Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
NEST ARCHITECTURE AND POPULATION OF THE HONEY ANT, MYRMECOCYSTUS MEXICANUS WESMAEL (FORMICIDAE), IN COLORADO

Crater development and dimensions were determined by observing 66 Myrmecocys- tus mexicanus nests in the Garden of the Gods area for periods up to 453 days. Crater develop- ment varies from none to well-constructed cones 68 mm high. Crater dimensions change season- ally and sometimes daily in response to weather conditions and worker activity. The entrance is a large symmetrical opening with a mean diameter of 12 mm, which is likely to be closed after a heavy rain and during the winter. Six double-entrance nests were located. Subsurface architecture and population size were determined from four complete and three partial excavations. The entrance opens into a vertical or oblique passage about 10 cm long before branching into a laby- rinth of horizontal passages and small chambers arranged asymmetrically about it and extending to depths of 20 cm. Only open vertical passage descends from the subsurface labyrinth to domed replete chambers below. Upper replete chambers tend to be smaller, more numerous, and closer together than lower ones. The first repletes, 1 to 12 in number, occur at depths of 17 to 51 cm. Replete chambers per colony vary in number from 7 to 21, and the number of repletes per chamber ranges from 1 to 348. Replete chambers range from 5.1-33 cm in length, 3-24 cm in width, and 1-5 cm in height. Nests ranged from 0.97 to 1.8 m in depth. Each nest houses about 5,000 aqts, of which 22-25% exhibit abdominal distension. The number of repletes in each nest varies from 351 to 1030. The maximum number of winged reproductives is 209 queens and 100- 110 males. One wingless queen is present in each nest. Honey ants are unusual in producing swollen workers called repletes to store the seasonal flow of plant nectar, and their nests exhibit certain archi-
Ectoparasitos Da Tilápia Nilótica Oreochromis Niloticus

ABSTRACT: ALVES, D.R. , J.L. LUQUE & A.R. PARAGUASSU. Ectoparasites of tilapia Oreochromis niloticus (Osteichthyes: Cichlidae) from the pisciculture ponds of UFRRJ. Rev. Univ. Rural, Ser.Cienc. Vida, 22 (Supl.):81-85, 2000. - Fifty-five s pecimens of Oreochromis niloticus from the pisciculture ponds from UFRRJ, were examined to study their metazoan ectoparasites. Three species of ectoparasites were collected and identified, one monogenean (Cichlidogyrus sp.) and two' copepods (Ergasilus sp. and Lamproglena sp.). Ali parasites showed the typical overdispersed pattern of di stribution. Lamproglena sp. was the species more prevalent and abundant, with positive corelation with the body totallength ofthe host. None species showed correlation between the sex ofthe host a nd the parasite prevalence and abundance. This is the first record of Cichlidogyrus sp. and Lamproglena sp. parasitizing tilapias from Brazil.
Chromosome numbers of selected species of Elatine L. (Elatinaceae)

The paper reports chromosome numbers for 13 taxa of Elatine L. , including all 11 species occurring in Europe, namely E. alsinastrum , E. ambigua , E. brachysperma , E. brochonii , E. californica , E. campylosperma , E. gussonei , E. hexandra , E. hungarica , E. hydropiper , E. macropoda , E. orthosperma , E. triandra originating from 17, field-collected populations. For seven of them ( E. ambigua , E. californica , E. campylosperma , E. brachysperma , E. brochonii , E. hungarica , E. orthosperma ) the chromosome numbers are reported for the first time. With these records, chromosome numbers for the whole section Elatinella Seub. became available. Although 2 n = 36 was reported to be the most common and the lowest chromosome number in the genus, our data show that out of thirteen species analyzed, six had 36 chromosomes but five species had 54 chromosomes, and the lowest number of chromosomes was 18. These data further corroborates that the basic chromosome number in Elatine is x = 9.
A NEW NEOTROPICAL GENUS AND SPECIES OF ROSTRATE LAEMOPHLOEINAE (COLEOPTERA: CUCUJIDAE) WITH DISCUSSION OF THE SYSTEMATIC POSITION OF THE SUBFAMILY'

