Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Identification of Group II Intron RmInt1 Binding Sites in a Bacterial Genome

RmInt1 is a group II intron encoding a reverse transcriptase protein (IEP) lacking the C-terminal endonuclease domain. RmInt1 is an efficient mobile retroelement that predominantly reverse splices into the transient single-stranded DNA at the template for lagging strand DNA synthesis during host replication, a process facilitated by the interaction of the RmInt1 IEP with DnaN at the replication fork. It has been suggested that group II intron ribonucleoprotein particles bind DNA nonspecifically, and then scan for their correct target site. In this study, we investigated RmInt1 binding sites throughout the Sinorhizobium meliloti genome, by chromatin-immunoprecipitation coupled with next-generation sequencing. We found that RmInt1 binding sites cluster around the bidirectional replication origin of each of the three replicons comprising the S. meliloti genome. Our results provide new evidence linking group II intron mobility to host DNA replication.
How Do Mobile Social Apps Matter for College Students’ Satisfaction in Group-Based Learning? The Mediation of Collaborative Learning

Recently, many universities apply mobile tools to teaching practices. For instance, some teachers may set up groups on mobile social apps and assign course tasks and advise college students to submit papers online. Nevertheless, how these mobile social apps affect teaching practices, especially the process of students’ satisfaction needs to be further explored. To fill this research gap, we build a theoretical model of how mobile social apps’ functions affect course satisfaction from the perspective of Media Richness theory and the Uses and Gratifications (U and G) theory. A total of 186 valid questionnaires from college students in China were collected, and a structural equation model was built to test our research model. The results show that as: (1) only the communication function has positive impacts on knowledge sharing, while the impact of the information storing function and information distribution function on knowledge sharing is not significant; (2) knowledge sharing does not affect course satisfaction in a direct way, but it can act indirectly through promoting collaborative learning, which shows the mediating role of collaborative learning. The theoretical implications and practical implications of the study are discussed.
Long-Term Persistence of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi in the Rhizosphere and Bulk Soils of Non-host Brassica napus and Their Networks of Co-occurring Microbes

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are obligate plant symbionts that improve the nutrition and health of their host. Most, but not all the crops form a symbiosis with AMF. It is the case for canola (Brassica napus), an important crop in the Canadian Prairies that is known to not form this association. From 2008 to 2018, an experiment was replicated at three locations of the Canadian Prairies and it was used to assess the impact of canola on the community of AMF naturally occurring in three cropping systems, canola monoculture, or canola in two different rotation systems (2-years, canola-wheat and 3-years, barley-pea-canola). We sampled canola rhizosphere and bulk soils to: (i) determine diversity and community structure of AMF, we expected that canola will negatively impact AMF communities in function of its frequency in crop rotations and (ii) wanted to assess how these AMF communities interact with other fungi and bacteria. We detected 49 AMF amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) in canola rhizosphere and bulk soils, confirming the persistence of a diversified AMF community in canola-planted soil, even after 10 years of canola monoculture, which was unexpected considering that canola is among non-mycorrhizal plants. Network analysis revealed a broad range of potential interactions between canola-associated AMF and some fungal and bacterial taxa. We report for the first time that two AMF, Funneliformis mosseae and Rhizophagus iranicus, shared their bacterial cohort almost entirely in bulk soil. Our results suggest the existence of non-species-specific AMF-bacteria or AMF-fungi relationships that could benefit AMF in absence of host plants. The persistence of an AMF community in canola rhizosphere and bulk soils brings a new light on AMF ecology and leads to new perspectives for further studies about AMF and soil microbes interactions and AMF subsistence without mycotrophic host plants.
The Combined Use of Pediococcus pentosaceus and Fructooligosaccharide Improves Growth Performance, Immune Response, and Resistance of Whiteleg Shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei Against Vibrio parahaemolyticus

