Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Variabilidade espacial de propriedades dendrométricas do eucalipto e de atributos físicos de um Latossolo Vermelho

The objective of this work was to investigate the spatial variability of attributes of eucalyptus (Eucalyptus urophylla S.T. Blake) and physical attributes of a Rhodic Eutrudox at Selviria (MS). The study area has about 1.98 ha and samples of plant and soil were collected in a sampling grid containing 122 points: 84 points with regular spacing of 15 m and 38 points with regular spacing of 5 m. The following attributes of plant and soil were analyzed: perimeter at chest height, height of the plant, volume of wood, soil penetration resistance and soil moisture content. The attributes of the eucalyptus plants showed medium spatial variability, while the attributes of the soil showed medium and low variability. The exponential model was the most appropriate settings for the attributes of plant and soil studies. Simple linear correlation showed low correlation between the attributes of Eucalyptus urophylla and the soil physical attributes.
An alternative spectrophotometric method for the determination of free glycerol in biodiesel

The presence of small amounts of free glycerol in fatty acid methyl esters used as diesel fuel or as heating fuel may represent the reason for some failures in engines and heating systems as well. Several methods are actually available for the determination of free-glycerol traces in biodiesel, and most on them are based on gas-chromatographic techniques. After a review of the existing methods, a new procedure based on periodate oxidation of glycerol, leading to the preparation of formaldehyde, on reaction with acetylacetone and on spectrophotometric measurement at 410 nm is illustrated. This method is simple, quick and economic and seems to be sufficiently reliable. Data related to recovery tests and analyses of real samples are shown, also in correlation with the existing reference method.
Radiation hormesis: Incredible or inevitable?

It has long been recognized that exposure to low levels of toxic chemicals could have beneficial effects, such as increased resistance to related chemicals or stimulation of growth or development. The notion of radiation hormesis, that exposure to low levels of ionizing radiation could produce beneficial effects, developed seriously in the late 1950's, and was, to most radiation scientists, incredible. This was due in part to the then prevailing ideas of radio bio logical mechanisms, in part to the sweeping generalizations made by the leading proponents of the radiation hormesis concept, and in part to the many failures to confirm reports of beneficial effects. More recent understanding of the mechanisms of radiation damage and repair, and discoveries of induction of gene expression by radiation and other genotoxic agents [the adaptive response] make it seem inevitable that under suitable conditions, irradiation will produce beneficial effects.
Maternal Smoking During Pregnancy and Growth in Infancy: a Covariance Structure Analysis

ABSTRACT Background: Smoking during pregnancy is related to fetal constraint and accelerated postnatal growth. However,the pathways between these factors have not been clariﬁed. Pathway analyses that link these factors can help us betterunderstand the mechanisms involved in this association. Therefore, this study aimed to examine pathways betweenmaternal smoking during pregnancy and growth in infancy.Methods: Participants were singletons born between 1993 and 2006 in rural Japan. The outcome was the change inweight z-score between birth and 3 years of age. Pathways from maternal smoking and other maternal factors (suchas maternal body mass index and work status) to growth in infancy via birth factors (such as birth weight andgestational age) and breastfeeding were examined using structural equation modeling.Results: Complete data were available for 1524 children (775 boys and 749 girls). The model ﬁt appeared adequate.Lower birth weight and non-exclusive breastfeeding mediated the association between maternal smoking duringpregnancy and rapid growth in infancy. Maternal smoking was also directly linked to rapid growth in infancy(standardized direct effects 0.06, P = 0.002). Taking all pathways into account, the standardized total effect ofmaternal smoking on growth in infancy was 0.11. Conclusions: Maternal smoking during pregnancy may both indirectly, through birth weight and breastfeedingstatus, and directly inﬂuence growth during infancy; however, there may be other pathways that have not yet beenidentiﬁed. Key words: child development; maternal exposure; smoking
Genetic analysis of offspring from intra- and interspecific crosses of Carassius auratus gibelio by chromosome and RAPD analysis

