Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Residence Time and Seasonal Movements of Juvenile Coho Salmon in the Ecotone and Lower Estuary of Winchester Creek, South Slough, Oregon

Abstract The juvenile life history of coho salmon Oncorhynchus kisutch in the stream−estuary ecotone of Winchester Creek, South Slough, Oregon, was investigated in 1999–2001. Seines and a rotary screw trap were used to capture fish for dye-marking, and residence time within the ecotone was determined for recaptured marked fish. In the lower estuary, ultrasonic transmitters were used to document residence time and patterns of movement for smolts migrating to the ocean. Nearly half of each brood year moved to the estuary as subyearlings. A portion of age-0 juveniles that moved downstream during spring lived in the ecotone through summer for up to 8 months, then most moved back upstream to overwinter. Fish that moved to the ecotone during fall and winter had mean minimum residence times of 48 d in 1999 and 64 d in 2000. Some of the fish that moved to the ecotone during fall and winter moved into an off-channel beaver pond and resided there for a mean of 49 d. Spring age-1 smolts had a mean minimum residence .
Home Ranges in the Trees: Radiotelemetry of the Prehensile Tailed Skink, Corucia zebrata

Abstract Corucia zebrata (Scincidae) is endemic to the Solomon Archipelago and widely distributed across the island group. Corucia is evolutionarily distinct and diverged from its nearest relatives about 30 MYA. Little is known about its life history, basic ecology, or behavior in the wild. We conducted a six-week study of movement patterns of C. zebrata on the island of Ugi to determine home-range sizes and overlap among conspecifics. Twenty-five lizards were fitted with radio transmitters and were followed for periods of 5–38 days. Telemetry results indicated that the average home range over the period studied was equivalent to the canopy of one tree. Radio-tagged individuals were located more often in the canopy than on the trunk of the tree, where humans typically search for the lizards. The home range is smaller than expected for a similar-sized herbivorous lizard occupying a terrestrial habitat, but the small home range is consistent with results from other arboreal animals. The study increased our knowledge of the behavior and habitat preferences of an ecologically unusual lizard species. We noted that conventional survey methods, searching tree trunk habitats, have low detection probability, an important consideration for further ecological studies of the species, in particular for the purpose of assessing its conservation status.
Diatom community biodiversity in an Alpine protected area: a study in the Maritime Alps Natural Park

As part of the "All Taxa Biodiversity Inventories" (ATBIs) coordinated by the European Distributed Institute of Taxonomy (EDIT), we analysed diatom communities colonizing different habitats of the Valasco Valley (Maritime Alps Natural Park). The aim of this research was to shed light on the diatom richness in an Alpine context through i) the collection of data concerning diatom communities inhabiting an unexplored watershed of the Maritime Alps Natural Park, including all of the most important aquatic habitats (comparison among river, springs and peat bogs) and assemblages (epilithic and epiphytic diatom communities); ii) analysis of the main environmental factors driving the development of diatom communities in different habitats. We completed a list of 174 diatom taxa. In general, river samples were poorer in terms of species richness than spring and peat bog ones, probably due to the selective role of the fast flow, while springs sheltered the highest biodiversity of the Valasco Valley. Peat bog communities were mainly composed of acidophilous taxa, sometimes planktonic and forming colonies. Epilithic and epiphytic samples did not show significant differences in terms of composition and biodiversity, even though it was statistically possible to identify indicator species for each assemblage. The study also highlighted the presence of several taxa included in the German Red List as endangered or decreasing, especially in the epiphytic samples. Since the water nutrient level and substrate geology were similar among habitats, the main environmental factors shaping Valasco diatom communities were water velocity and pH.
Strong Azimuthal Combustion Instabilities in a Spray Annular Chamber With Intermittent Partial Blow-Off

