Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
EFFECT OF PIMPINELLA ANISUM, SYZYGIUM AROMATICUM ON GUT MICROBIOTA AND SOME BACTERIAL PATHOGENS SYZYGIUM AROMATICUM AND PUNICA GRANATUM ON GUT MICROBIOTA AND SOME BACTERIAL PATHOGENS PUNICA GRANATUM EXTRACTS ON GUT MICROBIOTA AND SOME BACTERIAL PATHOGENS

Pathogenictreatments with antibiotics lead to the appearance of bacterial resistance to antibiotics. Moreovere, the use antibiotics eliminated the beneficial bacteria fro some plant extract used traditionally as medicine or food additive, were extracted and their inhibitory effects on four pathogenic b plant extracts showed an inhibitory effect on pathogenic bacteria, while gut microbiota was affected only by plant extracts ranged from 3.1 to 93.7 mg/ml and Pimpinella anisum. studying the growth curve of gut microbiota ABSTRACT Pathogenic bacteria is a major health problem that causing a large number of diseases and their treatments with antibiotics lead to the appearance of bacterial resistance to antibiotics. Moreovere, the use antibiotics eliminated the beneficial bacteria from the gastrointestinal tract, thus t some plant extract. Three plants, Pimpinella anisum, Syzygium aromaticum used traditionally as medicine or food additive, were extracted and their inhibitory effects on four pathogenic bacteria and two genera of gut microbiota were determined. It was shown that all tested plant extracts showed an inhibitory effect on pathogenic bacteria, while gut microbiota was affected only by S. aromaticum and P. granatum extracts. The MIC of the metha plant extracts ranged from 3.1 to 93.7 mg/ml and no toxicity was found on Pimpinella anisum. Additionally, P. anisum was increased the cell count of studying the growth curve of gut microbiota. bacteria is a major health problem that causing a large number of diseases and their treatments with antibiotics lead to the appearance of bacterial resistance to antibiotics. Moreovere, the m the gastrointestinal tract, thus the effect of Pimpinella anisum, Syzygium aromaticum and Punica granatum, used traditionally as medicine or food additive, were extracted and their inhibitory effects on four acteria and two genera of gut microbiota were determined. It was shown that all tested plant extracts showed an inhibitory effect on pathogenic bacteria, while gut microbiota was affected extracts. The MIC of the methanolic extracts of the used no toxicity was found on Artemia salina of was increased the cell count of Bifidobacterium by
A free flexible flap in channel flow

Abstract Fine fibre immersed in different flows is ubiquitous. For a fibre in shear flows, most motion modes appear in the flow-gradient plane. Here the two-dimensional behaviours of an individual flexible flap in channel flows are studied. The nonlinear coupling of the fluid inertia ($\textit {Re}$), flexibility of the flap ($K$) and channel width ($W$) is discovered. Inside a wide channel (e.g. $W=4$), as $K$ decreases, the flap adopts rigid motion, springy motion, snake turn and complex mode in sequence. It is found that the fluid inertia tends to straighten the flap. Moreover, $\textit {Re}$ significantly affects the lateral equilibrium location $y_{eq}$, therefore affecting the local shear rate and the tumbling period $T$. For a rigid flap in a wide channel, when $\textit {Re}$ exceeds a threshold, the flap stays inclined instead of tumbling. As $\textit {Re}$ further increases, the flap adopts swinging mode. In addition, there is a scaling law between $T$ and $\textit {Re}$. For the effect of $K$, through the analysis of the torque generated by surrounding fluid, we found that a smaller $K$ slows down the tumbling of the flap even if $y_{eq}$ is comparable. As $W$ decreases, the wall confinement effect makes the flap easier to deform and closer to the centreline. The tumbling period would increase and the swinging mode would be more common. When $W$ further decreases, the flaps are constrained to stay inclined, parabolic-like or one-end bending configurations moving along with the flow. Our study may shed some light on the behaviours of a free fibre in flows.
The brain is a target organ after acute exposure to depleted uranium