The ploidy of silver crucian carp Carassius auratus gibelio individuals, originating from nine natural habitats of Hungary, was estimated by erythrocyte nucleus area analysis. On the basis of DNA polymorphism, the genetic homogeneity or heterogeneity and the chromosome number of different offspring derived from the crossing of triploid and diploid populations and of two types of silver crucian carp females with other cyprinid males (Cyprinus carpio, Carassius carassius, Carassius auratus and Barbus conchonius) were determined. The results of chromosome and RAPD analysis demonstrated that diploid females could reproduce sexually with silver crucian carp and other cyprinid males and that the offspring of intra- and interspecific crosses contained the paternal DNA. Triploid females usually reproduced by gynogenesis and their offspring were clones, however, in very rare cases paternal genes were actually transmitted (i.e. paternal leakage) to the offspring and the progeny were triploid interspecific hybrids. RAPD analysis showed that while the paternal DNA appeared in the offspring, the maternal phenotype was strongly expressed.
Chloroplast Chaperonins: Evidence for Heterogeneous Assembly of α and β Cpn60 Polypeptides into a Chaperonin Oligomer

Abstract Higher plant chloroplasts contain two chaperonin 60 family proteins, Cpn60α and Cpn60β, which are known to have divergent amino acid sequences. Although Cpn60α and Cpn60β are present in roughly equal amounts and copurify in their native states, a heterogeneous ensemble of the chaperonin oligomer has not yet been demonstrated. We separately purified Cpn60α and Cpn60β proteins from spinach leaves as the monomeric form. Either antibody raised against one chaperonin 60 protein could coimmunoprecipitate the other chaperonin 60 protein in their oligomeric state but not in its monomeric state, suggesting that the chloroplast Cpn60α and Cpn60β polypeptides actually reside in the same chaperonin oligomer in the stroma. Moreover, the chaperonin oligomers migrated as at least two distinct bands on the native gel electrophoresis, each of which contained both chaperonin 60 proteins. These results suggest that chloroplast chaperonin oligomers might be composed of at least two distinct sets of two chaperonin proteins.
Ranging behaviour of the red fox in the Gran Paradiso National Park (Italy)

Abstract The home-ranges and activities of the fox were studied by radiotelemetry in a high alpine valley of the Gran Paradiso National Park (Aosta, Italy). The patterns of food dispersion and availability, combined with those of human disturbance, are the shaping pressure on the fox's use of its range in a peculiar way. Foxes seem to prefer an intermediate belt between the valley floor and the high pasture as denning and resting areas where they return every day: this pattern seems the optimal strategy to have access to the food resources of both low and high altitude habitats. Success rates of different trapping gears are presented.
The predation cost of female resistance

Mating costs to females can result in female reluctance to mate and the evolution of seemingly costly rejection strategies. The costs of mating have been widely studied; however, the costs of resistance have rarely been quantified. In the Lake Eyre dragon, Ctenophorus maculosus, gravid females flip over onto their backs to prevent superfluous matings. In doing so, they compromise their camouflage as females have bright orange ventral coloration during the breeding season. Visual models confirmed that resisting females are much more conspicuous to birds, their primary predator, than unresisting females. We assessed the predation risk of female resistance via a large-scale field experiment using model female lizards. Although the flipped over, orange models were more conspicuous to visual predators, they were attacked significantly less than cryptic models. It appears that predators avoid the bright females, possibly because they do not recognize orange individuals as food or avoid rare, conspicuously colored prey. Thus, conspicuous female rejection displays may be maintained in part by apostatic selection, in which predators form a search image for and preferentially attack more common prey types. Copyright 2010, Oxford University Press.
An improved trap for large wood-boring insects, with special reference to Monochamus scutellatus (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae).

Commercially available multiple funnel traps have three potential limitations for trapping large wood-boring insects: (i) escape by captured insects from the dry collecting cup, (ii) low catches of insects that fall outside the trap, and (iii) poor visual orientation to the narrow funnel column. To test the importance of these limitations, we compared conventional multiple funnel traps to multiple funnel traps with water-filled collecting cups or large bottom funnels and to crossvane traps with a prominent silhouette. The experiment was conducted in a mill yard in the southern interior of British Columbia between 5 July and 2 October 2000. Differences in catch among different trap types indicated that the first and third of the three potential limitations were important for the capture of most target species. Crossvane traps captured significantly greater numbers of most Cerambycidae and Siricidae, and similar numbers of most Buprestidae, compared with the other traps. Of the two most abundant species, Xy.
Effect of Dissolved Oxygen Tension on Production of Carotenoids, poly-β-hydroxybutyrate, Succinate Oxidase and Superoxide Dismutase by Azospirillum brasilense Cd Grown in Continuous Culture

