Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Monitoring the Seasonal Hydrology of Alpine Wetlands in Response to Snow Cover Dynamics and Summer Climate: A Novel Approach with Sentinel-2

Climate change in the European Alps during recent years has led to decreased snow cover duration as well as increases in the frequency and intensity of summer heat waves. The risk of drought for alpine wetlands and temporary pools, which rely on water from snowmelt and provide habitat for specialist plant and amphibian biodiversity, is largely unknown and understudied in this context. Here, we test and validate a novel application of Sentinel-2 imagery aimed at quantifying seasonal variation in water surface area in the context of 95 small (median surface area <100 m2) and shallow (median depth of 20 cm) alpine wetlands in the French Alps, using a linear spectral unmixing approach. For three study years (2016–2018), we used path-analysis to correlate mid-summer water surface area to annual metrics of snowpack (depth and duration) and spring and summer climate (temperature and precipitation). We further sought to evaluate potential biotic responses to drought for study years by monitoring the survival of common frog (Rana temporaria) tadpoles and wetland plant biomass production quantified using peak Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). We found strong agreement between citizen science-based observations of water surface area and Sentinel-2 based estimates (R2 = 0.8–0.9). Mid-summer watershed snow cover duration and summer temperatures emerged as the most important factors regulating alpine wetland hydrology, while the effects of summer precipitation, and local and watershed snow melt-out timing were not significant. We found that a lack of summer snowfields in 2017 combined with a summer heat wave resulted in a significant decrease in mid-summer water surface area, and led to the drying up of certain wetlands as well as the observed mortality of tadpoles. We did not observe a negative effect of the 2017 summer on the biomass production of wetland vegetation, suggesting that wetlands that maintain soil moisture may act as favorable microhabitats for above treeline vegetation during dry years. Our work introduces a remote sensing-based protocol for monitoring the surface hydrology of alpine wetland habitats at the regional scale. Given that climate models predict continued reduction of snow cover in the Alps during the coming years, as well as particularly intense warming during the summer months, our conclusions underscore the vulnerability of alpine wetlands in the face of ongoing climate change.
Antioxidant Activity and Phenolic Content of Persimmon Peel Extracted with Different Levels of Ethanol

In this study, antioxidant potentials of persimmon peel extracted with different levels of ethanol (0 [DW], 50, 70, and 99%) were screened for their antioxidant activity at various concentrations. The persimmon peel extracted by 70% ethanol inhibited 89.82% of 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical at 0.5 mg/mL and had β-carotene bleaching inhibition activity at values of 91.26%. superoxide dismutase-like activity and reducing power had the highest in persimmon peel extracted by 70% ethanol each at 0.5 mg/mL and 1 mg/mL and the lowest persimmon peel extracted by distilled water. These results provided that persimmon peel extracted by 70% ethanol could be the most effective as a natural antioxidant in food industry.
Variability and Uncertainty of Satellite Sea Surface Salinity in the Subpolar North Atlantic (2010-2019)

Satellite remote sensing of sea surface salinity (SSS) in the recent decade (2010–2019) has proven the capability of L-band (1.4 GHz) measurements to resolve SSS spatiotemporal variability in the tropical and subtropical oceans. However, the fidelity of SSS retrievals in cold waters at mid-high latitudes has yet to be established. Here, four SSS products derived from two satellite missions were evaluated in the subpolar North Atlantic Ocean in reference to two in situ gridded products. Harmonic analysis of annual and semiannual cycles in in situ products revealed that seasonal variations of SSS are dominated by an annual cycle, with a maximum in March and a minimum in September. The annual amplitudes are larger (>0.3 practical salinity scale (pss)) in the western basin where surface waters are colder and fresher, and weaker (~0.06 pss) in the eastern basin where surface waters are warmer and saltier. Satellite SSS products have difficulty producing the right annual cycle, particularly in the Labrador/Irminger seas where the SSS seasonality is dictated by the influx of Arctic low-salinity waters along the boundary currents. The study also found that there are basin-scale, time-varying drifts in the decade-long SMOS data records, which need to be corrected before the datasets can be used for studying climate variability of SSS.
AGGRESSIVENESS AND HOST SPECIFICITY OF TOMATO AND POTATO ISOLATES OF PHYTOPHTHORA INFESTANS

