Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The proteins RodA and PBP2b are implicated in the control of the ovoid-shape of Streptococcus thermophilus CNRZ368 and play a role in cells defence against superoxide radicals

Deux mutants de Streptococcus thermophilus CNRZ368, affectes dans la biosynthese du peptidoglycane, ont ete isoles et caracterises. Ces mutants sont interrompus dans les genes rodA et pbp2b et presentent des cellules de taille reduite par rapport a celles du sauvage et spheriques plutot qu'ovoides. Ces alterations de la morphologie cellulaire suggerent que ces genes sont impliques dans le controle de la forme cellulaire et dans l'elongation laterale de la paroi cellulaire. De plus, ces mutants presentent une sensibilite accrue a la menadione, ce qui permet d'impliquer les genes rodA et pbp2b dans la reponse au stress oxydatif.
Evaluation of a microplate DNA : DNA hybridization method compared with the initial renaturation method

Previously reported hybridization data, obtained with the initial renaturation method (De Ley et al. 1970), were compared with data obtained with a microplate DNA - DNA hybridization method (Ezaki et al. 1989). The comparison was done for more than 82 hybridizations, within 4 sets of Bacillus/Virgibacillus, Myroides, Vibrio, and Xanthomonas/Stenotrophomonas strains, comprising DNA-base compositions ranging from 34 to 65%. Under the experimental conditions used, both methods were in very good correlation. With the microplate method, the variation between reciprocal hybridizations and repeated experiments was around 7%, while for the initial renaturation method, a 5% variation was calculated. It is concluded that the microplate method can be used as a reliable taxonomic tool.Key words: DNA, DNA hybridization, microplate method, initial renaturation method.
Cranial Anatomy and Phylogenetic Placement of the Enigmatic Turtle Compsemys victa Leidy, 1856

Abstract The skull of the enigmatic turtle Compsemys victa Leidy, 1856 is described. A number of unique characteristics are apparent, including the extremely thick nature of all cranial bones, the presence of rod-like epipterygoids, placement of the foramen posterius canalis carotici interni halfway along the contact between the pterygoid and basisphenoid, lack of cheek emarginations, and the reduction of the size of the cavum tympani relative to the orbit. Two differing global turtle analyses and one paracryptodiran analysis were performed to determine the phylogenetic placement of C. victa. Both global analyses converged by placing C. victa within Paracryptodira, herein defined as the most inclusive clade that includes Pleurosternon bullockii and Baena arenosa, but no species of living turtle, whereas the paracryptodiran analysis places C. victa outside of Baenoidea, herein defined as the least inclusive clade that contains P. bullockii and B. arenosa. Although a number of similarities are apparent between C. victa and the uncommon, extant testudinoid Platysternon megacephalum, the available data indicate that these similarities are convergent, likely due to their carnivorous diet. Taphonomic evidence reveals that basal paracryptodires, including C. victa, preferred slow moving or ponded water environments. The riverine habitat preference of baenodds must therefore be derived.
Ultrasound hearing and male–male communication in Australian katydids (Tettigoniidae: Zaprochilinae) with sexually dimorphic ears