SUMMARY: Azospirillum brasilense strain Cd was grown in a medium containing NH4 + in a chemostat at a range of constant dissolved oxygen tensions (d.o.t.) (0·007--0·18 atm). Poly-β-hydroxybutyrate (up to 12% of the cell dry weight) increased under oxygen limitation and moderate dilution rate (D = 0·14 h-1). The highest carotenoid content was observed at high d.o. t. and dilution rates up to 0·12 h-1. The amount of protein varied with d.o. t. from 0·29 mg protein (mg dry wt)-1 at 0·007 atm to 0·54 mg at 0·18 atm. The yield efficiency and respiration rate were highest at low d.o. t. and decreased significantly at a d.o. t. of 0·18 atm. Succinate dehydrogenase and malate dehydrogenase activities increased 2·5-fold at 0·10-0·18 atm O2, whereas succinate oxidase and NADH oxidase activities increased consistently with increasing d.o. t. Azospirillum brasilense showed a low specific activity for catalase; the specific activity of superoxide dismutase increased sharply above 0·16 atm O2.
Do Large Males Have Small Testes? A Note on Allometric Variation and Sexual Size Dimorphism in Raptors

Allometric variation in testis length was used to test the prediction that the testes of males of raptor species with non-reversed dimorphism in size are proportionally smaller than those of males of species with reversed dimorphism in size. Testis length-body weight relationships of 17 species of mainly Australian raptors were analysed
Field experiments in Cameroon on cassava mosaic virus disease and the reversion phenomenon in susceptible and resistant cassava cultivars

Cassava is mainly propagated through stem-cuttings. There is evidence that some cuttings propagated from plants infected by cassava mosaic geminiviruses may produce virus-free plants. Field experiments were conducted under contrasting ecological conditions at two sites in southern Cameroon to study the reversion phenomenon, in particular the extent to which the virus causing cassava mosaic disease (CMD) was absent from cuttings collected from CMD-affected plants. Cuttings were taken from the basal, middle and upper portions of the stems of diseased plants of susceptible and partially resistant cassava cultivars. The proportions of disease-free shoots developing from the different batches of cuttings were recorded to indicate the extent of reversion. This was significantly less frequent in cv. Red Local (susceptible) (5-43%) than in the susceptible cv. Bambui Local (65%) and cv. Improved (70%), which is partially resistant to infection. Reversion was significantly higher with cuttings collected from the youngest portions of the stem compared with older portions and with short cuttings (5, 10 cm) compared with those 20 or 25 cm long. There was a significant negative correlation between symptom severity in different cultivars and the extent of reversion. This was greater at the lowland Mile 17 site, near Buea (ca 400 masl) than at the mid-altitude site at Dschang (ca 1300 masl) where conditions were cooler, suggesting an influence of temperature. In order to assess the effect of CMD in cassava the Disease Index (DI) was developed. The result of DI analyses showed that the DI could be used to identify cultivars on the basis of their ability to revert from CMD and the severity of CMD on the non-reverted plants.
The mutual affinities of the major earwig taxa(Insecta, Dermaptera)

Giles' (1974) claims that the Hemimerina have closer affinities with the Forficulina-Arixenuna complex than with any other orthopteroid order is confirmed by detailed studies of his own data. The Arixenuna are shown to have close affinities with the Labudae within the Forficulina. The Forficulina and the Hemimerina have more distant affinities than most previous authors have suggested. The Forficulina is composed of two sister groups, which are each given infra-ordinal status, namely the Pygidicranidea for the pygidicranid earwigs and the Forficulidea for the rest. The Forficulidea is seen to be composed of two mutual sister groups at super-family level, namely the Labioidea for the Carcinophoridae, Labudae and the Arixenudae and the Forficuloidea for the Labiduridae (sensu stricto), the Chelisochidae and the Forficulidae. Within the Labioidea, the Labudae and the Arixenudae are seen as possible sister groups. The classification of the lower taxonomic levels along Hennigian lines is a matter for further investigation.
Resposta de Trichogramma atopovirilia Oatman & Platner (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) a diferentes densidades de ovos do hospedeiro natural, Helicoverpa zea (Boddie) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