159 Late blight of potato, caused by Phytophthora infestans (Mont.) de Bary, has been an important disease since the mid-nineteenth century, when it caused the Irish Famine, and considerable crop losses still occur. Recently, late blight has re-emerged as an important disease throughout the world (Fry and Goodwin, 1997). In India, yields of tomato and potato are often reduced due to epiphytotics caused by P. infestans (Arora et al., 2014; Chowdappa et al., 2015). For the past decade, growers have experienced more severe late blight epidemics, probably because of changes in P. infestans population. Differences in aggressiveness affect late blight epidemics and consequently disease management. The host range of P. infestans, generally, has been considered to be restricted to two important crops, potato and tomato, various wild species in the genus Solanum and also some non-solanaceous species (Adler et al., 2002; Erwin and Ribeiro, 1996). Nonetheless, the factors determining this host range remain unknown. Some degree of pathogenic specialization of P. infestans to potato or tomato has been reported (Legard et al., 1995; Oyarzun et al., 1998; Vega-Sanchez et al., 2000; Wangsomboondee et al., 2002; Suassuna et al., 2004; Fry, 2008). In Ecuador two different clonal lineages (EC-1on potato and US-1 on tomato) of P. infestans separated by their host adaptation have been reported (Oyarzun et al., 1998). In USA, for example, the US-8 genotype has been detected to occur on potatoes and the US-7 and US-17 genotypes have been recovered from tomatoes (Goodwin et al., 1998). A study in Kenya and Uganda clearly showed that late blight epidemics in potato and tomato were caused by two separate, host-adapted populations of P. infestans (Vega-Sanchez et al., 2000). Studies conducted in Brazil demonstrated that isolates of P. infestans belonging to the US-1 clonal lineage were adapted to tomato, while the isolate of BR-1 clonal lineage were adapted to potato (Reis et al., 2003; Suassuna et al., 2004). In contrast to this, a recent study carried out in Taiwan showed no host specificity on potato or tomato among P. infestans isolates from tomato (Chen et al., 2008). Thus, it is clear that there is no general consensus about host specificity of P. infestans among scientific community. The hypothesis that the Indian population of P. infestans is genetically and phenotypically diverse and potentially subdivided based on host association was tested. There are no studies on epidemiological attributes of tomato and potato isolates of P. infestans under Indian conditions and it is not known if there is any difference in aggressiveness and host specificity between tomato and potato isolates. Potato J (2015) 42 (2): 159-163
On the relative importance of convective and diffusive gas flows in plant aeration

summary The importance of through flow convection of gases is recognized hut the notion that convection of a non-through flow type might play n major role in plant aeration is challenged. It is shown that this convection discovered recently in deep-water rice, and which could operate also in almost any submerged root system, must be subordinate to diffusion in the plant's aeration process and will al best have only minimal influence on root aeration.
Global Conservation of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

ABSTRACT Habitat destruction has driven much of the current biodiversity extinction crisis, and it compromises the essential benefits, or ecosystem services, that humans derive from functioning ecosystems. Securing both species and ecosystem services might be accomplished with common solutions. Yet it is unknown whether these two major conservation objectives coincide broadly enough worldwide to enable global strategies for both goals to gain synergy. In this article, we assess the concordance between these two objectives, explore how the concordance varies across different regions, and examine the global potential for safeguarding biodiversity and ecosystem services simultaneously. We find that published global priority maps for biodiversity conservation harbor a disproportionate share of estimated terrestrial ecosystem service value (ESV). Overlap of biodiversity priorities and ESV varies among regions, and in areas that have high biodiversity priority but low ESV, specialized conservation approaches are necessary. Overall, however, our findings suggest opportunities for safeguarding both biodiversity and ecosystem services. Sensitivity analyses indicate that results are robust to known limitations of available ESV data. Capitalizing on these opportunities will require the identification of synergies at fine scales, and the development of economic and policy tools to exploit them.
Heavy metal contamination in excreta of avian species from Ludhiana district of Punjab