The genus Kawanaphila (Tettigoniidae: Zaprochilinae) is unusual among the Tettigoniidae in the possession of sexually dimorphic auditory organs. We examined the auditory system and acoustic behaviour of two previously unstudied species in this genus to test whether reduced hearing in males is consistently associated with reduced male–male competition. Kawanaphila yarraga (Rentz, 1993) and K. mirla (Rentz, 1993) are both sexually dimorphic with respect to their auditory system, but to different degrees. Males of both species produce songs consisting of trains of brief (< 1 ms) pure‐tone sound pulses at ultrasonic frequencies (K. yarraga, 40 kHz;K. mirla, 70 kHz). In both species, female hearing is more sensitive than that of males by 10 dB. In addition, male K. mirla are most sensitive at lower frequencies than females. Male and female K. yarraga differed only in sensitivity, not in tuning. The two species also differ in their degree of sexual dimorphism in auditory anatomy. Kawanaphila mirla males lack some auditory specializations of the prothoracic tracheal system, which are present in the normal tettigoniid condition in females. In K. yarraga males these structures are present, but reduced in size relative to females. The acoustic behaviour of males of the two species is consistent with this pattern of relative auditory sensitivity. Males of both species interact acoustically by altering the timing of their sound output to synchronize with neighbouring males. However, K. mirla males only interact in this way over very short distances (< 5 m), whereas K. yarraga males interact with neighbours up to at least 10 m distant. These results indicate that, although males of the two species differ in hearing sensitivity, the nature of their responses to conspecific calls are similar to one another and to those of other acoustic insects. This suggests that acoustically mediated male–male competition may be maintained even while selection favours a reduction in male auditory sensitivity.
Discrimination of Catadromous Eels of Genus Anguilla Using Polymerase Chain Reaction–Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism Analysis of the Mitochondrial 16S Ribosomal RNA Domain

Abstract To develop a species identification method for catadromous eels of the genus Anguilla, polymerase chain reaction–restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analysis of a portion of the16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) domain (1.3 kilobase pairs) in the mitochondrial genome was carried out for 18 recognized species of the genus. The restriction fragment patterns showed the species-specific haplotypes by processing with six restriction enzymes. In addition, intraspecific haplotype variation in the mitochondrial 16S rRNA domain among 10 A. marmorata collected from geographically distant populations did not reveal genetic structure within the same species, suggesting that it is a preferable marker for species identification.
Morphological analysis of testes from post-hatch chicks submitted to temperature variation during incubation

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of temperature variation during incubation on testicular morphology of post-hatch chicks. We utilized 60 eggs incubated under different temperatures: Group 1 – 37.5°C; Group 2 – 39.5°C; and Group 3 – 34°C. Chicks were weighted and the testes were histologically analyzed. All eggs from Group 3 showed embryonic death. There were no significant differences in body weight and testicular morphology between Groups 1 and 2; however, there was a difference in the diameter of the seminiferous tubules (p < 0.001). The increase in temperature to 39.5°C during incubation causes a decrease in diameter of the seminiferous tubules.
Structure of the Osmophore and Labellum Micromorphology in the Sexually Deceptive Orchids Ophrys Bombyliflora and Ophrys tenthredinifera (Orchidaceae)

Premise of research. The insect-like flowers of the Ophrys orchids are adapted to sexually deceptive pollination through pseudocopulation, providing chemical, visual, and tactile stimuli for male insects. Although the chemical composition of the odor bouquet of several species has long been identified, the precise site of fragrance production in the labellum remains unknown for most species, and little attention has been given to the visual and tactile signals provided by the labellum for pollinators. Here, the occurrence of an osmophore is investigated and the labellum micromorphology is characterized in detail for Ophrys bombyliflora and Ophrys tenthredinifera, two closely related species pollinated by Eucera bees. Methodology. Labella of flowers before and at anthesis were studied with scanning electron microscopy, light microscopy, and histochemistry. Pivotal results. The labellum of O. bombyliflora presents a distinctive hidden apical appendix that forms a concavity with a multicellular protuberance and a tuft of trichomes at the tip. An osmophore occurs in the apical region of the labellum in both species; in O. bombyliflora it is confined mostly to the adaxial surface of the appendix, and in O. tenthredinifera it comprises the labellum margin and the abaxial surface of both the appendix and the adjacent region of the labellum. A terpene-rich lipophilic secretion likely containing a phenolic fraction was found. The two species have a great diversity of epidermal cell types in the adaxial surface of the labellum and differ mainly in the micromorphology of the basal field, speculum, labellum margins, and appendix. Conclusions. This study demonstrates for the first time that a specialized secretory structure (osmophore) occurs in the labellum of both species and synthesizes a secretion that probably includes highly volatile long-range attractants for pollinators. This finding seems to suggest that two sources of potential semiochemicals have evolved in the Ophrys labellum for pollinator attraction.
Molecular Markers in the Immunocompromised host

