Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The genus Phycopeltis (Trentepohliaceae, Chlorophyta) in Ireland: a taxonomic and distributional reassessment

Abstract The occurrence of subaerial green algae referable to the genus Phycopeltis (Trentepohliales) has been known in Ireland since 1965. However, the precise identity of Irish populations remains unclear. The taxonomy of Irish Phycopeltis was reinvestigated by light and scanning electron microscopy, using specimens collected over a period of 18 mo. It is concluded that P. arundinacea (= Phyllactidium arundinaceum, described from Algeria) is the only species found in Ireland, and the morphology of Irish specimens is in substantial agreement with the lectotype of P. arundinaceum and previous descriptions of this species. It is proposed that Phycopeltis arundinacea and P. expansa should be retained as separate species, although there is some evidence that the recently described species P. novae-zelandiae may be a synonym of P. expansa. A report of the generitype, P. epiphyton, from Ireland has not been confirmed. Although not currently known from Britain, P. arundinacea is widely distributed in Irish woodlands and other types of habitats characterized by more or less permanent dampness, but it may be more common in the western and south-western regions. Lectotypes are designated for P. arundinacea and P. expansa.
Yeast mastitis outbreak in a Brazilian dairy herd

Received: 18/07/2011 Approved: 27/06/2012 Abstract This study aimed to describe an outbreak of bovine mastitis caused by yeast in a dairy herd located in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Microbiological analysis of milk samples (106) of the infected mammary quarters of lactating cows showed that Corynebacterium bovis (43.48%) and yeasts from the genus Candida (29.35%) were the main agents isolated in the herd. C. albicans(33.34%), C. catenulate (22.23%) and C. glabrata (18.52%) were the species most commonly isolated. The high prevalence of yeast mastitis was associated with lack of training formilkers, repetitive intramammary treatment and poor teat hygiene prior to the intramammary infusion. Appropriate management measures, specific treatment with antifungal drugs and removal of chronically infected animals were effective for the control of mastitis outbreak.
Morcegos (mammalia, chiroptera) em fragmentos florestais urbanos no município de Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais, Sudeste do Brasil

Apresentamos os resultados de inventarios de morcegos realizados em tres areas de floresta urbana (78, 9 e 2 ha) localizadas no municipio de Juiz de Fora. Entre maio de 2001 e maio de 2002, 209 morcegos foram capturados e marcados, representando sete especies comuns em habitats urbanos (Artibeus lituratus, Platyrrhinus lineatus, Anoura caudifer, Sturnira lilium, Carollia perspicillata, Myotis nigricans e Molossus molossus). Apenas A. lituratus foi amostrada em todas as areas, alem de ter sido a mais abundante em todas elas, indicando sua alta resistencia a fragmentacao. Dois individuos desta especie foram recapturados em uma area diferente daquela em que haviam sido marcados anteriormente. Sugerimos que as areas estudadas apresentam valor significativo para a manutencao de alguns quiropteros, funcionando como "trampolins ecologicos", unindo populacoes, bem como fragmentos.
Modelling the impacts of environmental variation on the distribution of blue marlin, Makaira nigricans, in the Pacific Ocean

Su, N-J., Sun, C-L. , Punt, A. E. , Yeh, S-Z. , and DiNardo, G. 2011. Modelling the impacts of environmental variation on the distribution of blue marlin, Makaira nigricans, in the Pacific Ocean. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 68: 1072–1080.Blue marlin are distributed throughout tropical and temperate waters in the Pacific Ocean. The preference of this species for particular habitats may affect its distribution and vulnerability to being caught. The relationships between the spatial pattern of blue marlin abundance and oceanographic conditions, which may be influenced by climate change, were examined using generalized additive models fitted to catch and effort data from longline fisheries. Distributions of blue marlin density, based on combining the probability of presence and abundance given presence, indicate that there is annual variation in the distribution of blue marlin and that the population apparently moved east during the 1997–1998 El Nino. The interannual variability in blue marlin distribution appears to be associated with El Nino events and is related to shifts in sea surface temperature and the deepening of the thermocline. Models of catch and effort that include oceanographic variables could be used, given predictions from climate models, to explore future changes in distribution, which could then be used to provide management advice related to time-area closures.
Phaeotheca dimorphospora increases Trichoderma harzianum density in soil and suppresses red pine damping-off caused by Cylindrocladium scoparium

