Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fungal biota associated with bats in Western France

Bien que l'association entre mammiferes chiropteres (chauves-souris) et champignons pathogenes ait ete rapportee depuis longtemps en zone tropicale, une telle etude a notre connaissance n'a jamais ete realisee en Europe. L'analyse de la flore fongique associee a des chauves-souris europeennes a donc ete entreprise dans les Pays de la Loire (France) afin de determiner si ces animaux hebergent d'eventuelles especes pathogenes pour l'homme ou les animaux domestiques. Cent sept prelevements de pelage de chauve-souris appartenant a six especes differentes, ou de guano, ont ainsi ete effectues dans des cavernes de l'Ouest de la France, lors du recensement national annuel realise pendant la periode d'hibernation des animaux. Ces prelevements se repartissaient en 82 echantillons de guano et 25 ecouvillonnages du pelage. Les cultures ont revele une flore fongique d'une grande diversite, encore plus prononcee pour les Rhinolophides que pour les Vespertilionides. Parmi les champignons potentiellement pathogenes, des levures du genre Candida (C. glabrata et C. guilliermondii) ont ete identifiees, ainsi que huit especes de champignons keratinophiles :Trichophyton terrestre, Scopulariopsis brevicaulis, Aphanoascus fulvescens, Myceliophthora thermophila, Chrysosporium lobatum, Chrysosporium merdarium, Chrysosporium pseudomerdarium et Chrysosporium pruinosum. En outre, un champignon ressemblant a Histoplasma capsulatum a ete isole. Une identification approfondie est aujourd'hui en cours pour ce qui pourrait etre le premier isolement de cette espece dans l'environnement en France. Ces observations demontrent que plusieurs especes fongiques pathogenes pour l'homme ou les animaux domestiques sont associees aux chauves-souris. En outre, leur habitude de se rassembler, parfois en tres grand nombre dans certaines cavernes, contribue a creer un environnement favorable a la proliferation de ces champignons par l'apport d'elements tels que dechets keratiniques, dejections ou cadavres de chauve-souris. Cependant, nous pensons que l'habitat particulier des chauves-souris fait qu'elles ne constituent pas un reel danger pour la sante humaine ou animale.
The structure and function of the human ghrelin receptor

The peptide hormone, ghrelin, exerts its physiological effects through a G-protein-coupled receptor called the ghrelin-R. The ghrelin-R displays a high degree of constitutive activity, signalling through the inositol phosphate pathway in the absence of bound agonist. TMs III and VI have been reported to be central to the activation of Family A GPCRs, with interactions between the two helices stabilising the ground state. During activation conformational rearrangements result in these interactions being broken, with new contacts forming and stabilising the active state. Investigation of the ghrelin-R constitutive activity gives an insight into the mechanisms involved in receptor activation. In this study the role of specific individual residues in the ghrelin-R has been investigated and the effect of disrupting or introducing intramolecular interactions was addressed. Site-directed mutagenesis and functional assays revealed that ghrelin-R constitutive activity can be increased and decreased with mutation of residues within the TM domains, specifically TMs III, VI and VII. The extracellular loops have been found to be involved in ligand binding and activation in a number of Family A GPCRs. The residues within ECL2 of the ghrelin-R were systematically mutated to alanine to determine their role. In particular, one residue, Asn196, was identified as being critical in ghrelin-R function and may be forming stabilising interactions which maintain ghrelin-R constitutive activity. The data presented in this thesis provide an insight into the structure and function of the ghrelin-R and the underlying molecular mechanisms of ghrelin-R constitutive activity.
Passiflora Incarnata Linn: A Review on Morphology, Phytochemistry and Pharmacological Aspects

This review gives an account of the current knowledge on the morphology, phytochemistry and pharmacological aspects of Passiflora incarnata. A wide range of chemical compounds has been isolated, mainly alkaloids, flavonoids, phenols and carbohydrates. P. incarnata has been described as passion flower and used extensively for treatment of several diseases like anxiety, insomnia, convulsion, sexual dysfunction, cough and cancer. Hence the present article includes the detailed exploration of morphology, phytochemistry and pharmacological aspects of P. incarnata is an attempt to provide a direction for further research.
Improved detection of citrus psorosis virus using polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies

Citrus psorosis is a serious and widespread disease associated with citrus psorosis virus (CPsV), a novel filamentous negative-stranded virus in the genus Ophiovirus. Laborious and costly indexing on test plants has been the only routine diagnostic method available, but recently an antiserum usable in double antibody sandwich (DAS) ELISA has been prepared. Here, major improvements to the DAS-ELISA protocol, a new purification method, and production of two monoclonal antibodies (mabs) to CPsV, an IgG and an IgM are reported. A highly sensitive triple antibody sandwich (TAS) ELISA making use of the mabs is described. In glasshouse citrus the homologous virus was still detectable at a tissue dilution of 1/6250 in DAS and at 1/31250 in TAS-ELISA. Both the DAS and IgG mab-TAS formats detected all CPsV isolates so far tested (from Argentina, Italy, Lebanon, Spain and the USA). A few isolates were not detected by the IgM mab.
Coupling of 5‐HT1A autoreceptors to inhibition of mitogen‐activated protein kinase activation via Gβγ subunit signaling

The 5‐HT1A receptor is expressed presynaptically as the primary somatodendritic autoreceptor on serotonergic raphe neurons, and postsynaptically in several brain regions. Signaling of the 5‐HT1A autoreceptor was studied in RN46A cells, a model of serotonergic raphe neurons that express endogenous 5‐HT1A receptors. In undifferentiated RN46A cells stably transfected with the wild‐type 5‐HT1A receptor, 5‐HT1A receptor activation inhibited forskolin‐induced cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) formation (by 50%), increased [Ca2+]i, and induced a novel inhibition (up to 60%) of phospho‐p42/p44‐mitogen‐activated protein kinase (MAPK). Upon differentiation of non‐transfected or 5‐HT1A‐transfected RN46A cells, agonist‐mediated inhibition of MAPK was enhanced. These actions were blocked by pretreatment with pertussis toxin indicating mediation via Gi/Go proteins and the calcium response was blocked by preactivation of protein kinase C (PKC). In cells overexpressing the Gβγ scavenger carboxyl‐terminal domain of G protein receptor kinase 2 (GRK‐CT), 5‐HT1A receptor activation inhibited cAMP formation, but coupling to calcium mobilization and inhibition of MAPK was abolished. The activity of 5‐HT1A receptors containing mutations of PKC sites in the second (i2: T149A) or third intracellular loop (i3: T229A/S253G/T343A) was tested. At comparable levels of receptor expression, the signaling of the 5‐HT1A i3 mutant was similar to the 5‐HT1A wild‐type receptor, while the i2 and quadruple (i2/i3) mutants failed to couple to Gβγ‐mediated increase in [Ca2+]i or inhibition of MAPK, but did couple to Gαi‐mediated inhibition of cAMP. Thus, the i2‐domain of the 5‐HT1A autoreceptor is crucial for coupling to Gβγ subunits and their subsequent responses (e.g. calcium mobilization and inhibition of MAPK activity).
Towards the directed evolution of an L-aspartate oxidase from Pseudomonas putida

Amino acid oxidases (AAOs) are enantioselective flavoenzymes that catalyse the oxidation of amino acids into imino acids, which spontaneously hydrolyse in water to form keto acids. AAOs have several potential applications, most notably as biocatalysts in the production of enantiomerically pure amino acids and keto acids, or in enzymatic biosensors. Therefore, there is a demand for a range of AAOs with specific activity against various substrates, encouraging the characterisation of less well understood oxidases. Seven putative oxidases were cloned into the pET-YSBLIC-3C expression vector, expressed in E. coli-DE3 expression strains and assayed for activity against all proteinogenic amino acids. Of these seven targets, the L-amino acid oxidase from Pseudomonas putida (PpLAAO) was found to be highly soluble, had detectable activity against L-aspartate and L-asparagine and had not been investigated in depth previously. The purified PpLAAO protein showed high substrate specificity against L-aspartate and lower activity with substrate inhibition against L-asparagine. Very low activity was also detected against L-glutamate. The purified protein had optimal activity around pH 7.5 and at temperatures between 4°C and 30°C. To investigate the role of residues in the active site area of the PpLAAO protein thirteen active site residues, determined by comparison with the structure of the L-aspartate oxidase from E. coli (L-AspO), were mutated to alanine. Eleven of these mutants were purified and assayed against L-aspartate, L-asparagine and L-glutamate. Results were largely consistent with knowledge of L-AspO. Ingenza Ltd. has an interest in potential applications of L-tyrosine and L-alanine oxidases. Because of this iterative combinatorial active site saturation testing, using the active structure of L-AspO was performed alongside a small scale epPCR mutagenesis in an attempt to introduce activity against L-alanine and L-tyrosine. L-homoserine was also targeted as part of a substrate walking approach towards L-alanine; however no novel activity was detected in any transformants.
P2x Receptor Function in Lymnaea Stagnalis and Other Lower Organisms