Manuscript History: The present study was planned with an objective to detect the level of heavy metals in excreta of five bird species; House Crow, Common Myna, Blue Rock Pigeon, Ring Dove and Cattle Egret collected from agrifield areas of district Ludhiana. In excreta of all the birds 16 elements were detected through ICAP-AES, out of which As, B, Cd, Pb were heavy metals and Fe, Cr, Cu, Ni, Zn, Mn, Mg, Ca, P, S, K, Na were essential elements. The concentration of all metals except K, Mg and Na varied significantly at 5% level of significance among the species. In all the five species, the range of arsenic (0.422-2.142 ppm) and boron (24.50-43.20 ppm) was observed above normal range i.e. 0.01-0.2 and 0.13-5 ppm respectively. The level of cadmium was excreted above normal range (0.02-1.5 ppm) by Cattle egret (1.880 ppm) only. The concentration of lead ranged from 3.9 to 11.73 ppm in five species. Species specific differences in metal level may be attributed to the trophic level relationships. The significant variations in metal level among the species throw light on the fact that there are significant fluctuations in the level of contamination of the environment where these birds live and excreta can be used as an indicator of such contamination in wild birds without harming them.
The relationship of serum uric acid with risk factors of metabolic syndrome in Uygur in Xinjiang

Objective To analyze the distribution characteristics of blood uric acid and its relationship with the risk factors of metabolic syndrome in Uygur.Methods The questionnaire,anthropometric measurements,and biochemical detection were carried out in 4 428 healthy Uygur subjects in Xinjiang Urumqi and Kashi hospitals.Results (1) The prevalences of hyperuricemia and metabolic syndrome were 21.3 ％ and 8.2％,respectively.With the increased blood uric acid level,the incidences of coronary heart disease,hyperglycemia,hypertension,central obesity,and dyslipidemia were raised.Blood pressure,blood glucose,HbA1c,triglyceride,total cholesterol,apolipoprotein A,low density lipoprotein-cholesterol,body mass index (BMI),and waist to hip ratio (WHR) were increased with increased uric acid level,while high density lipoprotein-cholesterol was decreased. (2) The incidence of hyperuricemia was increased further when the number of metabolic syndrome components was accumulated (P＜0.01). With the increase of uric acid level,the prevalence of metablic syndrome gradually raised (P＜0.01). (3) Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that WHR (OR =7.639,95 ％ CI 1.744-33.466),coronary heart disease (OR =2.784,95 ％ CI 1.718-4.510),hyperuricemia (OR =2.155,95 ％ CI 1.457-3.188),smoking (OR =1.437,95％ CI 1.071-1.927),family history of metabolic diseases (OR =1.333,95％ CI 1.044-1.703),occupational pressure (OR =1.290,95 ％ CI1.021-1.631),and BMI (OR =1.146,95 ％ CI 1.112-1.181) were the risk factors of metabolic syndrome.Exercise (OR=0.472,95％ CI0.370-0.604) and low salt diet (OR=0.793,95％ CI0.662-0.949) were the protective factors.Conclusion Serum uric acid level is correlated with a variety of metabolic parameters.With the increased uric acid level,the risk of multiple metabolic abnormality was increased.Comprehensive prevention and control should be taken for the reduction of the risk factors and much attention should be paid to the adverse effects of hyperuricemia. Key words: Uric acid; Metabolic syndrome; Risk factor; Uygur; Association
On the role of dietary carbohydrates in the pathogenesis of oral candidosis

Recent investigations by many workers have elucidated the mechanisms which may explain the clinical observation that an excessive intake of dietary carbohydrates can aggravate oral candidosis. These include the enhancement of growth, multiplication and adherence of Candida species to oral surfaces and the production of excessive quantities of short-chain carboxylic acids as byproducts of sugar metabolism. The resultant acidic milieu, in addition to provoking a mucosal inflammatory reaction, could also activate the highly potent phospholipases and acid proteases of Candida and suppress the growth of normal commensal flora. A unifying hypothesis encompassing the above is proposed to explain the exacerbation of mucosal candidoses observed in environments replete with carbohydrates such as glucose and sucrose.
Perception of free cutin monomers by plant cells