The health effects of depleted uranium (DU) are mainly caused by its chemical toxicity. Although the kidneys are the main target organs for uranium toxicity, uranium can also reach the brain. In this paper, the central effects of acute exposure to DU were studied in relation to health parameters and the sleep–wake cycle of adult rats. Animals were injected intraperitoneally with 144± 10 g DU kg−1 as nitrate. Three days after injection, the amounts of uranium in the kidneys represented 2.6 g of DU g−1 of tissue, considered as a sub-nephrotoxic dosage. The central effect of uranium could be seen through a decrease in food intake as early as the first day after exposure and shorter paradoxical sleep 3 days after acute DU exposure ( −18% of controls). With a lower dosage of DU (70 ± 8 g DU kg−1), no significant effect was observed on the sleep–wake cycle. The present study intends to illustrate the fact that the brain is a target organ, as are the kidneys, after acute exposure to a moderate dosage of DU. The mechanisms by which uranium causes these early neurophysiological perturbations shall be discussed. © 2005 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
Childcare over the Business Cycle

We estimate the impact of macroeconomic conditions on the childcare market. We find that the industry is substantially more exposed to the business cycle than other low-wage industries and responds more strongly to negative shocks than positive ones. Indeed, childcare employment requires more time to recover than the rest of the economy. Although the reduction in supply may pose difficulties for parents, we find evidence that center quality is countercyclical. When unemployment rates are higher, childcare workers have on average higher levels of education and experience, turnover rates are lower, and consumer reviews on Yelp are higher.
Rent Sharing within Firms

This study investigates the extent to which economic rents are shared among different types of workers within firms. We utilize administrative payroll records in order to estimate the elasticity of employee compensation with respect to the price of crude oil at petroleum extraction companies. We find that the elasticity of rent sharing is heterogeneous within firms and significantly higher for workers at the top of the earnings distribution. These results can be rationalized by a bargaining model in which insiders within a firm possess greater power to negotiate over wages.
The Influence of Natural Organic Materials on the Properties of Traditional Lime-Based Mortars

ABSTRACT This article investigates the influence of natural organic materials on the properties of traditional mortars. Mortar specimens produced with two binders (natural hydraulic lime and aged lime putty) with the same sand and three different organic additives (linseed oil, brown sugar, and cow’s milk, with different percentages) were created. The color variations (colorimetry), waterproofing behavior (water capillarity test), permeability (water vapor permeability test), mechanical properties (maximum resistance to compression test), mineralogical composition (X-ray diffraction), and optical properties of mortars (transmitted light microscopy, UV fluorescence microscopy), and carbonation using a phenolphthalein indicator, were evaluated after 28 days, 3, 6, and 12 months. In this article, we highlighted a series of transformations induced by the additives: a strong modification of colorimetric parameters, a general hydrophobic effect of milk and oil not linked to a total occlusion of porosity, a decrease of mechanical parameters in the specimens prepared with hydraulic lime with respect to the specimen without additives, a different distribution and shape of macropores, a different level of carbonation. This article also describes the role of the preparation methods in the influence of natural organic materials on the properties of traditional mortars.
Decreased soil aggregation and reduced soil organic carbon activity in conventional vegetable fields converted from paddy fields