BAVAN, S. , STRAUB, V. A. , & ENNION, S. J. (2008) Pharmacological characterisation of a P2X receptor cloned from the central nervous system of Lymnaea stagnalis. Purinergic Signal. 2008 May; 4(Suppl 1): 1–210. Purines 2008, Copenhagen. Journal paper publication: BAVAN, S. , STRAUB, V. A. , BLAXTER, M. L. & ENNION, S. J. (2009) A P2X receptor from the tardigrade species Hypsibius dujardini with fast kinetics and sensitivity to zinc and copper. BMC Evol Biol, 9, 17.
Do hot spots of breeding birds serve as surrogate hot spots of wintering birds? An example from central Spain

The lack of information on the protection status of birds in the winter period is a serious concern, as the survival of many populations depends on this period. Here, we consider the seasonal changes in distribution patterns of bird species in central Spain to assess the value of protected areas (PA) for simultaneously conserving breeding and wintering avifauna. We used a stepwise algorithm of complementarity to select the minimum set of Universal Transverse Mercator 10 × 10‐km squares containing all species at each period and then contrasted selected areas in order to test the degree to which breeding and wintering birds overlap. Using Gap analysis, we identified areas that are still unprotected. Our results show both a weak correlation and a scant overlap between areas that are important for bird conservation during breeding and wintering periods. Thus, we conclude that valuable areas for bird diversity differ between seasons, implying that breeding hot spots are not good surrogates for overwintering hot spots. This paper addresses the need of identifying not only important areas for breeding birds, but also wintering birds, revealing potential gaps in current PA networks. Future conservation policies should take these results into account in order to optimize bird conservation, especially considering that the appropriate protection of the bird species overwintering in Spain will, overall, benefit European breeding populations.
A new family of diminutive zooxanthellate zoanthids (Hexacorallia: Zoantharia)

A new family, genus, and species of zooxanthellate macrocnemic zoanthid is described from Okinawa, Japan. The diminutive zoanthid Nanozoanthus harenaceus sp. nov. occurs in sandy ‘pools’ upon hard substrates in coral reefs. The results of molecular phylogenetic analyses of mitochondrial 16S ribosomal DNA and cytochrome c oxidase subunit I suggests that Nanozoanthidae fam. nov. is genetically close to family Microzoanthidae and Isozoanthus sulcatus at the intrafamily–suborder level. The Nanozoanthidae fam. nov.–Microzoanthidae clade is clearly highly divergent from all other known zoanthid families and from the order Actiniaria at the suborder level or higher. These results demonstrate that much high-level (e.g. above genus) diversity remains to be described within the order Zoantharia, and until such work is complete it will be difficult to completely understand their biodiversity. © 2013 The Linnean Society of London
METABOLIC MARKERS OF CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE AND TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS IN VARIOUS CLINICAL AND MORPHOLOGICAL FORMS OF NONALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE IN PATIENTS WITH ABDOMINAL OBESITY

Objective: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is closely associated with obesity and metabolic syndrome (MS). Liver biopsy can verify the histological form of NAFLD. The aim of the study was to evaluate the relationship between histological indicators of liver damage and metabolic parameters. Material and methods: 80 patients, median age 45 [41.5; 47.5], with abdominal obesity and US signs of NAFLD were included in the study. All patients underwent percutaneous liver biopsy. Glucose levels during OGTT, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL), triglycerides (TG), ALT, and AST were measured. Fasting insulin, serum adiponectin, C-reactive protein (CRP) and active plasminogen antigen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) were determined. Results: NAFLD was confirmed in 77 patients (96.3%), NASH  in 64 cases (80%), steatosis - in 11 cases (13.8%). In patients with steatosis, 72.7% had dyslipidemia, 63.6% had impaired glucose metabolism, 63.6% had insulin resistance (IR); with NASH  in 93.8%, 78.1% and 100%, respectively. Adiponectin level correlated negatively with IR indicators: HOMA-IR (r = - 0.45; p = 0.023) and fasting insulin (r = - 0.35; p = 0.024). NASH patients had significantly higher levels of CRP than those with steatosis: 3.8 [2.1; 6.7] mg/L vs 1,1 [1.0; 1.7] mg/L, (p
Chromosomes in the Clinic: The Visual Localization and Analysis of Genetic Disease in the Human Genome