A fungal antagonist, Phaeotheca dimorphospora, was tested for its ability to control damping-off of red pine (Pinus resinosa) caused by Cylindrocladium scoparium. In vitro, the germination of seeds coated with P. dimorphospora microconidia was significantly increased by 10% compared with uncoated seeds. In experiments carried out in Petri dishes, addition of P. dimorphospora into soil significantly reduced the population of C. scoparium and disease incidence. In the greenhouse, application of P. dimorphospora into the top layer of soil reduced pre- and post-emergence damping-off by 79.5%. Under greenhouse conditions, P. dimorphospora stimulated the population of Trichoderma harzianum, a well-known antagonist of soil-borne plant pathogens. In soil treated with P. dimorphospora, the number of propagules of T. harzianum was 100–500 times higher than in the untreated control, whereas the population of C. scoparium decreased rapidly and was not detectable 1 month after sowing. Key words: Phaeotheca dimorphospo.
Types of spores produced by Entomophaga maimaiga infecting the gypsy moth Lymantria dispar

We investigated the association of environmental factors (temperature, photoperiod, host molting status) and fungal factors (isolate, dose, strain attenuation) with the production of conidia versus resting spores by the entomopathogenic fungus Entomophaga maimaiga infecting the larvae of the gypsy moth Lymantria dispar. Fungal spores produced from individual cadavers of larvae killed by E. maimaiga can include conidia discharged from the cadaver surface, resting spores (azygospores) within the cadaver, or both spore types. The single factor having the greatest impact on the type of spore produced was host age; second instars virtually never contained resting spores, independent of temperature, while fifth instar cadavers contained resting spores more frequently at higher temperatures. However, there was increased conidiation at lower temperatures. Photoperiod was the only factor studied that did not significantly influence the type of spore produced. Resting spore production was negatively associated with.
Physiological measures of neurotoxicity of diazinon and malathion to larval rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and their correlation with behavioral measures

Relations between neurotoxicants and changes in physiological parameters and behavior were investigated in larval rainbow trout (RBT; Oncorhynchus mykiss) exposed to sublethal concentrations of two organophosphate pesticides (OPs). Fish were exposed to diazinon and malathion in static‐renewal experiments. After exposures for 24, 96, or 96 h, followed by 48 h of recovery, individual RBT were videotaped to assess locomotory behaviors. Brain tissue from the same fish was assayed for the physiological endpoints, cholinesterase (ChE) activity, muscarinic cholinergic receptor (MChR) number (Bmax), and MChR affinity (KD). Cholinesterase activity decreased significantly with increasing concentrations of both diazinon and malathion and differed significantly among exposure durations, with 24‐ and 96‐h means less than 48‐h recovery means. Decreases in Bmax with OP concentration were not significant for either chemical, and KD was unaffected. Changes in swimming speed and distance were significantly correlated with changes in ChE activity for both chemicals; rate of turning was significantly correlated with ChE activity in malathion exposures. These results suggest that correlations between physiological and behavioral changes previously seen in mammals also occur in fish.
Physicians’ Opinion about the Role of Pharmacist in the Health Care System of Pakistan