Soil structure and organic carbon are key factors that reflect soil quality in sustainable agricultural production. Many studies have concentrated on soil aeration under intensive anthropogenic agricultural practices, but the relationship between soil aggregate stability and soil organic carbon (SOC) functional groups is poorly understood, particularly in degraded greenhouse vegetable fields converted from paddy fields. To solve this problem, soil samples were collected from local vegetable fields and adjacent paddy fields. Conventional open‐air vegetable fields and greenhouse vegetable fields, both with a 6–8‐year cultivation history following conversion from paddy fields, were considered. SOC functional groups were characterised by 13C cross‐polarisation magic‐angle‐spinning nuclear magnetic resonance (13C CPMAS NMR). The results showed that the mean weight diameter (MWD) values of water‐stable soil aggregates in the open‐air vegetable fields and greenhouse vegetable fields decreased by 64.6% and 66.7%, respectively, compared with those in the paddy fields. Similar results were obtained for the soil aggregate distribution, and soil aggregates in the greenhouse vegetable fields and open‐air vegetable fields were mainly in the 0.25–2 mm size classes. Among all SOC functional groups, O‐alkyl C exhibited the greatest decrease after the conversion of paddy fields to vegetable fields, no matter whether greenhouse vegetable fields or open‐air vegetable fields. The degradation of soil structure decreased the physical protection of SOC functional groups by soil aggregates, and therefore, decreased the total SOC content and labile C functional group fractions in bulk soil. At the soil aggregate scale, the decrease of O‐alkyl C mainly occurred in microaggregates (0.053–0.25 mm), while aromatic C decreased significantly in macroaggregates (>0.25 mm) in the greenhouse vegetable fields converted from paddy fields. Correlation analysis showed that O‐alkyl C was significantly positively related to MWD and the proportion of large soil macroaggregate (>2 mm). This result suggested that soil aggregates become fragile in long‐term vegetable cultivation after conversion from paddy fields, and a large loss of O‐alkyl C might be the main reason for this phenomenon.
A Multi‐Proxy Approach Using Zircon (U‐Th)/He Thermochronometry and Biomarker Thermal Maturity to Robustly Capture Earthquake Temperature Rise Along the Punchbowl Fault, California

During an earthquake, work done to overcome fault friction is dissipated as heat. Coseismic temperature rise, critical for identifying and constraining the magnitude of past earthquakes, is difficult to accurately quantify. To address this issue, we compare two temperature‐sensitive geochemical systems, zircon (U‐Th)/He (ZHe) thermochronometry and thermal maturity of organic matter (biomarkers), which respond to short‐duration, high temperatures. Models of prior biomarker data from the Punchbowl fault (PF), CA, indicate coseismic temperatures of ∼465–1,065°C in the principal slip zone (PSZ; Savage & Polissar, 2019, https://doi.org/10.1029/2019gc008225) depending on prescribed thickness of the deforming zone. We resampled two PF sample sites and acquired high‐spatial resolution ZHe data (n = 45 individual analyses) from the PSZ and fault core gouge, together with adjacent crystalline basement and Punchbowl Formation rocks. Results define a positive ZHe date‐effective U (eU) trend from ∼10 to 60 Ma and ∼20–700 ppm eU with a plateau at ∼65 Ma at >700 ppm eU. This pattern suggests the PSZ and fault core gouge share a similar thermal history to material outside the PF. Individual apatite (U‐Th)/He dates (n = 5) from an undeformed Punchbowl Formation sample are ∼4 Ma for grains with ∼30–150 ppm eU, implying rapid cooling and exhumation at that time due to PF activity. Zircon damage‐diffusivity relationships inform a suite of numerical models that collectively bracket coseismic temperatures on the PF to <725–800°C for 90% He loss. Results support general compatibility between ZHe and biomarker‐derived temperature rise estimates, and spatio‐temporal variability in coseismic temperatures along the PF.
Phylogeny and taxonomy of the African frog genus Strongylopus (Anura: Pyxicephalidae)