In this study, we evaluated the effect of probiotic bacteria Pediococcus pentosaceus supplemented at different inclusion levels in a control diet [basal diet containing 0.5% fructooligosaccharide (FOS)] on the growth performance, feed conversion ratio, immune response, and the disease resistance of whiteleg shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei juveniles against Vibrio parahaemolyticus. A control diet with 0.5% FOS but without P. pentosaceus supplementation (Control) was prepared. In addition, three other test diets were also formulated: control diet supplemented with P. pentosaceus at (i) 1 × 106 cfu g–1 diet (P1), (ii) 1 × 107 cfu g–1 diet (P2), or (iii) 1 × 108 cfu g–1 diet (P3). After a 60-day feeding trial, the experimental shrimps were challenged with V. parahaemolyticus. The results showed that dietary supplementation of P. pentosaceus significantly improved the growth performance and immune responses of L. vannamei juveniles. The juveniles that were fed with a P2 or P3 diet recorded the maximum increase in the final body weight, final length, weight gain, and survival rate. The total hemocyte counts, phenoloxidase, and lysozyme activity of shrimp fed with either of these two diets were significantly enhanced. The results also showed that juveniles fed with a P2 or P3 diet exhibited significantly lower mortality when challenged with V. parahaemolyticus. Overall results suggested that a combination of P. pentosaceus at the inclusion level of 1 × 107 cfu g–1 diet (P2) and 0.5% FOS could be considered as a potential synbiotic formulation for improving the growth, health, and robustness of L. vannamei.
Cadmium Exposure Alters Rhizospheric Microbial Community and Transcriptional Expression of Vetiver Grass

Vetiver grass (Chrysopogon zizanioides L.) has been used to remediate cadmium (Cd)-contaminated soil, while there have been few studies on the influence of Cd exposure on the rhizospheric microbial community and transcriptional expression of C. zizanioides. In this study, we investigated the response of the rhizospheric microbial community and transcriptional expression of C. zizanioides in 20 mg/kg Cd-contaminated soil. The results showed that Cd levels in the roots and shoots of C. zizanioides reached 250.80 and 73.40 mg/kg, respectively. The Cd exposure changed the rhizospheric bacterial community, resulting in the significant enrichment of Sphingomonas, Lysobacter, and Gemmatimonadetes in Cd-contaminated soil. In addition, 880 and 3,419 differentially expressed genes were identified in the plant roots and shoots, respectively, in response to Cd stress. Among these, the overexpressed genes associated with redox homeostasis, glutathione (GSH) metabolism, cell wall biosynthesis, and transmembrane transport pathways were found to participate in Cd detoxification in C. zizanioides. These findings could be useful for understanding the selective variation of the rhizospheric microbial community and the detoxification mechanisms of C. zizanioides in Cd phytoremediation.
Accessory Gene Regulator (agr) Allelic Variants in Cognate Staphylococcus aureus Strain Display Similar Phenotypes

The accessory gene regulator (agr) quorum-sensing system is an important global regulatory system of Staphylococcus aureus and contributes to its pathogenicity. The S. aureus agr system is divided into four agr groups based on the amino acid polymorphisms of AgrB, AgrD, and AgrC. The agr activation is group-specific, resulting in variations in agr activity and pathogenicity among the four agr groups. Strains with divergent agr system always have different phenotypes. In the present report, we, respectively, exchanged the agr system of a certain S. aureus with other three agr alleles and assessed the corresponding phenotypes of these congenic strains. Replacement of the agr system led to significant variations in hemolytic activity, protein expression, and virulence gene expression comparing with that of the parental strain. Interestingly, we found that the biological characteristics of these agr congenic strains in the same strain background were highly similar to each other, and the allele-dependent differences of the agr systems were weakened. These findings indicate that the allele-dependent agr predilections of S. aureus are determined by some factors in addition to the polymorphisms of AgrB, AgrD, and AgrC. Future studies may reveal the novel mechanism to improve our understanding of the agr network.
UKF-Based Parameter Estimation and Identification for Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor

The accuracy of rotor position estimation determines the performance of the sensorless control system of a permanent magnet synchronous motor. In order to realize the accurate control of rotor position and speed, it is necessary to identify the motor parameters. Modeling and simulation of the state estimation are investigated for a permanent magnet synchronous motor with parameter identification based on the unscented Kalman filter (UKF) in this article. Based on the mathematical model of the motor, the unscented Kalman filter is used to identify the rotor flux and quadrature axis inductance simultaneously, and the identified parameters are used to update the motor model in the sensorless vector control algorithm. The simulation results show that the unscented Kalman filter can converge to the real value in a short time with small errors. It can follow the changes of motor parameters well and achieve high-precision speed and position estimation.
Pre-university Measures and University Performance: A Multilevel Structural Equation Modeling Approach