Metaxyphloeus Thomas, a new genus of rostrate Neotropical Laemophloeinae, is described. Included species are: Metaxyphloeus germaini (Grouvelle) [new combination, type species], Metaxyphloeus zeus Thomas [new species], Metaxyphloeus vicinus (Grouvelle) [new combination]; Metaxyphloeus signatus (Sharp) [new combination]; and Metaxyphloeus texanus (Schaeffer) [new combination]. The included species are illustrated and a key is provided for their identification. Affinities of Metaxyphloeus are to the Laemophloeus genus group, which is defined, and a key to the included genera is provided. Charaphloeus Casey and Phloeipsius Casey are elevated from subgenus to genus; Laemophloeus salpingoides Grouvelle is designated type species of Rhinophloeus Sharp; and phylogenetic relationships within the group and among related taxa are discussed. Several years ago I discovered specimens of 2 rostrate species of Laemophloeinae among unidentified material in the Florida State Collection of Arthropods (FSCA) and the Field Museum of Natural History (FMNH). Both keyed out to Rhinomalus germaini Grouvelle in Grouvelle's (1896) key to the species of Rhinomalus, but their external structure and male genitalia indicated that they belonged to an undescribed genus allied to Rhinomalus. An examination of the holotype of R. germaini in the Museum National d'Histoire Naturelle (MNHN) established the correct identity of one series of specimens and examination of specimens of most of the other described species of Rhinomalus revealed the polyphyletic nature of the genus as presently composed and supported the erection of a new genus.
Carbohydrate Changes in Sweet Potatoes During Curing and Storage

The quantity and pattern of carbohydrate change during curing and storage differed among 6 sweet potato [Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam] cultivars. ‘Travis’ contained the most total sugar and ‘Whitestar’ the least on a dry weight basis. Sucrose, the major sugar in raw sweet potatoes, sharply increased during curing (10 days at 32°C; 90% RH), and generally continued to increase in 4 orange-flesh cultivars during 46 weeks of 15.6° storage. Sucrose concentration decreased in 2 white-flesh cultivars after curing, followed by an increase after 14 weeks of storage. Glucose concentration was slightly higher than fructose in all cultivars except ‘Centennial’, which had similar monosaccharide concentrations. The pattern of monosaccharide change during curing and storage varied with cultivar, but generally increased during curing and the first 4 weeks of storage, followed by stabilization or a slight increase. Alcohol-insoluble solids (AIS) decreased with increasing lengths of storage in the 4 orange-flesh cultivars, which was attributed to continuous starch degradation. AIS increased during the first 4 or 14 weeks of storage in the 2 white-flesh cultivars, followed by a decrease during longer periods of storage.
Gonococcal Infection: Virulence of Colony Types of Neisseria gonorrhoeae for Chicken Embryos

The virulence of gonococcal strains and colony types was evaluated in embryonated hen eggs of various ages inoculated by different routes. Striking differences in virulence of colony types were revealed by intravenous inoculation of 11-day embryos. Ti and T2 colony types were found to have high virulence for embryos, whereas T3 and T4 colony types were relatively avirulent. These observations are in accord with previous studies in volunteers. The differences in virulence were not related to differences in toxicity of killed gonococci, sonic lysates, or to the susceptibility of gonococci to cidal effects of chicken embryo blood. Rather, they appeared to involve differences in clearance of gonococci from the blood stream and subsequent multiplication of the virulent colony types. Infection with virulent colony types appears to be primarily bacteremic in this model. Preliminary experiments indicated that chicken embryos may be protected against the lethal infection by prior treatment of the inoculum with normal and immune rabbit serum. This protective effect was not associated with bactericidal activity. The chicken embryo model is potentially usef'ul as a means of investigating attributes of virulence of gonococci and factors in immunity against gonorrhea.
Silencing Proteins Sir3 and Sir4 have Distinct Roles in the Assembly of Silent Chromatin in Budding Yeast

ii Acknowledgements . iii TABLE OF CONTENTS . iv List of abbreviations . vi List of figures . vii List of tables . ix Chapter 1: Introduction . 1 General introduction . 1 Silencing in Saccharomyces cerevisiae . 2 Silencing of the mating type loci . 2 Telomeric and subtelomeric silencing . 6 The Silent Information Regulator (SIR) proteins . 7 Discovery of the SIR proteins . 7 The SIR proteins . 8 SIR complex interactions with chromatin . 17 Interactions within the SIR complex . 17 SIR protein-nucleosome interactions . 19 Assembly, maintenance and establishment of silencing . 24 Nucleation of silencing . 24 Spreading of silent chromatin . 25 Conservation of silencing . 27 Research objectives and hypotheses . 28 General hypothesis . 28 Specific hypothesis . 28 Statement of objectives . 29 Chapter 2: General Methodology . 30 Chapter 3: Defining the role of the Sir3-Sir4 interaction . 37 Introduction . 37 Results . 39 Discussion . 64 Chapter 4: Mechanisms of Sir3 oligomerization . 68 Introduction . 68 Results . 72 Discussion . 81 Chapter 5: Sir4 abundance regulates establishment of silencing . 84 Introduction . 84 Results . 86 Discussion . 99 Chapter 6: General Discussion . 103
Identification of genetic markers and bottlenecks in Lactobacillus sakei constituting safety and quality determinants of fermented sausages