This article reports experiments carried out in the MICCA-Spray combustor developed at EM2C laboratory. This sys-tem comprises 16 swirl spray injectors. Liquid n-heptane is injected by simplex atomizers. The combustion chamber is formed by two cylindrical quartz tubes allowing full optical access to the ﬂame region and it is equipped with twelve pressure sensors recording signals in the plenum and chamber. A high-speed camera provides images of the ﬂames and pho-tomultipliers record the light intensity from different ﬂames. For certain operating conditions, the system exhibits well de-ﬁned instabilities coupled by the ﬁrst azimuthal mode of the chamber at a frequency of 750 Hz. These instabilities occur in the form of bursts. Examination of the pressure and the light intensity signals gives access to the acoustic energy source term. Analysis of the phase ﬂuctuations between the two signals is carried out using cross-spectral analysis. At limit cycle, large pressure ﬂuctuations of 5000 Pa are reached, and these levels persist over a ﬁnite period of time. Analysis of the signals using the spin ratio indicates that the standing mode is predominant. Flame dynamics at the pressure anti-nodal line reveals a strong longitudinal pulsation with heat release rate oscillations in phase and increasing linearly with the acoustic pressure for every oscillation levels. At the pressure nodal line, the ﬂames are subjected to large transverse velocity ﬂuctuations leading to a transverse motion of the ﬂames and partial blow-off. Scenarios and modeling elements are developed to interpret these features
Usefull heterosis for yield and its components in okra [Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) Moench]

The experiment was conducted of 36 F1s developed through line x tester technique along with 15 parents in randomized block design with three replications at the Department of Vegetable Science, C.S. A. Uni. of Agric. and Technology, Kalyanpur, Kanpur during Kharif 2005, The heterosis in F1 lover economic parent (KS-404) for twelve characters viz., days to flowering, height of plant (cm), number of branches per plant, number of first fruiting node, length of first fruiting node (cm), number of node per plant, length of inter node (cm), length of fruit (cm), width of fruit (cm), Tapering length of fruit (cm), number of fruits per plant and yield per plant (g), The significant amount of useful heterosis was observed for all the attributes, However the maximum heterosis with the respect to yield per plant was observed in cross KS-455 x Prabhani Kranti (36.85%), Significant and desirable heterosis was also reported for all the characters in most of the crosses, which indicated that the most part of heterosis was due to the dominance and dominance x dominance types of interaction and less for additive x dominance type of gene effect.
Temperature-Dependent Compatible and Incompatible Pollen-Style Interactions in Citrus clementina Hort. ex Tan. Show Different Transglutaminase Features and Polyamine Pattern

In clementine, failure of fertilization can result in parthenocarpic fruit development, which has several advantages, such as seedless fruit, longer shelf-life, and greater consumer appeal. Recently, S-RNases have been identified in Citrus grandis, thus revealing that the self-incompatibility (SI) reaction relies on the S-RNase gametophytic mechanism. The fundamental role of environmental factors, mostly temperature, in determining the numbers of pollen tubes reaching the ovary is also well established in Citrus. In the present work, temperature-dependent pollen–pistil interactions in C. clementina were analyzed, focusing on several morphological aspects, as well as on polyamine (PA) content and the activity and distribution of transglutaminase (TGase), both reported to be involved in the SI response in pear and in pummelo. Results clearly indicate that temperature contributed to a different activation of the SI response, which occurs at optimal temperature of 25°C but was by-passed at 15°C. TGase activity was stimulated during the SI response, and it localized differently in the compatible and incompatible interaction: in compatible pollinated styles, TGase localized inside the style canal, while it was detected all around it in incompatible crosses. TGase localization and activity were congruent with the levels of soluble and insoluble conjugated PAs and with morphological evidences, which highlighted cell wall modification occurring as a result of SI.
Selenomethionine Suppressed TLR4/NF-κB Pathway by Activating Selenoprotein S to Alleviate ESBL Escherichia coli-Induced Inflammation in Bovine Mammary Epithelial Cells and Macrophages

