem and on sympodial branches of a cassava variety grown in different planting dates in a subtropical climate. A field experiment was conducted in Santa Maria, RS, with four planting dates: 09/26/2006, 10/18/2006, 11/08/2006 and 11/28/2006. The variety FEPAGRO RS13, with tricotomic growth habit, was used in a complete randomized design with four treatments (planting dates) and four 4.0 x 9.0m plots with five rows and 0.8 x 0.8m spacing in each planting date. On the main stem (MS) and on the first order (BR1) and second order (BR2) sympodial branches of six plants per plot randomly selected, the number of visible leaves (NL) on a weekly basis, and the final leaf number (FLN) were measured. The phyllochron on MS, BR1 and BR2 was estimated by the inverse of the slope of the linear regression of NL against accumulated thermal time, assuming a base temperature of 14°C. Phyllochron increased in the sequence MS BR1>BR2. Both phyllochron and FLN varied according to planting date, with photoperiod being a possible cause of such variation. Within BR1 and BR2 sympodial branches, phyllochron and FLN were not different among stems.
Antidepressant effects of mono- and combined non-drug treatments for seasonal and non-seasonal depression

Abstract The involvement of chronobiological mechanisms in the antidepressant response to such non-drug treatments as bright light, physical exercise and sleep deprivation still remain to be clarified. We compare the efficacy of several treatment strategies for seasonal and non-seasonal depression and discuss possible the contribution of chronobiological and psychological mechanisms in antidepressant response. The therapeutic effects were tested at the medical academic hospital near Novosibirsk (55 degrees North) in 138 subjects, either with winter depression or with non-seasonal depression or without depression (n = 41, 64 and 33, respectively). One-week monotreatments were either 2-hour 2500 lux cool-white incandescent light from 14:00 (n = 9, 9, 9, respectively) or 1-hour physical exercise from 13:00 (n = 9, 9, 9, respectively). One-week combined treatments included a night of total sleep deprivation followed by either 2-hour bright light from 14:00 (n = 8, 12, 0, respectively) or 1-hour physical exercise either under ordinary room light from 13:00 (n = 0, 12, 0, respectively) or under bright light from 12:00 (n = 5, 11, 0, respectively). The results indicate that, in subjects left without antidepressant treatment for a week (n = 10, 11, and 15, respectively), the 21-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale score did not change significantly. The beneficial effects of total sleep deprivation were similar in seasonal and non-seasonal depression. The seasonals exhibited better response to bright light compared to non-seasonals. After sleep deprivation the substantial further improvements were produced by either lighting or exercising. Compared to the patients exercising under ordinary room light, the patients exercising under bright light did not gain an additional benefit. In general, winter depression was well-treated with either exercise or light, while the most promising treatment for non-seasonal depression was physical exercise combined with sleep deprivation. Bright light or physical exercise administered in the middle of the day were not less favorable compared to the treatments in the morning hours, although it is unlikely that they considerably challenged patient's chronobiology. It was concluded that the placebo effect would account for a large portion of clinical response to open non-pharmacological treatments. Therapeutic hops and visibility of such treatments would explain their high antidepressant efficacy in comparison with pharmacological trials applying a double blind cross-over design. In particular, the excellent response of patients with winter depression to light therapy might be related to their tendency to attribute a high symbolic value to bright light and associate their bad mood with a dark season.
Modeling Effects of Climate Change Policies on Small Farmer Households in the Amazon Basin, Brazil

Despite discussions on the effectiveness of carbon trade to reduce deforestation in the tropics, significant deforestation is expected to take place in the Amazon forest. Brazil is the fourth largest carbon emitter in the world, and nearly of 40% of its emission from deforestation come from smallholders. Smallholders can play a fundamental role in the conservation of carbon stocks due to their ability to adopt a highly diverse production system that does not require clearing of forest for production in the same way as soybean barons or cattle ranchers. This study analyzes potential effects of carbon trade policies on a typical 100-ha-smallholder farm located in the Transamazon highway, near Altamira in the eastern Brazilian Amazon. Land use change was estimated using an ethnographic linear programming model over a 5-yr period. Carbon trade increased their income by 9% and avoided the emission of 347 t of carbon, demonstrating the potential of climate payments with economic improvement of marginalized populations. The methodological approach could be used by decision makers to project the land use change of small farmers for more accurate analyses of cost and benefits of forest carbon projects to these important actors in the Amazon.
Nutrient limitation of phytoplankton growth in Arctic lakes of the lower Mackenzie River Basin, northern Canada

