Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Stability and recovery of maize DNA during food processing

The identification and quantification of food ingredients based on DNA detection depends strictly on DNA stability during the food preparation treatment and on the efficiency of DNA recovery. Investigations into DNA stability carried out on polenta by real time PCR revealed that after 65 min of processing the amplifiable DNA decreased to 40% of the amount detectable before processing. Four commercial kits for DNA extraction were compared with the hexadecyltrimethyl ammoniumbromide (CTAB)-based method for DNA extraction from different maize foodstuffs: flour, canned maize, corn chip snacks, cheese corn puff snacks, chocolate corn flakes and an infant formula having a maize flour ingredient. The methods were evaluated for recovered DNA quality and yield by agarose gel electrophoresis, PCR and real time PCR targeting of the maize zein gene. No detectable DNA could be extracted from the chocolate corn flakes, whereas highly degraded DNA was extracted from all the other materials tested except flour which yielded high quality DNA. Among the methods tested, CTAB, the Wizard method and Wizard Magnetic DNA Purification System kits gave the highest DNA yields. The overall data indicate that quantitative detection of ingredients in processed food products may not reflect the original amount of DNA due to DNA degradation and low yield of DNA recovery.
Assessing the cost‐efficiency of environmental DNA sampling

Environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling can be a highly sensitive method for detecting aquatic taxa; however, the cost‐efficiency of this technique relative to traditional methods has not been rigorously assessed. We show how methods that account for imperfect and stochastic detection can be used to (i) determine the optimal allocation of survey effort with eDNA sampling for a fixed budget (i.e. identify the optimal combination of water samples vs. site visits), and (ii) assess the cost‐efficiency of eDNA sampling relative to traditional survey techniques. We illustrate this approach by comparing eDNA sampling and bottle‐trapping for an exotic newt species (Lissotriton v. vulgaris) recently detected in Melbourne, Australia. Bottle traps produced much lower detection rates than eDNA sampling, but the cost‐efficiency of the two methods can be similar because bottle‐trapping is cheaper per sample. The relative cost‐efficiency of the two sampling methods was sensitive to the available survey budget, the costs of eDNA primer/probe development and sample processing and the number of positive quantitative PCR assays (qPCRs) used to designate a water sample as positive for newt DNA. Environmental DNA sampling was more cost‐efficient than bottle‐trapping for small to intermediate budgets when primer/probe development and sample processing costs were low, and 1/4 or 2/4 positive qPCRs were used to label a water sample as positive for newt eDNA. However, bottle traps were generally more cost‐efficient than eDNA sampling when primer/probe development and sample processing costs were high, regardless of qPCR threshold or survey budget. Traditional sampling methods may achieve lower detection probabilities compared to eDNA sampling, but the totality of costs can make eDNA sampling less efficient than traditional techniques in some circumstances. Our approach provides a quantitative framework for determining how many water samples and site visits are required to maximize detection probabilities with eDNA sampling, and can calculate the cost‐efficiency of any sampling method.
Aptychella chilensis Belongs to the Ptychomniaceae and not Pylaisiadelphaceae Based on DNA and Morphological Analyses