This study investigated the relationship between three pre-university measures (high school grade point average, the General Aptitude Test, and the scholastic achievement admission test) and university performance as indicted by (preparatory year and cumulative university grade point average, and graduation). Data from 330,684 undergraduate students from 23 universities across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia were analyzed using a multilevel structural equation modeling approach. Results indicated that all pre-university measures were consistent in predicting university performance. These findings supported previous results that pre-university measures performance predict eventual performance at the university, including performance at the preparatory year, and whether the student stays regular and eventually completes university studies. These results have implications for the importance of the pre university measures in predicting university eventual success and graduation and this study adds to the body of work that can inform further cost-benefits of the pre university measures. For policymakers, these findings suggest that strengthening support during secondary school levels can have positive effects on eventual performance at university.
External Stresses Affect Gonococcal Type 4 Pilus Dynamics

Bacterial type 4 pili (T4P) are extracellular polymers that serve both as adhesins and molecular motors. Functionally, they are involved in adhesion, colony formation, twitching motility, and horizontal gene transfer. T4P of the human pathogen Neisseria gonorrhoeae have been shown to enhance survivability under treatment with antibiotics or hydrogen peroxide. However, little is known about the effect of external stresses on T4P production and motor properties. Here, we address this question by directly visualizing gonococcal T4P dynamics. We show that in the absence of stress gonococci produce T4P at a remarkably high rate of ∼200 T4P min–1. T4P retraction succeeds elongation without detectable time delay. Treatment with azithromycin or ceftriaxone reduces the T4P production rate. RNA sequencing results suggest that reduced piliation is caused by combined downregulation of the complexes required for T4P extrusion from the cell envelope and cellular energy depletion. Various other stresses including inhibitors of cell wall synthesis and DNA replication, as well as hydrogen peroxide and lactic acid, inhibit T4P production. Moreover, hydrogen peroxide and acidic pH strongly affect pilus length and motor function. In summary, we show that gonococcal T4P are highly dynamic and diverse external stresses reduce piliation despite the protective effect of T4P against some of these stresses.
Agrometeorological and Agronomic Characterization of Megathyrsus Grasses Cultivated in Tropical Humid and Semi-Arid Conditions: A Multivariate Approach

Variability in climatic conditions of low-latitude tropical grass cultivation can affect forage production dynamics. Pasture ecosystems are complex and preferably studied from a multifactorial point of view through multivariate approaches. Therefore, in this study, we characterized different growing conditions for grasses of the Megathyrsus genus through studies conducted in tropical humid and semi-arid conditions. We applied principal component, canonical correlation, and discriminant function analyses to the measurements of agronomic and agrometeorological variables in six studies with Guinea and Massai grasses. The principal component analysis, through the climatic characterization by the first principal component, reflects the contrast between water availability and nitrogen variables and energy supply. Agronomic characterization occurred through the distinction between the density of tillers, forage accumulation, and increase in height, versus the accumulation of stems and dead material. The canonical correlation analysis generated a correlation coefficient of 0.84 between the agronomic and agrometeorological variables. There was a contrast between the dead material accumulation and the other agronomic variables, while the agrometeorological variables showed characteristics similar to the first principal component. Discriminant function 1, with 70.36% separation power, distinguished the cultivation conditions based on the study locations. Grass cultivars were differentiated by discriminant function 2, with a 19.20% separation power. From a multivariate variability analysis, despite the similarities of radiation and temperature in the regions studied, the availability of water and nutrients and measurements of agronomic variables can aid in future modeling studies on forage production.
Test and Computation for Vertical Ground Electrode’s Transient Temperature Rise

DC vertical ground electrode can overcome the location problem.However,it also causes other practical difficulties,such as non-uniform current divergence and high temperature rise.Simulation method and test method were adopted to calculate transient temperature rise of the ground electrode effectively.Considering ground electrode’s self-resistance,its current field was calculated based on coupling method of electric field and circuit at first.Then,simulated results of the current field were considered to be the boundary condition to calculate the temperature field of the electrode.Based on the Gurtin variational principle,the formula of space-time finite element method was built to calculate its transient temperature rise.A 9 m long round steel with cross diameter as 30mm was used as the ground electrode in practical tests.And DC current through the ground electrode lasts for 113 hours continuously.Thermocouple and hall current sensors were applied to capture temperature rise and current divergence of the ground electrode.And these results were recorded respectively.Comparative analysis indicates that the simulated calculation results are in good agreement with the experimental results,which confirms the effectiveness of the algorithmic.And it provides reference for practical engineering design.
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1Application Demonstration Center of Precision Medicine Molecular Diagnosis, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, 130041, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Orthopedics, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, 130041, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Developmental Pediatrics, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, 130041, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, the Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, 130041, People’s Republic of China; 5Department of Physiology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, People’s Republic of China; 6Department of Cardiology, the Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, 130041, People’s Republic of China
ISTITUTO NAZIONALE DI FISICA NUCLEARE