Water chemistry and the nutrients limiting phytoplankton growth were examined in lakes located in the Northwest Territories, Canada, along a transect from the Mackenzie River Delta south to Travaillant Lake. This 230 km stretch spans gradients in vegetation types (tundra to boreal forest) and elevation (flooded by the Mackenzie River versus higher elevation lakes). Total phosphorus concentrations generally were typical of oligotrophic lakes (<10 µg·L–1), while nitrate and orthophosphate concentrations were below detection limits. Although some growth was noted in bioassays receiving single additions of nitrogen (N) or phosphorus (P), the greatest growth occurred in those bioassays in which nitrogen and phosphorus were added. This suggests that phytoplankton in the majority of study lakes were strongly co-limited by N and P irrespective of watershed type and Mackenzie River influence. Furthermore, it suggests that algal communities will be highly responsive to anthropogenic disturbances, which result in in.
Crop damage increases with pest species diversity: evidence from potato tuber moths in the tropical Andes

Summary 1. Insect pests in agricultural systems are one of the major causes of damage to crop production and storage worldwide. However, the study of the effect of multiple pests on agricultural productivity has remained largely disconnected from the ongoing debate on how species diversity affects the productivity of ecosystems. The aim of our study is to use information from crop studies to inform the debate on species diversity and ecosystem productivity. 2. We present the results of an experimental study that manipulated the species richness of three tuber feeding moth species (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) at constant larval density. We measured the influence of this manipulation on (1) damage to the economically most important crop in the Andean region, the potato Solanum tuberosum and (2) the performance of the moths as a consequence of feeding rates. 3. Our results showed that the three pest species together cause more damage to the crop than is predicted from the effects of each pest alone. This resulted in significant increases in pupal biomass and fecundity. 4. Potential mechanisms to explain our results are (1) more complete resource utilization and thus greater crop damage (feeding complementarity) and (2) negative interactions, where intra-specific interactions are greater than inter-specific interactions. 5. Synthesis and applications. Our findings may have important consequences for integrated pest management in poor tropical countries. Biodiversity in many tropical countries is decreasing rapidly, leading to reductions in ecosystem services such as biocontrol and pollination. At the same time an increasing number of species, many of them agricultural pests, are being introduced by humans. Our results show that the potential complementarity effects among pest species may increase damage to field crops to a larger extent than previously expected. Control strategies to limit the introduction of new pest species are therefore urgently needed in these countries where the daily management of biological resources is largely in the hands of poor rural people and local government staff with limited funding.
Influence of barley and malt storage on lipoxygenase reaction

ABSTRACT The dioxygenation of linoleic acid (LA) by aqueous flour suspensions of barley and malting samples was studied. The rate of this lipoxygenase (LOX) reaction varied as the malting process proceeded, giving a characteristic LOX reaction profile for a malting. The differences in the profiles from one malting to another were dramatic. It also appeared that during storage of dry, intact kernel samples from a single malting, a reduction in the rate of LOX reaction always occurred, and the rates of reduction with time were dependent on the stage of malting at the time of sampling. The kinetics of this aging could roughly be divided into four categories representing different stages of malting. Consequently, greatly varying LOX reaction profiles can be obtained from a single malting depending on the time of storage of kernels before assays. The results indicate that steeping, germination and the subsequent drying render the state of kernels unstable with respect to the LOX reaction for at least two to th.
Separation of the β-Aspartamido-carbohydrate Fractions from Soybean 7S Protein: Protein-Carbohydrate Linkage

Using a Dowex 50–X2 column and eluting with a 1 mm sodium acetate buffer (pH 2.6), three l-β-aspartamido-carbohydrate (Asn-carbohydrate) fractions have been isolated in 19% yield from the pronase digest of a 7S soybean protein. The Asn-carbohydrates were composed of one asparagine, two glucosamine and seven, eight and nine mannose residues. Further, 1-l-β-aspartamido-2-acetamido-1,2-dideoxy-β-d-glucose (Asn-GlcNAc), which is derived from the protein-carbohydrate linkage, was produced by partial hydrolysis of the Asn-carbohydrates.
A qualitative study of the management and biosecurity practices of 13 interviewed pig owners selling via informal means in New South Wales, Australia