Laboratory (25oC, 70% UR and photoperiod of 12 hours) studies were conducted to evaluate the response of Trichogramma atopovirilia Oatman & Platner female to the increase of its host [Helicoverpa zea (Boddie)] egg densities. One, three, five and 10 females received, 15, 30, 60, 90, 120 e 150 eggs, for a period of 24 h. Results indicated mutual interference of both parasitoid and host, when three or more females were confined inside the vials in low densities of host eggs resulting in a lower number of parasitized eggs/female. With at least 120 host eggs (minimum of 12 eggs available/female) no mutual interference was observed. Quadratic responses were verified to the total number of parasitized eggs with the increase of egg density, with five or more parasitoids/vial. Percent parasitism did not increase with the increment in egg density.
Aulosira bohemensis sp. nov.: further phylogenetic uncertainty at the base of the Nostocales (Cyanobacteria)

A. Lukešová, J.R. Johansen, M.P. Martin and D.A. Casamatta. 2009. Aulosira bohemensis sp. nov.: further phylogenetic uncertainty at the base of the Nostocales (Cyanobacteria). Phycologia 48: 118–129. DOI: 10.2216/08-56.1 Aulosira bohemensis sp. nov. was isolated from a wet meadow soil in South Bohemia, Czech Republic. It shares all the features of the majority of other Aulosira species, including isopolar development with intercalary heterocytes and apoheterocytic akinete development. It differs from all other species through the production of hormogonia perpendicular to the trichome axis following akinete germination. Morphologically the genus Aulosira appears closest to Nodularia, however, phylogenetic placement of A. bohemensis based on 16S rRNA was distant from that taxon. Aulosira falls within the Nostocaceae, with possible sister taxa in Trichormus, Mojavia and Nostoc. Despite the variety of phylogenetic analyses performed, we were unable to obtain bootstrap support for its position in any tree, and its correct phylogenetic position within the Nostocaceae remains unresolved.
Effects of liquid manure application on yield, quality and botanical composition of grassland

The aim was to evaluate the effects of cattle liquid manure (LM) in combination with mineral fertilizers on the yield, quality and botanical composition of mountain grassland in comparison with mineral fertilization. Addition of 5.0 litre/m2 LM to mineral fertilizers applied increased the fresh weight yield by 63% and dry matter yield by 55% compared to mineral fertilization, while there were no significant differences between fertilization treatments in the contribution of grasses, legumes and forbs to the total DM yield, nor to neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF) and crude protein (CP) contents. The first cut forage had higher NDF (566.7 g/kg) and ADF (328 g/kg) and lower CP (151.64 g/kg) compared to the 2nd cut (509.8 g/kg, 290.1 g/kg, 169.13 g/kg, respectively), which seemed highly related to the significantly lower in-sacco dry matter degradability (786.2 g/kg) of this cut compared to the 2nd cut (794.14 g/kg). Mineral fertilization treatment had a higher rumen undegraded protein content (26.39 g/kg) than the combination of LM and mineral fertilizers (23.47 g/kg).
Lipid Programmes and Life Strategies in Hibernators

Several mammalian hibernators have annual cycles of fat deposition and usage. However, at any time a particular level of fat is defended. The cycles can therefore be described as ones of set-points for body fat. A programmed change in set-points accounts for prehibernation fattening not proceeding at maximal possible rates. During the winter phase there is anorexia even when food is available; reasons are proposed why there must be a lowering of set-points if there is to be prolonged hibernation. Control mechanisms underlying some instances of weight loss and gain in birds are analysed in similar terms. In hibernators cyclic programmes are such that the animals do not usually operate close to physiological limits. In a quasi-predictable environment they derive advantages from a combined use of both homeostatic and rhythmic control of their fat levels.
The potential use of mangrove forests as nitrogen sinks of shrimp aquaculture pond effluents : the role of denitrification