This dissertation examines the visual cultures of postwar biomedicine, with a particular focus on how various techniques, conventions, and professional norms have shaped the `look', classification, diagnosis, and understanding of genetic diseases. Many scholars have previously highlighted the `informational' approaches of postwar genetics, which treat the human genome as an expansive data set comprised of three billion DNA nucleotides. Since the 1950s however, clinicians and genetics researchers have largely interacted with the human genome at the microscopically visible level of chromosomes. Mindful of this, my dissertation examines the `observational' approaches of postwar genetics. This is accomplished through a series of case studies, which examine the visual delineation, diagnosis, and genomic localization of a number of disorders. My case studies explore various exemplary attempts to associate particular clinical disorders with specific genetic mutations. This dissertation uses archival resources, oral histories, and the published biomedical literature to examine the many successes of postwar biomedicine, and to highlight the contributions made by a wide rage of biomedical professionals. I find that the visible, tangible human genome, as conceived and depicted at the level of chromosomes, has become an important work object among a diverse array of practitioners. Chromosomal ideograms, I argue, provide an important basis for communication and common practices among this community. While genetic data is becoming increasingly significant to our understanding of human disease, distinguishing the normal from the pathological remains a task that relies on input from the laboratory and the clinic. Thus, the success of postwar genetic medicine must be seen in light of the contributions of biomedical actors from many disciplines, who have agreed to see and communicate about the human genome their object of study in standardized ways. Degree Type Dissertation Degree Name Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Graduate Group History and Sociology of Science First Advisor Susan Lindee
The Fanconi anemia (FA)/BRCA DNA damage repair pathway is regulated by NF-kappaB and mediates drug resistance in multiple myeloma

The Fanconi Anemia (FA)/BRCA DNA damage repair pathway plays a critical role in the cellular response to stress induced by DNA alkylating agents and greatly influences drug response in cancer treatment. We recently reported that FA/BRCA DNA damage repair pathway genes are overexpressed and causative for resistance in multiple myeloma (MM) cell lines selected for resistance to melphalan. We hypothesized that the FA/BRCA DNA damage repair pathway mediates response and resistance to chemotherapeutic agents used to treat multiple myeloma and other cancers, and targeting this pathway is vital to overcoming drug resistance. In this dissertation, we show that FA/BRCA pathway genes are collectively overexpressed in MM, prostate, and ovarian cancer cell lines selected for resistance to melphalan and cisplatin, respectively. Interestingly, cells selected for resistance to topoisomerase II inhibitors selectively overexpress only FANCF. We also show that FA/BRCA pathway expression can be inhibited by the proteasome inhibitor bortezomib. FA/BRCA pathway mRNA expression was inhibited by bortezomib in myeloma cell lines and patient samples. FANCD2 gene and protein expression are downregulated by bortezomib, and remain attenuated in the face of melphalan treatment. Melphalan-induced FANCD2 foci formation was also x inhibited by bortezomib, and this drug enhanced melphalan-induced DNA damage, likely via inhibition of FA-mediated DNA damage repair. Next, we analyzed regulation of the FA/BRCA pathway. We demonstrate that NF-B, specifically the RelB/p50 subunits, transcriptionally regulates members of the FA/BRCA pathway, and inhibition of these subunits by siRNA, BMS-345541, and bortezomib reduces FA/BRCA pathway expression. Furthermore, knocking down RelB and p50 simultaneously attenuates FANCD2 protein expression and results in diminished DNA repair and enhanced sensitivity to melphalan. Importantly, melphalan resistance was restored when FANCD2 was re-expressed in these cells. We also show that bortezomib regulates FANCD2 protein expression directly, by inhibiting FANCD2 synthesis. Finally, we demonstrate that low-dose bortezomib arrests cells in G0/G1 and also overcomes the S-phase arrest induced by melphalan, likely via inhibition of ATR. Overall, our findings provide evidence for targeting the FA/BRCA pathway, either directly or indirectly, via inhibition of NF-B or ATR, to enhance chemotherapeutic response and reverse drug resistance in multiple myeloma and other cancers.
Impact of Strategic Human Resource Management on Organizational Performance of the Cable Industry in Sri Lanka