Recent developments in the management of infectious complications in heavily immunosuppressed patients, especially in patients after solid organ and stem cell transplantation have helped to reduce transplant‐related mortality. The introduction of molecular methods has allowed for earlier diagnosis of infection, and so‐called pre‐emptive treatment approaches targeting infection rather than established disease was developed. More recently, some of these molecular methods have been commercialised providing standardized diagnostic methods. In this review, recent development in the management of CMV, EBV and fungal infections in heavily immunosuppressed patients after allogeneic stem cell transplantation are discussed.
Reviews

In his preface, the author of the third book under review states that “beneath all cryptological schemes lies a common foundation: mathematics. ” This is not quite true. The ancient Spartans wrote secret messages on a piece of parchment that had been wrapped around a cylinder. When unwound, the parchment seemed to have a meaningless sequence of letters. The recipient of the message would decipher it by rewrapping the parchment around a cylinder of the same size. The quoted statement, however, comes closer to being true of the modern history of cryptography. In recent decades diverse areas of mathematics—algebra, number theory, combinatorics, probabilities and statistics—have been harnessed to the task of constructing “unbreakable” codes or of breaking them. Because of the fundamental role of mathematics in the science of information security, cryptography provides an excellent vehicle for popularizing mathematics among students and the general public. Indeed cryptography seems to capture the imagination like no other area of applied mathematics—in the newspapers, TV, movies, and puzzles and games. On a more serious level, people can read about its long, colorful history in David Kahn’s monumental classic The Codebreakers, which has appeared in a revised edition [6]. Those who want to know about more recent intrigues can read Bamford’s famous exposé of the National Security Agency [1]. It is natural to use cryptography to motivate math students. I have written about ways to do this at the K–12 level [10], and the books under review are evidence of growing interest among educators in incorporating cryptography into college math courses. Before commenting on the books themselves, I’d like to give a brief overview of the subject. Until 1976, all cryptographic message transmission was by what can be called private key. This means that someone who has enough information to encrypt messages also has enough information to decipher messages as well. As a result, any two users of the system who want to communicate secretly must have exchanged keys in a safe way, for example, by using a trusted courier. The face of cryptography was radically altered when Diffie and Hellman invented an entirely new type of cryptography, called public key [3]. (We now know that the British intelligence service had had the idea a few years earlier, but they failed to follow up on it or to fully appreciate its importance.) In this type of cryptography the encryption function (which enciphers a message) can be computed by anybody,
Effect of pruning time and hydrogen cyanamide on budburst and subsequent phenology of Vitis vinifera L. variety Cabernet Sauvignon in central Victoria

This paper presents a detailed description of effects from two pruning times and an application of hydrogen cyanamide on budburst and subsequent phenology in a population of spur-pruned, 13-year-old Vitis vinifera L. Cabernet Sauvignon vines grown in central Victoria in 1998/99. Later pruning (17 August), compared with earlier pruning (7 July), delayed the onset of budburst by an average of 4.3 days and 60% budburst by an average of 5.3 days. This difference persisted at anthesis (5.0 days), veraison (4.1 days) and at harvest (0.91°Brix). Application of hydrogen cyanamide on 26 August did not advance the timing of budburst but increased the number of shoots that burst. This was due predominantly to more 'extra' shoots bursting on old wood and at the base of spurs. In the earlier stages of budburst, 'primary' buds on clear nodes of 1 year-old wood (spurs) burst in preference to buds at the base of spurs or on old wood. However, by the end of the 5-week budburst period, the number of 'extra' shoots per vine was similar to the number of primary shoots on clear nodes. Primary shoots with more bunches tended to burst earlier. Conceivably, the number of inflorescences (potential reproductive sites) and the number of flowers (potential number of seeds) on a shoot that arises from a dormant latent bud indicate a 'reproductive potential' that exerts some control over dormancy release. The frequency of budburst was sensitive to fluctuations in air temperature, but limited by the number of buds available to burst. Temperature-based models designed to predict phenological events might be improved by including parameters that take pruning time and reproductive potential into account.
ONE HUNDRED AND SEVENTY FIVE NEW SPECIES OF GRAPHIDACEAE—a special issue of Phytotaxa