A screening of about 50 L. sakei strains revealed a very homogenous distribution of genes involved in peptide uptake as well as peptide and amino acid degradation. All strains tested appeared to be auxotrophic for most amino acids. L. sakei can be classified as a safe species because of its restricted potential to form biogenic amines. L. sakei lacks genes coding for aminotransferases (IlvE, AraT) initiating the degradation of branched-chain or aromatic amino acids to aromatic compounds. Heterologous expression of IlvEs obtained from other sausage starter organisms in L. sakei 23 K led to an increased transamination activity of recombinant strains. However, an increase of methyl-branched aromatic compounds could not be determined.
Effect of soil salinity on penetration, development and pathogenicity of Meloidogyne incognita on okra and cucumber

Effect of soil salinity (created by NaCl and NaHCO3) on penetration and development of Meloidogyne incognita race 2 in okra and cucumber roots and on plant growth were assessed. Salts at 5.0 mmhos/cm impaired ingress of the juveniles and delayed their development. Soil salinity and root-knot nematode reduced plant growth of both okra and cucumber, root galling, egg mass production and fecundity. There was a corresponding decrease in number of galls, egg masses and number of eggs/egg mass with increase in concentration of the salts. Delay in nematode ingress, development and reproduction in plant roots caused by the salinity stress resulted in improved plant growth.
Ripening of ber (Zizyphus mauritiana Lamk.) fruits on tree and during storage: Study on pulp firmness and cell wall composition

Fruits of ber cv. Umran were harvested from the tree at different ripening stages. The fruits were also harvested at green-mature stage and allowed to ripe in storage at room temperature (30 ± 3°C; 98% RH). It was observed that fruit firmness, moisture, cell wall yield, pectins, hemicelluloses and celluloses contents decreased with ripening in ber. Amongst the various pectin components, free pectins increased and ionically associated, covalently bound and hemicellulose bound pectins decreased during ripening. The pattern of changes were similar for fruits ripening on tree and in storage, except that on tree the loss of flesh firmness was largely found to be associated with degradation of celluloses and hemicelluloses, but in storage, pectins were relatively high.
Clinical aspects of human Venezuelan equine encephalitis in Texas.

: The Venezuelan equine encephalitis epidemic which occurred in Texas in 1971 produced a wide range of predominantly mild clinical symptoms. This epidemic, which peaked on 13-14 July, was most intensely felt in the far-south counties of Cameron and Hidalgo. In all, 88 laboratory-confirmed human cases were reported to the U.S. Center for Disease Control by the Texas State Department of Health. The ratio of male to female cases was about two to one. An attack of 20.8 cases per 100,000, observed in both the 20-29 and 30-39 age groups, was higher than attack rates experienced by other age groups and by the population at large. Together, Cameron and Hidalgo counties experienced a much higher overall attack rate (21.7 cases por 100,000) than did affected counties in the Corpus Christi area (4.9 cases per 100,000). Knowledge about when various patients were first exposed points to an incubation period ranging from 27.5 hours to four days. In those 79 cases for which clinical data were available, the most common clinical manifestations were found to be fever, severe headache, myalgia, and chills. Evidence of mild to moderate central nervous system involvement was found in 10 out of 25 children and young people under 17 years of age, and in six out of 54 adults. Two children still had residual paralysis six weeks after onset of illness, but by 10 months these sequelae had disappeared. Seven of the 54 adults, however, still complained of tiring easily a year after onset of illness. Leukopenia, as demonstrated by a count of less rhan 4,500 white blood cells per cubic millimeter, was observed in 75 per cent of the patients examined.
A study of the kinetics and the effect of trace elements on mixed anaerobic fermentative biogas production by ternary quadratic general rotary unitized design