ThereisincreasinginterestinthetradingpracticesofproducerswhomarketpigsatliveauctioninAustraliaand the potential for infectious disease establishment and spread. The practices that underpin the commercial pork industry in Australiaarewellknown.However,littleisknownaboutinformalmovementsofpigsinAustralia,andthebiosecurityrisks associated with pig production enterprises that utilise these methods of trade. The aim of this study was to qualitatively evaluate the biosecurity and pig-keeping practices of owners who trade pigs informally for Foot and Mouth Disease and Classical Swine Fever exposure and spread. Interviews were conducted with 13 pig owners who trade via informal means between April and June 2009. Information provided by producers was able to be validated for the six interviews conducted on-farm.Therewaslimitedapplicationofrecommendedbiosecuritypracticeson-farmandfewkepthealthandmanagement records.All interviewees rearedother livestockspecies,such asruminants and/or poultry,as wellas pigs.Mostinterviewed owners claimed toquarantine introduced pigs fromthe main herd; however,few complied with industry recommendations. The results of this study suggest that pig owners (n = 13 interviewed) who currently trade their pigs informally pose few threats for the introduction of emergency animal disease. Pig keepers largely obtained their pig feed from reputable sources andappeared tohaveasound understandingof swillfeeding.However,thelackofon-farmbiosecurity, variablequarantine practices and the failure to keep health records could play a role in the spread of an emergency animal disease if it was to be introduced. Furtherworkisbeingundertaken todetermine, qualitatively, theriskassociatedwith themanagementpractices undertaken by informal pig traders and Foot and Mouth Disease and Classical Swine Fever introduction and spread.
Taxonomy of Alnus-Associated Hypogeous Species of Alpova and Melanogaster (Basidiomycota, Paxillaceae) in Europe

Abstract Morphological analysis of basidiomata of gastroid Boletales (Alpova and Melanogaster) found in relation with Alnus trees in France revealed the existence of five distinct Alnus-associated species: Alpova alpestris sp. nov., A. corsicus sp. nov., Melanogaster luteus Zeller, M. rivularis sp. nov., and an unnamed species (Alpova sp. related to the North American A. cinnamomeus). The genus Alpova is here restricted to its original sense, as Alnus-associated species with small spores and pseudoparenchymatic subpellis, and the presence of “buffer cells” in gleba. Phylogenetic position, host specificity and geographical distribution of each species are summarized.
Patterns of speciation in the genus Lopidea (Heteroptera: Miridae: Orthotylinae)

Abstract. Speciation in four monophyletic species groups of the mirid genus Lopidea is examined. An analysis of twelve speciation events suggests that vicariance can account for at least 50% of speciation in Lopidea, and the frequency of sympatric host plant speciation may be as high as 25%.
Birthweight has no influence on chemical body composition and muscle energy stores in suckling piglets

Economic losses in pig production are highly due to neonatal mortality and poor postnatal growth performances predominantly of low birthweight piglets. To explore underlying mechanisms, we describe in this paper the effects of age and birthweight on body composition and muscle energy stores. Different parameters were assessed in pairs of low birthweight (LBW, n = 32) and normal birthweight (NBW, n = 32) piglets, at Day 0 (n = 16), Day 3 (n = 16), Day 10 (n = 16) and Day 28 (n = 16) of age. In total six piglets (three LBW and three NBW) per age group were killed for chemical total body composition analysis. The M. semimembranosus of 10 additional piglets (five LBW and five NBW) per age group were sampled for the analysis of muscle lipid and glycogen contents. Fore none of the tested parameters differences related to birthweight were observed (P > 0.05). With increasing age, dry matter, fat and protein percentages increased in both LBW and NBW piglets (P 0.05). Muscle glycogen contents decreased with increasing age for both types of piglets (P 0.05). In conclusion, the age of the suckling piglet has a major impact on its body composition and muscle energy stores but its birthweight unexpectedly has no influence.
Forested Buffer Strips and Breeding Bird Communities in Southeast Alaska

Abstract Forested buffer strips are used to mitigate fragmentation and habitat loss and are a common feature in management of riparian landscapes. Low-elevation, old-growth coastal forests are a rare riparian habitat that can benefit from similar conservation measures. We evaluated the effectiveness of postlogging, forested buffer strips for forest-dwelling birds in the coastal temperate rainforest of southeast Alaska, USA. Our objective was to compare bird composition and density among forested buffer strips of differing widths and controls at the stand and landscape scales. We applied a 2-stage sampling design stratified by forested buffer width and randomly selected 24 managed and 18 control sites to sample over 2 breeding seasons. We estimated abundance of birds using the paired-observer, variable-circular plot method. We modeled combined effects of buffer width and vegetation and landscape characteristics on bird density at 2 spatial scales. Species richness and diversity were greatest in the narrowest buffers, but species composition in the largest buffers (≥400 m) was most similar to that in control blocks. Abundance of 3 of 10 common species differed across forested buffer treatments and controls. Densities of red-breasted sapsucker (Sphyrapicus ruber) and Pacific-slope flycatcher (Empidonax difficilis) were positively related to buffer width, whereas density of ruby-crowned kinglet (Regulus calendula) was negatively associated with buffer width. Parameter estimates for buffer width effects at both spatial scales were similar within species. We found few habitat and landscape variables that clearly affected density of our focal species, and among species no predictor variables affected density in a similar fashion. We recommend retaining forested buffers ≥400 m to support composition and abundance of forest-dwelling birds, particularly those species that rely on interior forest conditions.
An Electron Microscopic Study of Spermatogenesis in Marenzelleria viridis (Verrill, 1873) (Polychaeta; Spionidae)