The current issue of Phytotaxa is dedicated to a lichen-forming fungal family that forms an important component of tropical ecosystems. It is one of the most diverse families of lichenized fungi, with approximately 2,500 known species, and has its center of distribution in the wet tropics. The current issue sheds light on how poorly the species diversity of lichenized fungi is still known, with the description of 175 species new to science – all within a single family. We assembled 21 scientific papers, including three general publications and 18 papers focusing on description of new species.
The Group in the Individual

The author describes his development as a consultant and trainer by sharing some instructive moments in his quest for a deeper understanding of group dynamics. This article chronicles a shift from relying on individual psychology to understand behavior in groups to an appreciation of systemic influences and unconscious dynamics within the group as a whole. The author concludes that there are multiple forces driving observable behavior in groups. He encourages readers to be alert to the group(s) in the individual. The moment the individual enters a group, the group enters that individual.
Heterogeneity in Corporate Debt Structures and the Transmission of Monetary Policy

Abstract We study how differences in the aggregate structure of corporate debt affect the transmission of monetary policy in a panel of euro area countries. We find that standard policy tightening shocks raise the cost of loans relative to corporate bonds. In economies with a high share of bond finance, the resultant rise in the overall cost of credit is less pronounced as a smaller portion of corporate debt is remunerated at the loan rate and firms further expand their reliance on bonds. In economies with a low share of bond finance, the rise in the cost of credit is reinforced by a shift in the composition of debt towards bank loans. As a consequence, a higher bond share goes along with a weaker transmission of short-term policy rate shocks to real activity. By contrast, the real effects of monetary policy shocks to longer-term yields strengthen with the share of bond finance in the economy.
Chinese-Japanese Search Query Translation System

We describe a Chinese-Japanese search query translation system using search results of commercial web search API. Because a lack of available search results between Chinese and Japanese, our system uses intermediate language and do translation in a gradual manner, the intermediate language is not limited to English. Our system is domain independent and could be easily expanded to other language pairs. Experimental results show that our system is quite suitable for Chinese-Japanese search query translation task and can acquire high translation accuracy.
Direction Finding Using GHA Neural Networks

:- This paper adapted the neural network for the estimating of the direction of arrival (DOA). It uses an unsupervised adaptive neural network with GHA algorithm to extract the principal components that in turn, are used by Capon method to estimate the DOA, where by the PCA neural network we take signal subspace only and use it in Capon (i.e. we will ignore the noise subspace, and take the signal subspace only)
Exosome-like vesicles derived from Hertwig's epithelial root sheath cells promote the regeneration of dentin-pulp tissue