Abstract: We present a molecular phylogeny of African stream frogs (genus Strongylopus), based on 12S rRNA, 16S rRNA, the nuclear recombination activating gene 1 (RAG-1) and tyrosinase exon 1 (tyr). Molecular data were supported by advertisement call analysis and morphology. We recognise six valid species: Strongylopus bonaespei (Dubois, 1981) from the southern and southwestern parts of the Western Cape Province, South Africa; Strongylopus fasciatus (Smith, 1849) from eastern South Africa to Zimbabwe; Strongylopus grayii (Smith, 1849) found throughout South Africa with older records in Naukluft, in central Namibia; Strongylopus rhodesianus (Hewitt, 1933) known from the eastern highlands of Zimbabwe and western Mozambique; Strongylopus wageri (Wager, 1961) from KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa and Strongylopus merumontanus (Lönnberg, 1907) from eastern Zambia, Malawi, northern Mozambique and Tanzania. Strongylopus fuelleborni (Nieden, 1911), S. kitumbeine Channing & Davenport, 2002 and S. kilimanjaro Clarke & Poynton, 2005 were shown to be junior synonyms of Strongylopus merumontanus. Strongylopus springbokensis Channing, 1986 is recovered as a junior synonym of Strongylopus grayii. Divergence ages were estimated, and discussed in terms of paleoclimatic events.
Venture Capital as a Catalyst for High Growth Working Paper Series

We use new data linking information on venture capital (VC) financing from Thomson Reuters with firm-level administrative data from Statistics Canada to compare VC-backed and non-VC-backed firms. In particular, we assess the impact of VC on growth of key firm-level variables. This is the first study of its kind on VC-backed firms that incorporates official financial information of enterprises operating in Canada. The richness of the data allows us to construct a control group of non-VC-backed firms using previously unavailable covariates that are often thought to be associated with the potential for high growth and the probability of receiving VC financing, e.g., R&D expenditures, participation in an R&D support program, size, age, industry, location, among others. Using a propensity score matching estimator, our results suggest that VC-backed firms outperform their non-VC-backed counterparts in growth metrics. VC-backed firms experience higher growth in sales, wages, and employment over a 5-year period while the higher growth in R&D expenditures for VC-backed firms only occur over the first year with the levels converging over the long-term. In profitability, we find no statistical difference between VC-backed and non-VC-backed firms. Our results provide robust empirical evidence that VC financing is associated with faster firm growth and an acceleration of the innovation and commercialization process.
Zinc Biofortified Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp.) Soluble Extracts Modulate Assessed Cecal Bacterial Populations and Gut Morphology In Vivo (Gallus gallus).

BACKGROUND Biofortification is a method that improves the nutritional value of food crops through conventional plant breeding. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of intra-amniotic administration of soluble extracts from zinc (Zn) biofortified and Zn standard cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp.) flour on intestinal functionality and morphology, inflammation, and gut microbiota, in vivo. METHODS Seven treatment groups were utilized: (1) No Injection; (2) 18 MΩ H2O; (3) 50 mg/mL Inulin; (4) 50 mg/mL BRS Pajeú soluble extract (Zn standard); (5) 50 mg/mL BRS Aracê soluble extract (Zn biofortified); (6) 50 mg/mL BRS Imponente soluble extract (Zn biofortified); (7) 50 mg/mL BRS Xiquexique soluble extract (Zn biofortified). RESULTS Treatment groups with BRS Imponente and BRS Xiquexique reduced the abundance of Clostridium and E. coli when compared with all other experimental groups. All cowpea soluble extracts increased villi goblet cell number (total), specifically acidic goblet cell type number per villi relative to inulin and 18MΩ H2O groups. Moreover, BRS Xiquexique increased the crypt goblet diameter and the crypt depth compared to all treatments and controls. The Zn content in the Zn biofortified cowpea flours was higher when compared to the Zn standard flour (BRS Pajeú), and the phytate: Zn molar ratio was lower in the Zn biofortified flours compared to the Zn standard flour. In general, all cowpea soluble extracts maintained the gene expression of proteins involved with Zn and iron absorption, brush border membrane (BBM) functionality and inflammation compared to inulin and 18MΩ H2O. CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrates the potential nutritional benefit of standard and biofortified cowpea treatment groups to improve intestinal morphology, BBM functionality, inflammation, and gut microbiota, with the highest effect of BRS Xiquexique soluble extracts to improve assessed cecal microflora populations and intestinal morphology.
Source or Sink? The Role of Residential Host Plants in Asian Citrus Psyllid Infestation of Commercial Citrus Groves