A generalized nitrogen budget was constructed to evaluate the potential role of mangrove sediments as a sink for dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) in shrimp pond effluents. DIN concentrations were measured in pond effluents from three semi-intensive shrimp ponds along the Caribbean coast of Colombia between 1994–1995. Mean NH4+ concentrations in the discharge water for all farms were significantly higher (67 × 12 μg/L) than in the adjacent estuaries (33 × 8 μg/L). Average NH4+ concentrations in the pond discharge over all growout cycles were similar, representing an approximate doubling in relation to estuarine water concentrations. In contrast, NO2-+ NO3- concentrations were similar in both pond effluent and estuarine waters. Dissolved inorganic nitrogen loading of the ponds was similar. The estimated reduction of DIN in pond effluents by preliminary diversion of outflow to mangrove wetlands rather than directly to estuarine waters would be × 190 mg N/m2 per d. Based on this nitrogen loss and depending upon the enrichment rate, between 0.04 to 0.12 ha of mangrove forest is required to completely remove the DIN load from effluents produced by a 1-ha pond.
Ecosystem effects of the three capelin stock collapses in the Barents Sea

Abstract The Barents Sea capelin stock underwent drastic changes in stock size during the last three decades. Three stock collapses occurred in 1985–1989, 1993–1997, and 2003–2006. The collapses had effects both downwards and upwards in the food web. The release in predation pressure from the capelin stock led to increased amounts of zooplankton during the collapse periods. When capelin biomass was drastically reduced, its predators were affected in various ways. Cod experienced increased cannibalism, growth was reduced and maturation delayed. Sea birds experienced increased rates of mortality and total recruitment failures, and breeding colonies were abandoned for several years. Harp seals experienced food shortage, increased mortality because they invaded the coastal areas and were caught in fishing gears, and recruitment failures. There is evidence for differences in how the three capelin collapses affected the predators. The effects were most serious during the 1985–1989 collapse and can hardly be traced during the ongoing collapse. We conclude that these differences likely result from increased availability of alternative food sources during the two last periods of collapse.
Diseases of the African estuarine catfish Chrysichthys nigrodigitatus (Lacépède) from the Cross River estuary, Nigeria

A survey based on monthly sampling of commercial catches was carried out in the Cross River estuary in 1984 and 1985 to determine the extent of parasitization and occurrence of externally visible lesions on the bagrid catfish Chrysichthys nigrodigitatus. Infections with the following parasites were encountered: Henneguya chrysichthyi (32%), Protancylodiscoides chrysichlhes (77%). Siphodera ghanensis (4.2%), Aspidogaster africanus (0.1%), Hysterothylacium larvae (64%), Nerolica orbignyi (1.5%), Ergasilus lalus (27%), and Chonopeltis brevis (0.02%). A new kind of epidermal papilloma was found and is described. On a yearly average, less than 0.5% of the catfish population was affected by either skeletal deformities or skin ulceration. Fin rot was observed from December to May, reaching a prevalence of 79% in February. Gill myxozoosis due to Hemwguya chrysichthyi is considered the most important parasitic disease of the fish, occurring throughout the year with a maximum prevalence of 76% in October. Results of the study are discussed in the light of a projected intensive cultivation of the fish in the extensive estuaries and lagoons bordering Nigeria's coastline.
The Effect of a Change in Foraging Options on Intake Rate and Predation Rate

We consider an animal making a single choice between options that differ in terms of the resulting energetic gain and probability of predation. We assume that the animal chooses the option that maximizes its fitness and investigate how the animal's energetic gain and probability of being killed change when the environment is changed. It is shown that two aspects of the change strongly influence the results. One aspect is how the change differentially affects the foraging options. If an improvement in the food supply has more of an effect on good than on poor sources of food, intake rate will tend to increase. If the improvement has more of an effect on poor options, then intake rate may decrease. The other aspect is whether the change is transitory or relatively permanent. In a particular model, short-term changes that improve the environment increase intake rate, whereas long-term improvements result in intake rate's remaining constant or decreasing. We discuss our results in the context of other work on changes in foraging options and attempt to give general reasons for paradoxical effects.