Grid systems involve the coordination of resources and services that are not subject to centralized control, span multiple trust domains and are accessible by a large number of users. They require a functionality for mapping users and credentials that exist at the virtual level to users and credentials that exist at the physical level. In this paper, we present a rigorous modeling of the Virtual Organization Membership Service (VOMS), a credential-based access control system. It enables the management and secure distribution of roles, groups and capabilities of users at the virtual level by improving both scalability and flexibility aspects.
ARIMA Model to Predict Transient Oil Film Temperature of Thrust Bearings

The nonstationary time series model ARIMA (p, d, q) describing the transient oil film temperature is adopted aimed at the key issue of oil film temperature monitoring of the large scale thrust bearings. The actual measurement of oil film temperature demonstrates that it is feasible to utilize ARIMA (p, d, q) to describe the oil temperature transients of thrust bearings. At the end, the on-line recursion algorithm of updating forecast formula is presented to predict variation trend of the oil film temperature for thrust bearings.
FACTORS INFLUENCING OVERALL SERVICE QUALITY

Customer relationship and retention is the key to success for banks. One of the way to achieve it, is through improvement in overall service quality of online banking. This paper have identified factors influencing overall service quality of online banking by survey of 1014 online banking users and have proposed a model. Next, model was validated through a comparative study of public and private sector banks in India. Paper concludes that all independent factors of proposed model do influence overall service quality of online banking of both types of banks but the individual factor influence differently with different bank types.
SUBCELLULAR LOCALIZATION OF ARABIDOPSIS Nα- ACETYLTRANSFERASE 60 BY TRANSIENT EXPRESSION IN TOBACCO LEAF

Protein Nα-terminal acetylation (NTA) catalyzed by Nα-acetyltransferases (NAT) is one of the most common protein modifications in eukaryotes, occurring on approximately 50-70% of yeast and 8090% of human soluble proteins. NAT has been shown to play a critical role in the functioning of protein such as stability, interaction and targeting. Recently, Nα-acetyltransferase 60 (Naa60 or NatF) has been identified in higher eukaryotes. In human Naa60 is reported to be anchored to the Golgi and responsible for NTA of both cytosolic and membrane proteins. In plant, however, the localization of Naa60 has not been thoroughly addressed. Therefore, this study foccuses on the subcellular localization of Arabidopsis Naa60. Computational analysis of the Naa60 amino acid sequence using PredictProtein reveals potential membrane localization with two amphipathic α-helices at the C-terminus. Transient expression of Arabidopsis Naa60 fused with EYFP at the Nand Cends in tobacco leaf confirms its localization to the plasma membrane. Co-expression with the RFP plasma membrane marker suggests that Naa60 also localize to the tonoplast.
A Case for Enrichment in Data Management Systems

We describe ENRICHDB, a new DBMS technology designed for emerging domains (e.g., sensor-driven smart spaces and social media analytics) that require incoming data to be enriched using expensive functions prior to its usage. To support online processing, today, such enrichment is performed outside of DBMSs, as a static data processing workflow prior to its ingestion into a DBMS. Such a strategy could result in a significant delay from the time when data arrives and when it is enriched and ingested into the DBMS, especially when the enrichment complexity is high. Also, enriching at ingestion could result in wastage of resources if applications do not use/require all data to be enriched. ENRICHDB's design represents a significant departure from the above, where we explore seamless integration of data enrichment all through the data processing pipeline - at ingestion, triggered based on events in the background, and progressively during query processing. The cornerstone of ENRICHDB is a powerful enrichment data and query model that encapsulates enrichment as an operator inside a DBMS enabling it to co-optimize enrichment with query processing. This paper describes this data model and provides a summary of the system implementation.
Using results from Learning to Forecast laboratory experiments to predict the effect of futures markets on spot market stability

In this chapter we first give a short overview of Learning to Forecast (LtF) experiments, thereby focusing on the differences between markets with positive and negative expectations feedback. Subsequently, we discuss how the results of these experiments can be used to predict behavior for more complicated market environments that exhibit both types of feedback. In particular, we will consider the case where a futures market is connected with a spot market.