The financial year of 2017 and 2018 marked drastic changes to the cable industry in Sri Lanka due to unexpected and unfavorable economic and external trends. As a result, the cable industry underwent a huge transition in terms of diminishing profits, losing the existing competitive edge and facing difficulties in sustaining in the market. Therefore, as a long term solution, the cable industry shifted their management focus from managing imitable resources to managing people for better results for their long term sustainability. Hence this research is an attempt to explore the impact of Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) on Organizational Performance of the Cable Industry in Sri Lanka and the mediating role played by Organizational Climate. Accordingly, three variables were conceptualized; Strategic Human Resource Management as the independent variable; organizational performance as the dependent variable; and organizational climate as the mediating variable. For the purpose of the study 126 respondents of the managerial staff of the cable industry was selected using systematic random sampling to obtain their views. Questionnaires were distributed to the respondents personally via email and data were collected which were analyzed using inferential and descriptive statistics. The research findings revealed that there is a positive linear relationship between SHRM and organizational performance, SHRM and organizational climate and organizational climate and organizational performance and that there is a mediating effect of organizational climate on the relationship between SHRM and organizational performance.
Effects of Partridge Pea-Peanut Rotations on Populations of Meloidogyne arenaria, Incidence of Sclerotium rolfsii, and Yield of Peanut

The value of partridge pea (Cassia fasciculata) as a rotation crop for the management of root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne arenaria) and southern blight (Sclerotium rolfsii) in 'Florunner' peanut (Arachis hypogaea) was assessed in a 6-year field experiment. Partridge pea did not support significant numbers of M. arenaria juveniles in soil. When peanut followed partridge pea, the numbers of juveniles were always lower than in plots with continuous peanut. Aldicarb applied to peanut following 2 years of partridge pea resulted in increased yields over continuous peanut without nematicide. When the nematicide was applied to peanut following 1 year of partridge pea, yields were improved in 2 out of the three years when peanuts were planted in this cropping system. Peanut without nematicide following 1 year of partridge pea yielded more than peanut monoculture in only 1 out of the 3 years when peanuts were planted in this system. Yields of peanut without nematicide following 2 years of partr
Biological Control of Rhizoctonia solani AG1-1A, the Causal Agent of Rice Sheath Blight with Trichoderma Strains

Sheath blight caused by Rhizoctonia solani is one of the most serious rice diseases worldwide. The disease is currently managed only by the excessive application of chemical fungicides which are toxic and not environmentally friendly. Therefore, greater emphasis should be given to biological control as being both safe and effective. Trichoderma species are ubiquitous fungi in the soil and have an antagonistic activity against several soil-borne plant pathogens including R. solani . The present study was undertaken to evaluate the potential of indigenous Trichoderma strains from Mazandaran province, Northern Iran (a Mediterranean region on the southern coast of the Caspian Sea) against R. solani AG1-IA in vitro, and against sheath blight disease in the glasshouse, in order to find biocontrol isolates for application in the field. More than 200 Trichoderma strains were isolated from the soil, plant debris and the phyllosphere in rice felds. Strains were first screened for their antagonism to R. solani by in vitro antagonism tests including dual culture, antibiosis, the effect of Trichoderma strains on the production and viability of R. solani sclerotia, and hyperparasitism on microscopic slides. According to the in vitro experiments, several strains belonging to T. harzianum , T. virens and T. atroviride showed excellent biocontrol. These potential antagonist strains were further evaluated for their effectiveness in controlling sheath blight under glasshouse conditions. Among the 55 selected strains, seven significantly controlled the disease. T. harzianum AS12-2 was the most effective strain in controlling rice sheath blight, better even than propiconazole, the most commonly used fungicide in Iran.