Abstract Inferences from molecular data (rps4 and trnL-F) and morphological features of the Chilean endemic Aptychella chilensis reveal that the species should be excluded from Aptychella and the Pylaisiadelphaceae, and transferred to Ombronesus in the Ptychomniaceae. The new combination Ombronesus chilensis (Herzog) Frank Müll. & H. Akiyama is proposed with the new synonym O. stuvensis N.E. Bell, N. Pedersen & A.E. Newton. A lectotype for A. chilensis is selected.
Volatile Compounds in "Alvaich" Bread Produced by Milk Starter Cultural and Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Since ancient times, traditional foods have been passed down from one generation to another over the years. They have become a part of the cultural and traditional base among the native communities in most developing countries, especially in Africa. Traditional foods have characteristics related to the location, specific ingredients and methods of production available to native peoples [1-4]. In earlier times, sourdough was used in bread-making, while in the last century, it has been substituted by baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) [57]. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) were used in ancient traditional food technology, especially cereal fermentations [8-11]. The mildly sour taste in fermented food comes from lactic acid, which is produced using Lactobacilli [10]. There is a special traditional type of bread baked in Egypt, called Alvaich bread (AB), that has employed this form of technology since ancient times. The sourdough variety of original AB is fermented using the curd of a fermented milk starter culture that is prepared by a very special method in the villages. This is a form of food preservation technology that has been used since ancient times. In contrast, AB is produced commercially using yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae). Alvaich bread produced using a milk starter culture has unique organoleptic properties that may be a result of the fermentation method. Traditional Alvaich bread fermentation is a form of food processing in which microbes such as lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are utilized. The most important factors contributing to bread quality are the loaf volume texture, color, and flavor. The characteristic aroma of bread is the one of the most important parameters influencing consumer acceptance [12-15]. Flavour is in the mind. It may be caused by numerous components, many of which have very distinct olfactory characteristics. In bread, the volatile and nonvolatile compounds that contribute to flavor include acids, alcohols, aldehydes, ethers, furans, hydrocarbons, ketones, lactones, pyrazines, pyrroles and sulfur compounds [15]. More than 540 of these compounds can be found in bread [16]. The major volatile components of the bread are alcohols, especially ethanol, isobutanol, and 3-methyl-butanol. Additionally, carbonyl compounds such as 3-methyl butanal, 2,3-butanedione, and hexanal are important but do not necessarily make major contributions Abstract
Studies in testicular function. I. Quantitative effects of FSH, LH, testosterone and dihydrotestosterone on restoration and maintenance of spermatogenesis in the hypophysectomized rat.

Male Wistar rats were hypophysectomized and the effects on spermatogenesis were quantified by stereological techniques. Restoration of normal spermatogenesis was attempted 32 days after hypo-physectomy by treatment with FSH (designated F), LH (L) or testosterone (T) singly or in combina-tion for a further 32 days. In another experiment, maintenance of spermatogenesis was attempted using FSH (F), testosterone (T) or dihydrotestoterone (D). Treatment began two days after hypo-physectomy and was continued for a further 32 days.
Detection and identification of Pectinatus cerevisiiphilus using surface-reactive monoclonal antibodies in a membrane filter-based fluoroimmunoassay.

Pectinatus cerevisiiphilus causes spoilage of beer in package by producing end products with noxious off-flavours. Because this bacterium is strictly anaerobic, it is difficult to detect in beer. Rapid direct or indirect detection methods have not been successfully applied. Believing that an immunoassay approach would facilitate detection and identification of contamination by P. cerevisiiphilus, monoclonal antibodies (MAb) were developed for use in such assays. Three of the five MAb described react with surface antigens from P. cerevisiiphilus, whereas the other two react with the bacterial flagella. A pool of the 3 bacterial surface-reactive MAb was used in a fluoroimmunoassay to detect P. cerevisiiphilus trappred on black membrane filters
Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of fluorescent ligands for MT1 and/or MT2 melatonin receptors

Fluorescent melatoninergic ligands have been designed by associating the 4-azamelatonin ligands with different fluorophores. The ligands show good affinities for MT1 and/or MT2 receptors and substitution of the fluorophore at positions 2 or 5 of the azamelatonin core had a direct impact on the MT receptors selectivity while grafting the fluorophores on position N1 produced fluorescent ligands with good affinities for both MT1/MT2 receptors. The optimal position N-1, C-2 or C-5 on the 4-azamelatonin ligand appeared strongly dependent upon the nature of the fluorophore itself.
Stakeholder Loyalty in Mergers: An Application of Theory of Planned Behavior