Inflammation is the hallmark of extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli-induced bovine mastitis. Organic selenium can activate pivotal proteins in immune responses and regulate the immune system. The present study aimed to investigate whether selenomethionine (SeMet) attenuates ESBL E. coli-induced inflammation in bovine mammary epithelial cells (bMECs) and macrophages. Cells were treated with 0, 5/10, 10/20, 20/40, or 40/60 μM SeMet for 12 h and/or inoculated with ESBL-E. coli [multiplicity of infection (MOI) = 5] for 4/6 h, respectively. We assessed inflammatory responses, including selenoprotein S (SeS), Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), Ikappa-B (IκB), phospho-NF-κB p65 (Ser536), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activities. Treatment with 40/60 μM SeMet promoted cell viability and inhibited LDH activities in both bMECs and macrophages. Inoculation with ESBL-E. coli reduced cell viability, which was attenuated by SeMet treatment in bMECs and macrophages. SeMet increased ESBL E. coli-induced downregulation of SeS and decreased LDH activities, TLR4, IκB, phospho-NF-κB p65 (Ser536), IL-1β, and TNF-α protein expressions in bMECs and macrophages. In addition, knockdown of SeS promoted protein expression of TLR4-mediated nuclear factor-kappa (NF-κB) pathway and BAY 11-708 inhibited TNF-α and IL-1β protein levels in bMECs and macrophages after ESBL-E. coli treatment. Moreover, ESBL-E. coli inoculation increased monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 (MCP-1), C–C motif ligand 3 (CCL-3), and CCL-5 mRNA expressions in bMECs. In conclusion, ESBL-E. coli induced expression of MCP-1, CCL-3, and CCL-5 in bMECs and then recruited and activated macrophages, whereas SeMet attenuated ESBL E. coli-induced inflammation through activated SeS-mediated TLR4/NF-κB signaling pathway in bMECs and macrophages.
Effect of Gongronema latifolium crude leaf extract on some cardiac enzymes of alloxan-induced diabetic rats

The effect of Gongronema latifolium on serum cardiac enzymes in alloxan induced diabetic rat models and normal control rats were determined using graded doses of 80% ethanol extract of G. latifolium leaf. The serum activities of aspartate aminotransferase (AST), creatine kinase (CK), creatine kinase isoenzyme (CKMB) and lactate dehydrogenase (LD) were determined in diabetic Wistar albino rats; diabetic control and normal Wistar albino rats after 2 weeks administration of G. latifolium leaf extract. Serum CKMB and LD activities of all the experimental groups significantly (p 0.001) increased in diabetic rats when compared to non-diabetic rats. CK and LD decreased significantly in diabetic and non-diabetic rats treated with G. latifolium leaf extract when compared with the control. Equally, CKMB and LD of diabetic rats treated with G. latifolium leaf extract decreased significantly except CMB of group 4 and LD of group 3 animals. There were significant (p 0.001) decreased activity of serum AST in diabetic rats when compared to the non-diabetic rats. However, AST did not change significantly in non-diabetic rats while in diabetic rats AST increased significantly (p 0.001) when compared with their respective controls. These data suggest that the effects of G. latifolium leaf extract at our concentrations are not dose dependent and hepatotoxic. The extract of this plant is likely to be of biological significance in cardiovascular complication of diabetic and non-diabetic users.
The Essential Role of Selenoproteins in the Resolution of Citrobacter rodentium-Induced Intestinal Inflammation

Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) leads to adverse colonic inflammation associated with poor resolution of inflammation and loss of epithelial integrity. Micronutrient trace element selenium (Se) is incorporated into selenoproteins as the 21st amino acid, selenocysteine (Sec). Previous studies have shown that such an incorporation of Sec into the selenoproteome is key for the anti-inflammatory functions of Se in macrophages and other immune cells. An intriguing mechanism underlying the anti-inflammatory and pro-resolving effects of Se stems from the ability of selenoproteins to skew arachidonic acid metabolism from pro-inflammatory mediators, prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) toward anti-inflammatory mediators derived from PGD2, such as 15-deoxy-Δ12, 14- prostaglandin J2 (15d-PGJ2), via eicosanoid class switching of bioactive lipids. The impact of Se and such an eicosanoid-class switching mechanism was tested in an enteric infection model of gut inflammation by C. rodentium, a murine equivalent of EPEC. C57BL/6 mice deficient in Se (Se-D) experienced higher mortality when compared to those on Se adequate (0.08 ppm Se) and Se supplemented (0.4 ppm Se) diets following infection. Decreased survival was associated with decreased group 3 innate lymphoid cells (ILC3s) and T helper 17 (Th17) cells in colonic lamina propria of Se-D mice along with deceased expression of epithelial barrier protein Zo-1. Inhibition of metabolic inactivation of PGE2 by 15-prostaglandin dehydrogenase blocked the Se-dependent increase in ILC3 and Th17 cells in addition to reducing epithelial barrier integrity, as seen by increased systemic levels of FITC-dextran following oral administration; while 15d-PGJ2 administration in Se-D mice alleviated the effects by increasing ILC3 and Th17 cells. Mice lacking selenoproteins in monocyte/macrophages via the conditional deletion of the tRNA[Sec] showed increased mortality post infection. Our studies indicate a crucial role for dietary Se in the protection against inflammation following enteric infection via immune mechanisms involving epithelial barrier integrity.
IgG Suppresses Antibody Responses to Sheep Red Blood Cells in Double Knock-Out Mice Lacking Complement Factor C3 and Activating Fcγ-Receptors