Enzymatic degradation of plant cuticles by fungal pathogens results in the release of free cutin monomers. The hypothesis that free cutin monomers are recognized by plant cells as endogenous stress-related signals was tested in a model system consisting of cultured potato cells. Addition of cutin monomers in the micromolar range induced a transient alkalinization of the culture medium, similar to that observed with chitin or chitotetraose that served as positive control. The cutin monomers tested varied considerably in their potential to induce alkalinization, the most and least active compounds being cis-9,10-epoxy-18-hydroxystearic acid and palmitic acid, respectively. n,16-dihydroxypalmitic acid (n = 8, 9 or 10) was found to be the major component of potato leaf cuticle and was among the most active cutin monomers. 9,10-Dihydroxystearic acid, an analogue of the cutin monomer threo-9,10,18-trihydroxystearic acid, exhibited biological activity in a stereoselective manner, only the naturally occurring threo-stereoisomer inducing a rapid and strong alkalinization response. Alkalinization of the culture medium was inhibited by addition of the protein-kinase inhibitor K-252a, and the onset of alkalinization was paralleled by changes in phosphorylation of specific proteins. The active cutin monomers also stimulated the production of the plant stress hormone ethylene and activated defence-related genes at the mRNA level. The data provide evidence for a role of enzymatic breakdown products of plant cuticles as a new class of endogenous signal molecules.
Acute toxicity of nonpolar versus polar narcosis: Is there a difference?

Narcosis I and II chemicals exhibit different lethal body burdens (LBBs) and acute toxicities (median lethal concentrations [LC50's]) in fish, when compared with their log n‐octanol‐water partition coefficient (Kow). The higher toxicity of polar narcosis chemicals has often been suggested to be related to the polar group in these molecules. Recently we showed that membrane (L‐α‐dimyristoyl phosphatidyl‐choline [DMPC])–water partition coefficients (log KDMPC) are higher than log Kow for narcosis II chemicals. Using log KDMPC to model the acute toxicities to fish (log LC50) of the two classes of chemicals together, gives one high‐quality quantitative structure‐activity relationship (R2 = 0.98, Q2 = 0.97). In addition, assuming that the apolar fat‐water partition coefficient behaves like the n‐octanol–water partition coefficient, differences in LBB can also be explained. Thus, using log KDMPCs, all earlier reported quantitative differences between narcosis I and II chemicals can be explained.
Hepatitis C Virus Core Protein Inhibits Fas- and Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha-Mediated Apoptosis via NF-κB Activation

ABSTRACT The effects of hepatitis C virus (HCV) proteins on anti-Fas (CD95/APO-1) antibody- and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α)-mediated apoptosis in different human cell lines were investigated by magnetic concentration of cells which transiently produced the exogenous protein. HepG2 cells, which produced whole HCV proteins, became resistant to anti-Fas-induced apoptotic cell death. Furthermore, the core protein among HCV proteins had a key role in protecting the various cells from apoptosis mediated by not only anti-Fas but also TNF-α. We also found that the core functioned in the activation of nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) in all cells examined. Deletion analysis of the core revealed that the region required for NF-κB activation was closely correlated with that for its antiapoptotic function. In addition, we revealed in some cases that the antiapoptotic effect of the core was restrained by coproduction of the inhibitor of NF-κB, IκB-α protein. These results demonstrated that the core inhibits Fas- and TNF-α-mediated apoptotic cell death via a mechanism dependent on the activation of NF-κB in particular cell lines.
Population Dynamics of Freshwater Cladocera (Crustacea: Branchiopoda) In Manmade Ponds at Boye Wetland, Jimma Zone, Southwestern Ethiopia