Spermatogenesis in Marenzelleria viridis was studied by ultrastructural investigation. The testes are formed on the greatly ramified nephridial blood vessel and are enveloped by a thin layer of peritoneal cells. The spermatogonia vary in shape, are about 10 μm in diameter and are not linked by intercellular bridges. Pairs or tetrads of spermatocytes connected by intercellular bridges float freely in the coelomic cavity. A complex acrosome is produced by a Golgi complex. The acrosome consists of four to five different structures, forms cisternae and, in the mature spermatozoon, lies deep in an invagination of the nucleus. Two centrioles are also situated in a deep centriolar fossa, the proximal centriole being perpendicular to the distal one. The mature spermatozoon is an ect-aquasperm measuring about 5 μm in length and 2.5 μm in width. The midpiece consists of five spherical mitochondria arranged around the axoneme behind the nucleus. The axoneme is connected to the plasma membrane by a satellite complex. The microtubules of the flagellum are arranged in a typical 9 × 2 + 2 configuration. The spermatogenesis and the sperm morphology of M. viridis were compared with those of other members of the family Spionidae. Copyright © 1996 The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.
Light intensity alters the allelopathic effects of an exotic invader

Background: Conditionality in the occurrence or strength of interactions among species yields insight into the relative importance of different ecological factors and provides a deeper understanding of the mechanisms through which organisms interact. Aims: We explored light-dependent conditionality of the allelopathic effects of Centaurea stoebe, an exotic invasive forb in North America, on Koeleria macrantha, a North American native bunchgrass. Methods: We compared the total biomass of K. macrantha competing with C. stoebe in high- and low-light treatments and in substrate with and without activated carbon. Results: Koeleria biomass did not differ in low- and high-light treatments when grown alone and was highly suppressed by C. stoebe in both low and high light; however, high-light activated carbon treatments designed to ameliorate root-mediated allelopathic effects resulted in an almost seven-fold increase in Koeleria mass in comparison to no carbon treatments. Activated carbon had significant but much weaker positive effects in low light. Activated carbon had no effect on Koeleria in the absence of C. stoebe. Conclusions: Other research shows that C. stoebe decreases sharply in abundance under tree canopies, and under canopies its typically strong competitive effects on natives in open grasslands are reduced. Our results provide a hypothesis for these patterns, suggest a possible mechanism for light-dependent conditionality in the way plants interact, and suggest that in vivo greenhouse experiments at moderate light levels may provide conservative evidence for allelopathy.
Nutrition as a modulatory factor of the efficacy of live anticoccidial vaccines in broiler chickens

There has been growing interest in the development of natural methods of coccidiosis prophylaxis. Vaccination against coccidiosis with live oocysts is regarded as effective in the control of avian coccidiosis, but in some conditions, such as poor sanitary management or incorrect application of the vaccine, may lead to poorer performance, measured as reduced weight gain and feed efficiency, in comparison with prophylactically medicated birds. Such reports are the reason for widespread reluctance to use anticoccidial vaccine in broilers. This paper reviews broiler studies in which nutritional methods as performance and/or immune-supporting factor with regard to anticoccidial vaccination were investigated. The results of some of the studies presented in the article indicate that feed additives with immunostimulating properties, along with proper protein levels in the diet, may have a beneficial effect in cocci-vaccinated broilers.
Regenerative capacity of the optic tectum in Lacerta viridis

Abstract Regenerative capacity of the optic tectum in reptiles was studied in adults of Lacerta viridis kept for 24 hours at 4°C before extraction of a dorsomedial portion of the right optic tectum. Five months after surgery brain sections were prepared with standard autoradiographic techniques. From this investigation it emerged that five months after surgery, cell divisions in the brain were still very numerous, while in the lesioned area continuity of the ependyma had been regained. Above the ependyma in some areas, a zone of reformed nervous tissue was present with clear signs of cell and fibre stratification. These observations strengthen the hypothesis of a connection between loss of regenerative capacity by the C.N. S. with installation of blood-brain barrier and, conversely, of the reinstating of such capacity after alteration of this barrier.