This research employs the Theory of Planned Behavior as a theoretical foundation to test the loyalty of employees and customers to remain with a company during a merger behavioral intention. The hypothesized model proposed that communication, perceived control, and subjective norm are associated with attitude, and perceived behavioral control and attitude are associated with intended behavior. The data and hypotheses were examined using structural equation modeling (SEM). Results showed that communication, subjective norm, were positively related to attitude and attitude is positively related to behavioral intention. Perceived control was negatively related to attitude and behavioral intention. Findings of this study demonstrate that the proposed modification of the Theory of Planned Behavior is applicable in measuring stakeholders’ loyalty to remain with an organization during a merger
EFFECT OF INTERCROPPING OF PEA WITH SOME MEDICINAL PLANTS ON MICROBIAL COMMUNITY OF SOIL, DAMPING-OFF AND DOWNY MILDEW DISEASES, UNDER BEHEIRA GOVERNORATE CONDITIONS

Isolation from diseased roots of pea plants collected from three locations at El Beheira governorate indicated that, the most frequently isolated fungi are Fusarium solani and F. oxysporum with the averages of 24.07% for both followed by Alternaria solani and Rhizoctonia solani with 14.81% and F. moniliforme with 9.26%, respectively. The disease severity of downy mildew, caused by Peronspora viciae was recorded during 2007/2008 and 2008/2009 at Etay Elbaroud, Badr and Kom Hamada provinces and the averages were 28.37, 22.24 and 13.27%, respectively. The essential oils of Cumin, Caraway and Anise showed the most reducing effect for the mycelial growth of F. solani, F. moniliforme and Sclerotium rolfsii in vitro with the averages of 70.99, 21.92 and 14.96%, respectively. The highest significant reduction of the spores number of F. solani and F. moniliforme was observed with the essential oils of Cuminum cyminum, Carum carvi and Foenculum vulgare. In addition essential oils of C. cyminum and C. carvi reduced the number of sclerotia of S. rolfsii. Intercropping of pea with medicinal plants was studied in field trials through two successive seasons. Cropping pattern side/side combination showed certain reduction of pea damping-off disease and disease severity of downy mildew than sole pea (check). Total damping-off was reduced using intercropping with C. carvi, F. vulgare and Pimpinella anisum compared with sole pea with averages of 39.19, 48.00 and 48.29% during 2007/2008 and 33.46, 39.33 and 40.33% during 2008/2009, respectively. Intercropping pea with medicinal plants F. vulgare, C. carvi, Anethum graveolens and P. anisum were more effective in decreasing disease severity of downy mildew with the averages of 20.20, 20.58, 21.27 and 22.83% during 2007/2008, respectively compared with check (sole pea). Pea intercropped with some medicinal plants could regulate soil microbial community such as actinomyces, bacteria and fungi effectively. The results showed that soil rizosphere was improved, and the fungal diversity differed. Fusarium spp. and R. solani were found only when pea intercropped with Cuminum cyminum and Nigella sativa. No familiar pathogens were found with intercropping with C. carvi, F. vulgare and P. anisum. The CFU of bacteria in case of intercropping with C. carvi and N. sativa was the highest during the two growth stages of pea, and that of actinomycets in all six intercropping treatments was increased during the flowering stage of pea. The use of intercropping system in pea with medicinal plants as a mean for natural disease control is discussed. Intercropping pea with C. carvi increased pea fresh and dry weight in addition to the weight of 100 seeds for both seasons (2007/2008 and 2008/2009) more than other intercropping treatments and sole pea. In contrast, the intercropping with C. cyminum and N. sativa had the least values.
The Effect of Sodium Caseinate Coating Incorporated with Zataria moltiflora Essential Oil on the Quality and Shelf Life of Rainbow Trout During Refrigerated Storage