This study aimed to assess the population dynamics of of cladocerans in three manmade ponds in Boye wetland Jimma Zone, Ethiopia. Seven Cladocera species namely; Moina micrura, Diaphanosoma excisum, Alona rectangula, Ceriodaphnia cornuta, Daphnia lumholtzi, Chydoruss sphericus and Macrothrix laticornis. were identified during the study period. From the seven cladocera species, four species (Diaphanosoma excisum, Alona rectangula, Ceriodaphnia cornuta and Chydorous sphericus) showed higher proportions as well as maximum peaks in pond III while, Moina micrura and Macrothrix laticornis showed higher proportions in pond I. In a temporal pattern, a significant difference in cladoceran species (T- test, p = 0.005) and abundance was observed along the studied months (T- test, p < 0.05). Moina micrura population was comparatively higher with a peak in April but declined from May to August. Apparently low population of Diaphanosoma excisum was recorded in April, while it was increased from May to August. Generally in the temporal pattern, the population of cladocerans showed maximum density (May and August), while low density was found in the month of March and July of the study period
Attitudes and Inaction

The public’s disposition with respect to conservation is predominantly ascertained by surveys. Rarely are these attitudes contrasted directly against manifested behavior from an independent source. This article analyzes the response to a residential urban water conservation program by using municipal water consumption data at the census tract level in San Antonio, Texas. A selection of demographic variables (i.e., income, education, and political affiliation, among others) are analyzed with respect to general consumption response and to voluntary and mandatory measures. These results are contrasted against stated attitudes/preferences by the local population in a survey prior to the program. Results reveal substantial disparities between survey responses and manifested actions. They also indicate that well-accepted patterns of conservation response ascribed to various demographic segments in the survey format need to be more precisely qualified before equating them to performance.
Reproduction of Dandelion (Taraxacum Officinale) in a Higher Co2 Environment

Abstract Dandelion is a cosmopolitan weed of economic and environmental significance because of its negative effects on crop yield and the large amount of herbicides used for its control in agricultural, residential, and recreational areas in North America. Asexual dandelion plants, which are apomictic and produce genetically identical seeds, provide a great experimental model for biological studies, such as examination of its reproductive responses to global environmental changes. In a growth chamber experiment, we investigated how elevated CO2 affected reproduction and seed dispersal properties in dandelion. Dandelion plants were grown at ambient (370 µmol mol−1) or elevated (730 µmol mol−1) CO2 until reproductive maturity. Results showed that dandelion plants examined in our study produced 83% more inflorescences and 32% more achenes, i.e., single-seed fruits, per plant at elevated than at ambient CO2. Seeds from elevated CO2-grown plants were significantly heavier and had a higher germination percentage, leading to larger seedlings and earlier establishment in the subsequent generation. Furthermore, achenes from plants grown at elevated CO2 had characteristics, such as higher stalks at seed maturity, longer beaks, and larger pappi, which would increase the distance of seed dispersal by wind. In addition to these elevated CO2-induced changes in reproductive properties, dandelion has a number of inherent characteristics, e.g., high competitiveness and adaptations to disturbance, that would increase its vegetative and reproductive success in a higher CO2 environment. Consequently, dandelion can potentially become more widespread and noxious as atmospheric CO2 continues to rise because of human activities. Nomenclature: Dandelion, Taraxacum officinale G.H. Weber ex Wiggers TAROF
Rapid Flood Mapping and Evaluation with a Supervised Classifier and Change Detection in Shouguang Using Sentinel-1 SAR and Sentinel-2 Optical Data

Rapid flood mapping is crucial in hazard evaluation and forecasting, especially in the early stage of hazards. Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images are able to penetrate clouds and heavy rainfall, which is of special importance for flood mapping. However, change detection is a key part and the threshold selection is very complex in flood mapping with SAR. In this paper, a novel approach is proposed to rapidly map flood regions and estimate the flood degree, avoiding the critical step of thresholding. It converts the change detection of thresholds to land cover backscatter classifications. Sentinel-1 SAR images are used to get the land cover backscatter classifications with the help of Sentinel-2 optical images using a supervised classifier. A pixel-based change detection is used for change detection. Backscatter characteristics and variation rules of different ground objects are essential prior knowledge for flood analysis. SAR image classifications of pre-flood and flooding periods both take the same input to make sense of the change detection between them. This method avoids the inaccuracy caused by a single threshold. A case study in Shouguang is tested by this new method, which is compared with the flood map extracted by Otsu thresholding and normalized difference water index (NDWI) methods. The results show that our approach can identify the flood beneath vegetation well. Moreover, all required data and data processing are simple, so it can be popularized in rapid flooding mapping in early disaster relief.