Antigen-specific IgG antibodies, passively administered together with erythrocytes, prevent antibody responses against the erythrocytes. The mechanism behind the suppressive ability of IgG has been the subject of intensive studies, yet there is no consensus as to how it works. An important question is whether the Fc-region of IgG is required. Several laboratories have shown that IgG suppresses equally well in wildtype mice and mice lacking the inhibitory FcγIIB, activating FcγRs (FcγRI, III, and IV), or complement factor C3. These observations consistently suggest that IgG-mediated suppression does not rely on Fc-mediated antibody functions. However, it was recently shown that anti-KEL sera failed to suppress antibody responses to KEL-expressing transgenic mouse erythrocytes in double knock-out mice lacking both activating FcγRs and C3. Yet, in the same study, antibody-mediated suppression worked well in each single knock-out strain. This unexpected observation suggested Fc-dependence of IgG-mediated suppression and prompted us to investigate the issue in the classical experimental model using sheep red blood cells (SRBC) as antigen. SRBC alone or IgG anti-SRBC together with SRBC was administered to wildtype and double knock-out mice lacking C3 and activating FcγRs. IgG efficiently suppressed the IgM and IgG anti-SRBC responses in both mouse strains, thus supporting previous observations that suppression in this model is Fc-independent.
Characterization of a Novel Compound That Stimulates STING-Mediated Innate Immune Activity in an Allele-Specific Manner

The innate immune response to cytosolic DNA involves transcriptional activation of type I interferons (IFN-I) and proinflammatory cytokines. This represents the culmination of intracellular signaling pathways that are initiated by pattern recognition receptors that engage DNA and require the adaptor protein Stimulator of Interferon Genes (STING). These responses lead to the generation of cellular and tissue states that impair microbial replication and facilitate the establishment of long-lived, antigen-specific adaptive immunity. Ultimately this can lead to immune-mediated protection from infection but also to the cytotoxic T cell-mediated clearance of tumor cells. Intriguingly, pharmacologic activation of STING-dependent phenotypes is known to enhance both vaccine-associated immunogenicity and immune-based anti-tumor therapies. Unfortunately, the STING protein exists as multiple variant forms in the human population that exhibit differences in their reactivity to chemical stimuli and in the intensity of molecular signaling they induce. In light of this, STING-targeting drug discovery efforts require an accounting of protein variant-specific activity. Herein we describe a small molecule termed M04 that behaves as a novel agonist of human STING. Importantly, we find that the molecule exhibits a differential ability to activate STING based on the allelic variant examined. Furthermore, while M04 is inactive in mice, expression of human STING in mouse cells rescues reactivity to the compound. Using primary human cells in ex vivo assays we were also able to show that M04 is capable of simulating innate responses important for adaptive immune activation such as cytokine secretion, dendritic cell maturation, and T cell cross-priming. Collectively, this work demonstrates the conceivable utility of a novel agonist of human STING both as a research tool for exploring STING biology and as an immune potentiating molecule.
Artificial Venus Flytraps: A Research Review and Outlook on Their Importance for Novel Bioinspired Materials Systems