Abstract Citriculture landscapes in the U.S. are typically habitat mosaics of commercial groves interspersed with residential areas supporting a variety of unmanaged citrus. Diaphorina citri the vector of Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus, the causal agent of Huanglongbing feeds on citrus in both habitats. We postulated that residential citrus function as a ‘source’ of D. citri that infest groves, functioning as sinks. Here we report on an experimental mark-release-recapture study conducted at the interface of a residential neighborhood and groves. Adult D. citri marked with colored fluorescent powders were released in both habitats (n = 15,300) and their movement within and between milieus monitored. Although the recapture rate of marked psyllids was very low (0.23%), the results were instructive. Most of the recaptured psyllids in residential trees (84.6%) were released within that habitat. In contrast, approximately half of the marked psyllids recovered in groves were released in residential areas. Of all the recaptured psyllids, about 40% changed habitats, but the change was skewed toward movement from residential to grove habitat. These data strongly suggest that there is a constant exchange of D. citri adults between the two habitats, with residential citrus trees functioning as a source habitat of psyllids. The further the residential trees are located from groves, the less likely they will serve as sources of D. citri. Hence, to reduce the risks of citrus grove colonization by D. citri, new groves should be established away from residential habitats where possible, and psyllid management practices must also be implemented in residential habitats.
Ecological interaction networks: what we know, what we don't, and why it matters

A BSTRACT . Species coexisting in ecological communities interact in multiple ways to form complex networks. We review the growing literature on ecological interaction networks to address several key issues about this conceptual and methodological approach. We start by asking the most basic question: Why study networks and whether a network approach is (or is not) useful to understand the ecology of interacting species, the functioning and stability of the communities they belong to, and their response to global change drivers. We also discuss the multiple meanings of network nodes as individuals, populations, and species, the different ways of quantifying node roles, the multiple meanings of links as presence/absence of interactions, per capita interaction strengths, and species-level effects, and the available approaches to study networks with different types of interactions. We then review the structural patterns emerging in ecological interaction networks, and the mechanisms driving network structure and function, identifying both what we already know and the knowledge gaps that we still need to fill. We also discuss sampling effects and their influence in distorting observed network patterns. Finally, we review how different drivers of global environmental change influence the structure, dynamics, and stability of ecological networks. With this review we hope to offer a balanced overview of what we have learned in the study of ecological interaction networks, and point to several key avenues of research for the next We then discuss the different meanings of network nodes and links. We also review the structural patterns of interaction networks, their spatio-temporal variability, the mechanisms driving network structure and function, and the influence of sampling effects in distorting observed network patterns. Next we show how this conceptual and methodological approach can offer insights about the consequences of human-driven environmental change. We close by pointing to several key avenues of research for the next decade.
Advances in the application of a computational Theory of Visual Attention (TVA): Moving towards more naturalistic stimuli and game-like tasks

Abstract The theory of visual attention, “TVA”, is an influential and formal theory of attentional selection. It is widely applied in clinical assessment of attention and fundamental attention research. However, most TVA-based research is based on accuracy data from letter report experiments performed in controlled laboratory environments. While such basic approaches to questions regarding attentional selection are undoubtedly useful, recent technological advances have enabled the use of increasingly sophisticated experimental paradigms involving more realistic scenarios. Notably, these studies have in many cases resulted in different estimates of capacity limits than those found in studies using traditional TVA-based assessment. Here we review recent developments in TVA-based assessment of attention that goes beyond the use of letter report experiments and experiments performed in controlled laboratory environments. We show that TVA can be used with other tasks and new stimuli, that TVA-based parameter estimation can be embedded into complex scenarios, such as games that can be used to investigate particular problems regarding visual attention, and how TVA-based simulations of “visual foraging” can elucidate attentional control in more naturalistic tasks. We also discuss how these developments may inform future advances of TVA.