ABSTRACT In the present study, aqueous solutions of sodium caseinate (SC) 8% (w/w) were provided in the form of four treatments—including SC without any essential oil (EO) as well as SC with 0.25, 0.5, and 1% (v/w) concentrations of Zataria moltiflora EO. Fish samples were treated with aqueous solutions and stored at 4 ± 1°C for 20 days. The control and treated fish samples were analyzed for chemical (total volatile basic nitrogen, pH, thiobarbituric acid, peroxide value), microbiological (total viable count and psychrotrophic count), and sensory analyses every 4 days. Based on results, SC edible coating had no antimicrobial effect but acted like a barrier against the fish flesh contamination. Moreover, incorporating Zataria moltiflora EO with SC edible coating reduces peroxide value and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances values as well as the chemical and microbiological spoilage of refrigerated ﬁsh samples. Furthermore, sensory evaluation results showed that the presence of thyme oil improved the sensory quality of the rainbow trout.
A test on within-individual changes in risk-taking behaviour due to experience to predation in the Collared Flycatcher (Ficedula albicollis)

Summary Different experiences from the past may have influence on individual’s behaviour through feedback mechanisms that can weaken or preserve the within-individual consistency of behavioural traits. Here, we aimed to find evidence for such feedback mechanisms that may operate on risk-taking behaviour via the effect of former experience to potential predation events in male Collared Flycatchers (Ficedula albicollis). We predicted that risk-taking of males would decrease after experiencing a predator’s attack in previous breeding seasons (negative feedback). We assessed risk-taking by flight initiation distance (FID) that is the distance at which an individual flees from an approaching predator, which was estimated for 234 individuals from different breeding seasons. Information on predation experience (i.e. occurrence of nest predation, the incidence of capture by human observers) was available from our long-term database on individual life histories. In a horizontal approach, we found no difference in FID when comparing males with former experience to predation with males naive to predators. A longitudinal approach relying on the repeated tests of the same individuals from different years yielded analogous results, we could not show a significant change in the risk-taking behaviour of the males as a consequence of experience to predation in past years. However, we found that individuals systematically took less risk over the years, which might be a consequence of acquiring general experience with age.
Conveying Emotions Through Device-Initiated Touch

Humans have the ability to convey an array of emotions through complex and rich touch gestures. However, it is not clear how these touch gestures can be reproduced through interactive systems and devices in a remote mediated communication context. In this article, we explore the design space of device-initiated touch for conveying emotions with an interactive system reproducing a collection of human touch characteristics. For this purpose, we control a robotic arm to touch the forearm of participants with different force, velocity and amplitude characteristics to simulate human touch. In view of adding touch as an emotional modality in human-machine interaction, we have conducted two studies. After designing the touch device, we explore touch in a context-free setup and then in a controlled context defined by textual scenarios and emotional facial expressions of a virtual agent. Our results suggest that certain combinations of touch characteristics are associated with the perception of different degrees of valence and of arousal. Moreover, in the case of non-congruent mixed signals (touch, facial expression, textual scenario) not conveying a priori the same emotion, the message conveyed by touch seems to prevail over the ones displayed by the visual and textual signals.
Population structure of the giant tiger shrimp Penaeus monodon in Bangladesh based on variation in microsatellites and immune-related genes

ABSTRACT Penaeus monodon is the most economically important penaeid shrimp in the Indo-West Pacific region for both aquaculture and wild capture. This study evaluated the population structure of P. monodon in Bangladesh and searched for signs of natural selection in immunological genes. Wild P. monodon sampled at four locations off Bangladesh were studied using 10 microsatellite markers and 14 single nucleotide polymorphic sites (SNPs), including six unannotated regions and eight immunological genes (seven C-type lectin and one HLA3), of which variations were associated with tolerance to pathogens and survival in aquaculture. Three genetically distinguishable populations were observed, one in the eastern mangrove forest in the Sundarban–Barguna coast (south Bangladesh), the second in the Sundarban–Middle ground close to the delta of the river Ganges and the third at St Martin’s Island, southeastern Bangladesh. ranged from 0.042 to 0.093, and significant FST ranged from 0.004 to 0.011. A large proportion of individuals caught in Middle ground and at St Martin’s Island showed a genetic origin that was distinct from the other individuals at those sites, possibly from unsampled southern regions in the Bay of Bengal. Variation and the FST values for the SNPs from C-type lectin genes and HLA3 did not differ from the other markers studied, indicating no selective effects at these loci in the natural populations. Sustainable management of P. monodon should consider the population differentiation described in this study. Further assessment of signs of selection in aquaculture stocks could be useful for successful breeding of the species.
Comparative Anatomy, Phylogeny, and Systematics of the Miocene Giraffid Decennatherium pachecoi Crusafont, 1952 (Mammalia, Ruminantia, Pecora): State of the Art