Background: In under developed countries like Pakistan, professional relationships between the physicians and pharmacists need to be strong for the interest of profession and patient care. The present study is aimed at analyzing the physicians’ opinion about the role of pharmacists in the health care system of Pakistan. Method: A survey was conducted from July’2009 to June’2010 in different hospitals and clinics of Karachi including public and private sector. A 12-item questionnaire was supplied to the physicians. Descriptive statistics on the questionnaire items including means, standard deviation were determined. The influence of age, gender and experience of the respondents on their opinion about pharmacist’s expanded role was determined by One way ANOVA. Results: Most of the respondents were in favor of the extended role of pharmacist in the health care system. There is no significant influence of age, gender and experience on the positive opinion of physicians about pharmacist. Conclusion: In the interest of the patients, the Government and professional bodies like Pakistan Pharmacy Council should work together in building the involvement and mutual respect for each professional to strengthen the objectives and functioning of the health care team. A nationwide survey including all health care centers would provide further evidence.
Discogenic Back Pain: Literature Review of Definition, Diagnosis, and Treatment

Discogenic back pain is multifactorial; hence, physicians often struggle to identify the underlying source of the pain. As a result, discogenic back pain is often hard to treat—even more so when clinical treatment strategies are of questionable efficacy. Based on a broad literature review, our aim was to define discogenic back pain into a series of more specific and interacting pathologies, and to highlight the need to develop novel approaches and treatment strategies for this challenging and unmet clinical need. Discogenic pain involves degenerative changes of the intervertebral disc, including structural defects that result in biomechanical instability and inflammation. These degenerative changes in intervertebral discs closely intersect with the peripheral and central nervous systems to cause nerve sensitization and ingrowth; eventually central sensitization results in a chronic pain condition. Existing imaging modalities are nonspecific to pain symptoms, whereas discography methods that are more specific have known comorbidities based on intervertebral disc puncture and injection. As a result, alternative noninvasive and specific diagnostic methods are needed to better diagnose and identify specific conditions and sources of pain that can be more directly treated. Currently, there are many treatments/interventions for discogenic back pain. Nevertheless, many surgical approaches for discogenic pain have limited efficacy, thus accentuating the need for the development of novel treatments. Regenerative therapies, such as biologics, cell‐based therapy, intervertebral disc repair, and gene‐based therapy, offer the most promise and have many advantages over current therapies. © 2019 The Authors. JBMR Plus Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Society for Bone and Mineral Research
POPULATIONS OF SALMONELLA ENTERITIDIS IN THE TISSUES OF REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS IN LAYING HENS AFTER ORAL CHALLENGE: A REAL-TIME PCR STUDY

The objective of this study was to determine the populations of Salmonella Enteritidis (S.Enteritidis) in reproductive organs of laying hens after oral challenge. We conducted serovar-specific real-time PCR for S.Enteritidis to detect the genomic DNA of S.Enteritidis from laying hens at different time points. To validate these results, the indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) technique was employed too. The results showed that S.Enteritidis was consistently detected in all the samples. Vagina and uters was positive at 20 h PI, and the last organ to show a positive result was the largest and third largest preovulatory follicle, at 32 h PI. The copy numbers of S.Enteritidis DNA in each tissue reached a peak at 36 – 60 h PI, with the vagina and uterus containing higher concentrations than other tissues. However, the number of bacteria started decreasing by 3–4 d, and by 6 d, the concentration of S.Enteritidis DNA was below the detection limits of the PCR assay, except the Vagina. In conclusion, the results provided insights into the S.Enteritidis populations in the reproductive organs; This study will help in understanding the pathogenesis of S.Enteritidis infection in vivo.
Monitoring for benthic impacts in the southwest New Brunswick salmon aquaculture industry

Salmon aquaculture has been undertaken in southwest New Brunswick since the late 1970s. By 1986, there were 28 salmon farms, the industry was expanding rapidly, and researchers had started proposing methodologies for tracking benthic impacts. As a result of a number of projects conducted to determine a cost-effective monitoring protocol, and in consultation with aquaculture industry representatives, an Environmental Monitoring Program (EMP) was adopted in 1995. This programme is a requirement of the aquaculture site licence and is conducted annually at each farmed site. The programme is now under review with the aim of refining the scientific information that is used in assigning an annual site impact rating. The development of the current Environmental Monitoring Program and the Federal and Provincial responsibilities with respect to environmental protection under which the monitoring programme was developed are discussed. A description of the scientific rationale and the industry requirements with respect to production that has led to the proposed changes to the current programme is included.
Effects of bunch trimming and double bunch covering on yield of bananas during winter in New South Wales