ABSTRACT In this study the effect of trace elements on methanogenesis was investigated during mixed anaerobic fermentation using a single-factor experiment in the present study. The most effective concentrations of Fe0, Fe2+, Co2+ and Ni2+ that were added were 1500, 250, 0.3 and 0.6 mg/L, respectively. The optimal trace element combination was 0.58 mg/L Ni2+, 1200 mg/L Fe0 and 0.34 mg/L Co2+ by the ternary quadratic general rotary unitized design method. The degree of influence exerted by trace elements on the cumulative methane yields decreased in the order of Ni2+, Fe0 and Co2+, and the maximum CH4 yield was 241.6 mL/g volatile solids (VS), according to a regression equation. The non-dissolved organic carbon hydrolytic process showed a good fit with the first-order kinetic model. The maximum value of CH4 was 312.87 mL/g VS. Compared to the control, the bioconversion efficiencies of CH4 and CO2 production increased by 36.76% and 74.50%, respectively, at the optimal trace element combination. The obtained results provide new knowledge for improvements in the efficiency of anaerobic fermentation biogas production.
Conditional Poisson processes

A conditional Poisson process (often called a double stochastic Poisson process) is characterized as a random time transformation of a Poisson process with unit intensity. This characterization is used to exhibit the jump times and sizes of these processes, and to study their limiting behavior. A conditional Poisson process, whose intensity is a function of a Markov process, is discussed. Results similar to those presented can be obtained for any process with conditional stationary independent increments.
PRELIMINARY REPORT ON GENETIC IMPROVEMENT OF Heterobranchus longifilis THROUGH INTRASPECIFIC HYBRIDIZATION OF DIFFERENT STRAINS FROM NIGERIA

Three strains of Heterobranchus longifilis were ob­tained from different ecological zones in Nigeria namely Nassarawa (NS); Kainji (KK) and Ajase Ipo, (SW). Six intra specific progenies were obtained from the cross of the three strains from the ecological zones, hatchability was highest (94.2%) in KK x KK (Kainji strains); while the intra specific cross between KK x NS had the highest (80.0%) hatchability. Gen­eral observation of the study point to the fact that intra specific crosses involving SW and NS male have bet­ter survival rates.
Myotis chiloensis (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae)

Abstract: Myotis chiloensis (Waterhouse, 1838), the Chilean myotis, is found only in Argentina and Chile, where it is the most common bat species in the southern part of Chile. It is a small insectivorous bat and differs from other members of the genus because of its darker pelage. It uses human buildings and caves to establish colonies, and forages in dense forests of Nothofagus to capture insects, thereby providing ecosystem services to agriculture and forestry. M. chiloensis is considered of “Least Concern” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.
Comparing the Therapeutic Effects of Aloe vera and Olive Oil Combination Cream versus Topical Betamethasone for Atopic Dermatitis: A Randomized Double-blind Clinical Trial

Objectives Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a prevalent and chronic, pruritic inflammatory skin condition that can influence all age groups. AD is associated with a poor health-related quality of life. This randomized clinical trial was performed to compare the effectiveness of Olivederma (combination of aloe vera and virgin olive oil) or betamethasone regarding disease severity, quality of life, serum IgE and eosinophil count. Methods Thirty-six AD patients were randomly allocated to topical Olivederma or betamethasone, and were followed for 6 weeks. Results Total SCORAD severity scores showed significant decrease in both groups, while it was more prominent in Olivederma group (64.5% improvement in Olivederma vs. 13.5% improvement in Betamethasone, p-value < 0.001). Quality of life (DLQI questionnaire) of AD patients was significantly improved after 6 weeks treatment with Betamethasone (22.3%, p < 0.001) and Olivederma (60.7%, p-value < 0.001). Olivederma group showed a significantly lower DLQI score in comparison with Betamethasone treated patients after 6 weeks of therapy (p < 0.001). Improvements in eosinophil count and serum IgE was observed. Conclusion In summary, this study shows that Olivederma is superior to topical Betamethasone after 6 weeks of therapy with regard to disease severity, quality of life and eosinophil count.
Selection of Building Roosts by Mexican Free-Tailed Bats (Tadarida brasiliensis) in an Urban Area