Background: The formation of dentin-pulp involves complex epithelial-mesenchymal interactions between Hertwig's epithelial root sheath cells (HERS) and dental papilla cells (DPCs). Earlier studies have identified some of the regulatory molecules participating in the crosstalk between HERS and DPCs and the formation of dentin-pulp. In the present study we focused on the role of HERS-secreted exosomes in DPCs and the formation of dentin-pulp. Specifically, we hypothesized that exosome-like vesicles (ELVs) might mediate the function of HERS and trigger lineage-specific differentiation of dental mesenchymal cells. To test our hypothesis, we evaluated the potential of ELVs derived from a HERS cell line (ELVs-H1) in inducing in vitro and in vivo differentiation of DPCs. Methods: ELVs-H1 were characterized using transmission electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering. The proliferation, migration, and odontoblast differentiation of DPCs after treatment with ELVs-H1, was detected by CCK8, transwell, ALP, and mineralization assays, respectively. Real time PCR and western blotting were used to detect gene and protein expression. For in vivo studies, DPC cells were mixed with collagen gel combined with or without ELVs and transplanted into the renal capsule of rats or subcutaneously into nude mice. HE staining and immunostaining were used to verify the regeneration of dentin-pulp and expression of odontoblast differentiation markers. Results: ELVs-H1 promoted the migration and proliferation of DPCs and also induced odontogenic differentiation and activation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling. ELVs-H1 also contributed to tube formation and neural differentiation in vitro. In addition, ELVs-H1 attached to the collagen gel, and were slowly released and endocytosed by DPCs, enhancing cell survival. ELVs-H1 together with DPCs triggered regeneration of dental pulp-dentin like tissue comprised of hard (reparative dentin-like tissue) and soft (blood vessels and neurons) tissue, in an in vivo tooth root slice model. Conclusion: Our data highlighted the potential of ELVs-H1 as biomimetic tools in providing a microenvironment for specific differentiation of dental mesenchymal stem cells. From a developmental perspective, these vesicles might be considered as novel mediators facilitating the epithelial-mesenchymal crosstalk. Their instructive potency might be exploited for the regeneration of dental pulp-dentin tissues.
New insights on diversity, morphology and distribution of Culicoides Latreille 1809 (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) from Northeast Spain

Abstract The present work provides an improvement on the knowledge of the diversity, morphology and distribution of Culicoides species in Catalonia (NE Spain). Data derived from morphology and sequencing allowed to detect the presence of 13 species non previously found in the surveillance area, updating the number of species recorded in Catalonia up to 53. Of special interest among the newly recorded species are: 1) C. yemenensis, new record for Europe, 2) C. coluzzii and C. sejfadinei, being new records for the Iberian Peninsula, and 3) C. pseudopallidus which is new record for Spain. Regarding the current distribution of Culicoides species, two eco-zones were detected in the region, the first eco-zone had species with typical northern Palaearctic (European) distribution whereas the second had species with typical southern Palaearctic (African) distribution, which were apparently influenced by mean high temperature of the warmest month and annual precipitation rate.
On the Performance of Detecting Injection of Fabricated Messages into the CAN Bus

There have been several public demonstrations of attacks on connected vehicles showing the ability of an attacker to take control of a targeted vehicle by injecting messages into their Controller Area Network (CAN) bus. In this article, using injected speed reading and Revolutions Per Minute (RPM) reading messages in in-motion vehicle, we examine the ability of the Pearson correlation and the unsupervised learning methods k-means clustering and Hidden Markov Model (HMM) to differentiate ’no-attack’ and ’under-attack’ states of the given vehicle. We found that the Pearson correlation distinguishes the two states, the k-means clustering method has an acceptable accuracy but high false positive rate and HMM detects attacks with acceptable detection rate but has a high false positive in detecting attacks from speed readings when there is no attack. The accuracy of these unsupervised learning methods are comparable to the ones of the supervised learning methods used by CAN bus Intrusion Detection System (IDS) suppliers. In addition, the article shows that studying CAN anomaly detection techniques using off-vehicle test facilities may not properly evaluate the performance of the detection techniques. The results suggest using other features besides the data content of the CAN messages and integrate knowledge about how the Electronic Control Units (ECUs) collaborate in building effective techniques for the detection of injection of fabricated message attacks.
Partial Purification and Characterization of Glucose-6-phosphate Isomerase from Dictyostelium discoideum

SUMMARY: Glucose-6-phosphate isomerase was partially purified from cells of Dictyostelium discoideum in the culmination stage of development. The enzyme had a pH optimum of about 8·5 in Tris/HCl buffer. Activity was not inhibited by p-chloromercuribenzoate or iodoacetate. The enzyme exhibited Michaelis–Menten kinetics and the K m values for glucose 6-phosphate and fructose 6-phosphate were 2 mm and 0·1 mm, respectively. Erythrose 4-phosphate was a strong competitive inhibitor of the enzyme with a K i value of 3·8 μm, whereas 6-phospho-gluconate was less effective with a K i of 0·1 mm.