Bunch trimming (removal of male bud and several distal hands from bunches soon after flowering), and double covering (use of 2 bunch covers simultaneously) of banana bunches that emerge during winter in northern New South Wales could have the potential to increase the size, and hence grade and price of harvested fruit. Consequently bunches were either trimmed to 6, 8 or 10 hands or left untrimmed (male bud retained), and either single or double bunch covers were applied on a commercial plantation on 3 occasions during winter, and the effects on fruit size and quality were recorded. Bunch emergence to bunch harvest interval was reduced by an average of 5 days by bunch trimming. Finger length increased with increasing severity of bunch trimming, with the average length for the top 6 hands increased by 2.3% (P<0.01) for the 10-hand treatment to 6.1% (P<0.001) for the 6-hand treatment. Finger weight increased with increasing severity of bunch trimming, with weights for the top 6 hands increased by up to 14% (P < 0.001) on the 6-hand treatment. Double covering increased finger weight of the top 6 hands by 4% (P < 0.01). Trimming to 10, 8 and 6 hands increased the yield per bunch of extra large grade fruit by 18, 23 and 39% respectively. Double covering did not affect the yield of extra large fruit significantly. After excluding hands suffering from the mixed ripe condition, the 6-hand treatment yielded 51% more marketable extra large fruit than untrimmed bunches. Potential profitability of the treatments depended on price scenario. When prices were low the 6-hand treatment appeared most profitable, but at higher prices the 10-hand treatment would be preferable. Double covering appeared not to be worthwhile for all price scenarios used.
Distribución espacial de las precipitaciones diarias en Chile mediante el índice de concentración a resolución de 1 mm, entre 1965-2005

espanolChile posee una gran diversidad de climas, por causa de su amplia extension latitudinal (17o29’57’’S a 56o32’ S), su contrastado relieve y los centros de accion y flujos (Anticiclon del Pacifico, Cinturon de bajas presiones subpolares, corriente en chorro, etc.). Las precipitaciones son muy dispares, entre 0,7 mm (Iquique) y 1.814,8 mm (Valdivia) como media anual entre las estaciones meteorologicas principales. Ademas, se concentran en poquisimos dias al ano, apenas 3 en el norte, de 16 a 42 dias en Chile central, y mas de 150 dias en el sur, lo que refleja su gran variedad pluviometrica. No obstante, no se conocen bien las relaciones entre los dias de precipitacion y sus totales, por lo que se aplica el indice de concentracion diaria (Concentration Index, CI) a resolucion de un milimetro a 17 estaciones meteorologicas, en el periodo 1965-2005. Los resultados indican un elevado rango del CI (de 0,51 a 0,76), distinguiendo las areas al norte del tropico de capricornio y al sur de los 40o S, donde la concentracion es baja o moderada ( EnglishChile has a great diversity of climates. This diversity is produced due to its wide latitudinal distances (17° 29’57’’ S to 56 o 32 ‘S), contrasting topography, atmospheric centres of action and the atmospheric flow (Southeast Pacific subtropical anticyclone, subpolar low pressure belts, Jet Stream, etc.). In average, the rainfall differs between 0.7 mm (Iquique, North) and 1,814.8 mm (Valdivia, South) according to the main meteorological stations. The little rainfall quantity in the north concentrates on very few days of the year with only 3 days per year. In the centre, it measures among 16 to 42 days and in the south more than 150 days. In order to understand the correlation between precipitation totals (grouped into 1-mm size classes) and the number of rain days, meteorologists use the Concentration Index (CI). This index was applied to 17 meteorological stations across Chile and produced quality data between 1965 and 2005. The results of the CI showed a high variation among the regions (from 0.51 to 0.76). The highest one was recorded in La Serena (30o S), with values higher than 0.70. From La Serena, the IC decreases gradually, reaching values of about 0.60 in the III. Atacama Region (north) and further south in the VIII. Biobio Region.
Phenotypic and behavioral variability within Angelman Syndrome group with UPD