ABSTRACT Decennatherium pachecoi Crusafont, 1952, is one of two giraffid species described from the Miocene of the Iberian Peninsula. This species is recovered exclusively from Vallesian faunas (MN9-10, late Miocene, 10–11 Ma). Despite being relatively well represented in the fossil record, except for the skull and ossicones, the complete vertebral column, and part of the upper dentition, its systematics and phylogenetic position among giraffids are the subject of debate. We update our knowledge of D. pachecoi, revising all Spanish material assigned to this species, as well as previously undescribed fossils. We reassess the systematics of Decennatherium, including its potential relationship with the second Iberian giraffid, the early Turolian Birgerbohlinia Crusafont, 1952, by means of the first cladistic analysis of the Giraffidae that includes Decennatherium together with the most relevant African and Eurasian taxa, both fossil and extant. Our results link Decennatherium with a ‘samothere’ clade, whereas Birgerbohlinia is nested within a ‘sivathere’ clade, thus refuting a previously assumed direct relationship between the two Spanish forms. Finally, we discuss some other possible finds of the genus Decennatherium in Greece, Turkey, and Iran.
The neotropical genus Ronabea (Rubiaceae, Lasiantheae)

The neotropical shrub genus Ronabea Aubl. has long been included by most authors in Psychotria L. (Psychotrieae), but differs from that genus in characters of the seeds, pyrenes, stip- ules, and inflorescence arrangement. As shown by morphological features and molecular studies, Ronabea is better placed in the recently described tribe Lasiantheae. It is here circumscribed to comprise three species: Ronabea emetica (L.f ) A. Rich. , Ronabea isanae (J.H. Kirkbr) C.M. Taylor, comb. nov., and Ronabea latifolia Aubl. The neotropical genus Ronabea Aubl. (Rubiaceae) comprises three species of low shrubs found in wet forests and gallery forests from Belize to Colombia, Trinidad, and the Guianas south through Amazonian Brazil and Bolivia. Ronabea belongs to Rubiaceae subfam. Rubioideae, and until recently has been placed in the tribe Psychotrieae. Most often Ronabea has been treated as a syno- nym of Psychotria L. (Psychotrieae), though a few authors have recognized it as a separate genus. The difficulty in discerning Ronabea's relationships is due to the plant's characteristics mostly being either widespread plesiomorphic characters or reduced features, in particular simple triangu- lar stipules, short cymose inflorescences, small white distylous flowers, valvate corolla lobes, ovules solitary and basal in each locule, small purple-black drupaceous fruits, and pyrenes that are smooth on the adaxial (i.e., ventral) surface. However recent work on the systematics of the Rubioideae using molecular sequence data together with new (and re-evaluated) morphological characters has clarified the relationships of Ronabea: it belongs to the recently delimited tribe Lasiantheae Bremer & Manen, and is not closely related to Psychotria. Below the circumscription of Ronabea, the nomenclatural history of this genus, and recent new evidence about its relation- ships in the Rubiaceae are summarized and a synoptic taxonomic treatment is presented.
Stimulation of nitrogenase activity in Beijerinckia by a fungal polysaccharide

A strain of Beijerinckia was obsd. to fix considerable mts. of N on the leaf surfaces of cotton plants. The bacterium occurred invariably in assocn. with a fungus belonging to the genus Alternaria. A polysaccharide, secreted xtracellularly by the fungus, stimulated nitrogenase ctivity of the bacterium under cultural conditions. The fungal polysaccharide seems to help the bacterium by equestering O from the environment.