The Mexican free-tailed bat (Tadarida brasiliensis) is one of the most widely distributed bat species in the Western Hemisphere. Despite their prevalence in urban environments, limited research has been conducted to determine the features of buildings or of the surroundings that might affect the likelihood of a building being selected by Mexican free-tailed bats as a roost. Our study objectives were to improve the current understanding of Mexican free-tailed bat's urban roosting preferences with regard to both microhabitat and macrohabitat. Between August 2010 and August 2012, we conducted acoustic surveys and emergence observations and examined 218 buildings in Waco, TX, USA. A total of 54 day-roosts for Mexican free-tailed bats was identified. At the microhabitat scale, modeling of building characteristics and opening characteristics showed that bats preferred to roost in tall and abandoned buildings. Roost exits were more likely the results of structural damage to buildings and less likely to have vegetation blocking the adjacent air space. Roost accessibility seemed to be more important than thermal condition in roost selection. At the broader macrohabitat scale, bats were more likely to roost in areas with lower income and were near tall buildings and water sources.
Advances in genetic engineering of domestic animals

Global population will increase to over nine billion by 2050 with the doubling in demand for meat and milk. To overcome this challenge, it is necessary to breed highly efficient and productive livestock. Furthermore, livestock are also excellent models for human diseases and ideal bioreactors to produce pharmaceutical proteins. Thus, genetic engineering of domestic animals presents a critical and valuable tool to address these agricultural and biomedical applications. Overall, genetic engineering has evolved through three stages in history: transgenesis, gene targeting, and gene editing. Since the birth of the first transgenic pig, genetic engineering in livestock has been advancing slowly due to inherent technical limitations. A major breakthrough has been the advent of somatic cell nuclear transfer, which, for the first time, provided the technical ability to produce site-specific genome-modified domestic animals. However, the low efficiency of gene targeting events in somatic cells prohibits its wide use in agricultural and biomedical applications. Recently, rapid progress in tools and methods of genome engineering has been made, allowing genetic editing from mutation of a single base pair to the deletion of entire chromosomes. Here, we review the major advances of genetic engineer- ing in domestic animals with emphasis placed on the introduction of latest designer nucleases.
Seasonal Variation of Chemical Parameters in Alaskan Tundra Lakes

Chemical parameters were monitored for 20 months in two shallow lakes near Barrow, Alaska. After formation of an ice cover, all parameters, except dissolved oxygen and pH, increased to a maximum at time of maximum ice depth. The pH values were essentially the inverse of other parameters after an ice cover was formed. Dissolved oxygen increased to supersaturation values in January and then gradually decreased until photosynthetic rates became significant. The lakes did not become anaerobic at any time. During and immediately after thawing, dissolved oxygen was near saturation and all other solutes (except pH) fell to minimum values. After this low point, concentrations began to increase toward another maximum in the following year. Solutes may be concentrated up to about 30 times by the thick ice cover. Ratios of solutes deviated widely from mean world values, probably because of the close proximity of the lakes to the ocean. Imikpuk, nearer to the ocean, had most ratios closer to ocean values. Seasonally, except at the time of the thaw, ratios were essentially constant except for Cl/HCO3. CJ/HCO3 decreased after ice formation and until photosynthetic rates became significant. During ice melt, ratios differed from values at other times, possibly because of differential occlusion of solutes in ice. INTRODUCTION Previous papers in this series have reported on algae, phytoplankton and primary productivity of Alaskan tundra lakes (Prescott, 1953, 1963a, 1963b; Prescott and Vinyard, 1965; Howard and Prescott, 1971). While studying the above elements of the eco,system, chemical parameters were also monitored. This paper reports on the seasonal variation of certain chemical parameters in tundra lakes near Barrow, Alaska. Other studies that have reported on chemical analyses of Alaskan tundra waters are Boyd (1959), Brown et al. (1962), Livingstone (1963), Lamar (1966), Holmquist (1967) and Kalif (1968). METHODS Two lakes near Barrow, Alaska, were studied for 20 months (September 1959-April 1961). These lakes, Imikpuk and Ikroavik, were described in an earlier paper (Howard and Prescott, 1971), but a few essential characteristics should be presented here. Both have about the same maximum depth (ca. 2-3 m) and neither freezes solid in the winter. Furthermore, Imikpuk is 100 m from the ocean while Ikroavik is 8 km inland. Samples were collected with a brass Kenmmerer bottle from the surface or immediately under the ice at intervals of about 2 weeks. The samples were conveyed to the laboratory in plastic bottles where