The Angelman syndrome (AS) (developmental delay, mental retardation, speech impairment, ataxia, outbursts of laughter, seizures) can result either from a 15q11-q13 deletion, or from paternal uniparental disomy (UPD), imprinting, or UBE3A mutations. We describe here the phenotypic and behavioral variability detected in eight UPD patients out of a group of 58 AS patients studied. All of them presented developmental delay, mental retardation, ataxia, speech impairment, and frequent drooling. Only one had microcephaly, whereas in two of them the OFC (head circumference) was above the 98th percentile. The weight of all patients was above the 50th percentile, and in three of them the height was above the 90th percentile. Three were able to say a few words and to communicate by gestures. Two patients presented hyperphagia, and three presented skin picking, common features in the Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS). Four patients (4/7) had wide-spaced teeth. Five presented seizures, and two others did not manifest frequent laughter. One patient was very different from the others, as he showed a better understanding and abilities to communicate, to play video games and to draw. We suggest here that there seems to be an extreme phenotypic and behavioral variability within the UPD group, and that both typical patients and those with mental retardation, language impairment, happy disposition, and hyperactivity should be tested for AS.
On the Optimality of the Kautz-Singleton Construction in Probabilistic Group Testing

We consider the probabilistic group testing problem where <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$d$ </tex-math></inline-formula> random defective items in a large population of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$N$ </tex-math></inline-formula> items are identified with high probability by applying binary tests. It is known that the <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\Theta (d \log N)$ </tex-math></inline-formula> tests are necessary and sufficient to recover the defective set with vanishing probability of error when <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$d = O(N^{\alpha })$ </tex-math></inline-formula> for some <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\alpha \in (0, 1)$ </tex-math></inline-formula>. However, to the best of our knowledge, there is no explicit (deterministic) construction achieving <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\Theta (d \log N)$ </tex-math></inline-formula> tests in general. In this paper, we show that a famous construction introduced by Kautz and Singleton for the combinatorial group testing problem (which is known to be suboptimal for combinatorial group testing for moderate values of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$d$ </tex-math></inline-formula>) achieves the order optimal <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\Theta (d \log N)$ </tex-math></inline-formula> tests in the probabilistic group testing problem when <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$d = \Omega (\log ^{2}\,\,N)$ </tex-math></inline-formula>. This provides a strongly explicit construction achieving the order optimal result in the probabilistic group testing setting for a wide range of values of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$d$ </tex-math></inline-formula>. To prove the order-optimality of Kautz and Singleton’s construction in the probabilistic setting, we provide a novel analysis of the probability of a non-defective item being covered by a random defective set directly, rather than arguing from combinatorial properties of the underlying code, which has been the main approach in the literature. Furthermore, we use a recursive technique to convert this construction into one that can also be efficiently decoded with only a log-log factor increase in the number of tests.
Declining Wild Salmon Populations in Relation to Parasites from Farm Salmon

Rather than benefiting wild fish, industrial aquaculture may contribute to declines in ocean fisheries and ecosystems. Farm salmon are commonly infected with salmon lice (Lepeophtheirus salmonis), which are native ectoparasitic copepods. We show that recurrent louse infestations of wild juvenile pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha), all associated with salmon farms, have depressed wild pink salmon populations and placed them on a trajectory toward rapid local extinction. The louse-induced mortality of pink salmon is commonly over 80% and exceeds previous fishing mortality. If outbreaks continue, then local extinction is certain, and a 99% collapse in pink salmon population abundance is expected in four salmon generations. These results suggest that salmon farms can cause parasite outbreaks that erode the capacity of a coastal ecosystem to support wild salmon populations.