Bioinspired and biomimetic soft machines rely on functions and working principles that have been abstracted from biology but that have evolved over 3.5 billion years. So far, few examples from the huge pool of natural models have been examined and transferred to technical applications. Like living organisms, subsequent generations of soft machines will autonomously respond, sense, and adapt to the environment. Plants as concept generators remain relatively unexplored in biomimetic approaches to robotics and related technologies, despite being able to grow, and continuously adapt in response to environmental stimuli. In this research review, we highlight recent developments in plant-inspired soft machine systems based on movement principles. We focus on inspirations taken from fast active movements in the carnivorous Venus flytrap (Dionaea muscipula) and compare current developments in artificial Venus flytraps with their biological role model. The advantages and disadvantages of current systems are also analyzed and discussed, and a new state-of-the-art autonomous system is derived. Incorporation of the basic structural and functional principles of the Venus flytrap into novel autonomous applications in the field of robotics not only will inspire further plant-inspired biomimetic developments but might also advance contemporary plant-inspired robots, leading to fully autonomous systems utilizing bioinspired working concepts.
Functional Connectivity Disruption in Frail Older Adults Without Global Cognitive Deficits

Frailty is a common representation of cumulative age-related decline that may precede disability in older adults. In our study, we used magnetoencephalography (MEG) to explore the existence of abnormalities in the synchronization patterns of frail individuals without global cognitive impairment. Fifty-four older (≥70 years) and cognitively healthy (Mini-Mental State Examination ≥24) adults, 34 robust (not a single positive Fried criterion) and 20 frail (≥3 positive Fried criteria) underwent a resting-state MEG recording and a T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging scan. Seed-based functional connectivity (FC) analyses were used to explore group differences in the synchronization of fronto-parietal areas relevant to motor function. Additionally, we performed group comparisons of intra-network FC for key resting-state networks such as the sensorimotor, fronto-parietal, default mode, and attentional (dorsal and ventral) networks. Frail participants exhibited reduced FC between posterior regions of the parietal cortex (bilateral supramarginal gyrus, right superior parietal lobe, and right angular gyrus) and widespread clusters spanning mainly fronto-parietal regions. Frail participants also demonstrated reduced intra-network FC within the fronto-parietal, ventral attentional, and posterior default mode networks. All the FC results concerned the upper beta band, a frequency range classically linked to motor function. Overall, our findings reveal the existence of abnormalities in the synchronization patterns of frail individuals within central structures important for accurate motor control. This study suggests that alterations in brain connectivity might contribute to some motor impairments associated with frailty.
Long-term trends in the competitive shore fishery along the KwaZulu-Natal coast, South Africa

ABSTRACT Twenty-four years (1977–2000) of competitive shore angling catch and effort data from the KwaZulu-Natal Coastal Anglers Union for the province of KwaZulu-Natal were analysed. Of a minimum of 117 species recorded, the most commonly caught species were dusky shark (Carcharhinus obscurus) (26%), milk shark (Rhizoprionodon acutus) (18%) and shad (Pomatomus saltatrix) (10%). By weight, the top species were dusky shark (34%) and diamond ray (Gymnura natalensis) (19%). All the above species showed considerable inter-annual variation in their respective contributions to annual catch. Probably as a result of changes in fishing patterns, dusky shark and milk shark showed a general decline in percentage contribution to catch over the period, while contributions of lesser guitarfish (Rhinobatos annulatus), giant guitarfish (Rhynchobatus djiddensis), diamond ray (Gymnura natalensis) and brown ray (Himantura gerrardi) increased. Mean overall annual cpue by number and weight showed a non-significant increase over the period, while each of the investigated species showed a constant trend in mean annual weight. There were high proportions of juveniles in the catches of dusky shark (100%), dusky kob (92%) and giant guitarfish (78%). Improvements made to the structure of shore angling competitions and the overall contribution of competition angling to resource management in South Africa is discussed.
Flexible Rectified Linear Units for Improving Convolutional Neural Networks

Rectified linear unit (ReLU) is a widely used activation function for deep convolutional neural networks. In this paper, we propose a novel activation function called flexible rectified linear unit (FReLU). FReLU improves the flexibility of ReLU by a learnable rectified point. FReLU achieves a faster convergence and higher performance. Furthermore, FReLU does not rely on strict assumptions by self-adaption. FReLU is also simple and effective without using exponential function. We evaluate FReLU on two standard image classification dataset, including CIFAR-10 and CIFAR-100. Experimental results show the strengths of the proposed method.