Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Environmental correlates and energetics of winter flight by bats in southern Alberta, Canada

Winter activity of bats is common, yet poorly understood. Other studies suggest a relationship between winter activity and ambient temperature, particularly temperature at sunset. We recorded echolocation calls to determine correlates of hourly bat activity in Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada. We documented bat activity in temperatures as low as −10.4 °C. We observed big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus (Palisot de Beauvois, 1796)) flying at colder temperatures than species of Myotis bats (genus Myotis Kaup, 1829). We show that temperature and wind are important predictors of winter activity by E. fuscus and Myotis, and that Myotis may also use changes in barometric pressure to cue activity. In the absence of foraging opportunity, we suggest these environmental factors relate to heat loss and thus the energetic cost of flight. To understand the energetic consequences of bat flight in cold temperatures, we estimated energy expenditure during winter flights of E. fuscus and little brown myotis (Myotis .
Characterization and Confirmation of Corchorus Golden Mosaic Virus Associated with Jute in Bangladesh

Yellow mosaic disease is a major limiting factor for jute (Corchorus capsularis L.) cultivation in Bangladesh. We have cloned and sequenced three isolates of Corchorus golden mosaic virus (CoGMV) collected from different regions in Bangladesh. DNA A sequence of CoGMV-[BD:Mym:10] (BD1] shared highest identity (94.2%) with the Vietnam isolate of CoGMV, whereas DNA B shared a lower level of sequence identity (<73%) with the CoGMV isolates reported from Vietnam and India. Complete genome sequences of CoGMV-[BD: Ran: 10] [BD2] and CoGMV-[BD:Din:10] [BD3] showed at least 97% sequence identity with Indian isolates of CoGMV. The fact that the examined DNA A components of three isolates of CoGMV lack the AV2 open reading frame, indicated that BD1-3 share genetic features of New World begomoviruses. The pathogenicity of CoGMV-[BD:Din:10] [BD3] isolate was confirmed by agroinoculation and infectious clones of DNA A and DNA B induced characteristic yellow mosaic symptoms in jute plants. This is a first experimental demonstration of Koch’s postulate for a begomovirus associated with jute yellow mosaic disease
Aging and COVID-19 mortality: A demographic perspective

Demographers were among the first to emphasize the importance of age in explaining the spread and impact on mortality of COVID-19. Yet, the relationship between age and COVID-19 is not fully understood. This study aims to answer the following questions: Do COVID-19 deaths follow the Gompertz force of mortality? How does the relationship between age and COVID-19 mortality compare with other major causes of death? Does this relationship vary between countries? Using US vital Statistics, COVID-19 mortality doubling time is compared with 68 major cause of death categories. COVID-19 fatality is similarly compared across 33 countries using COVerAGE-DB, a harmonized dataset of confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths. Several findings are supported by the evidence. First, COVID-19 mortality increasing exponentially with age at a rate near the median of aging-related causes of death, as well as pneumonia and influenza. Second, COVID-19 mortality levels in the US are currently 4 to 8 times higher than pneumonia and influenza across the adult age range. Third, the relationship between COVID-19 fatality and age varies considerably across high-income countries. Fourth, these regularities can be utilized for indirect estimation of COVID-19 deaths by age. In conclusion, the relationship between COVID-19 mortality and age resembles the population rate of aging. Between-country variation in the Gompertz slope of COVID-19 fatality may point to differences in underlying population health, standards of clinical care, and data quality.
Schnelle Keimzahlbestimmung auf Frischgemüse mittels Turbidimetrie

25 samples of different vegetables from the raw material stock of a salad producing company were checked for total cell counts and for counts of Enterobacteriaceae and pseudomonads before and after washing in cold water. Initial cell counts of the unwashed samples have been found to be between 4 x 10 4 and 2 x 10 8 cfu/g. They were reduced by washing once in cold water by 0.5 to 1.5 log steps. In more than 25 % of the samples cell counts were not reduced by washing. Enterobacteriaceae and pseudomonads constituted the major group of total cell counts (together up to 95 %). Total cell counts of 10 6 cfu/g and more in 15 out of 25 unwashed samples and in seven washed samples demonstrate that raw vegetables may contain high numbers of microbial contaminants and therefore may constitue a hygienic risk as ingredients of MPF products. In 12 out of the 25 samples, cell counts were detected indirectly by measuring the optical density with an automated turbidimeter (BIOSCREEN). Detection times below 24 hours and high correlation between direct plate counts and turbidimetric data (R > 0.900 for single sorts of vegetable and R > 0.820 for the total estimation) confirmed once more the suitability of turbidimetry for microbial enumeration. Modified VRBD broth without Neutral Red yielded better results regarding detection of Enterobacteriaceae and pseudomonads than Mossel broth.
Planning Algorithms for Multi-Robot Active Perception

Graeme Best Doctor of Philosophy The University of Sydney May 2018 Planning Algorithms for Multi-Robot Active Perception A fundamental task of robotic systems is to use on-board sensors and perception algorithms to understand high-level semantic properties of an environment. These semantic properties may include a map of the environment, the presence, pose and class of objects, the behaviour of other agents, or the parameters of a dynamic field. Observations are highly viewpoint dependent and, thus, the performance of perception algorithms can be greatly improved by planning the motion of the robots to obtain high-value observations. This motivates the problem of active perception, where the goal is to plan the observation viewpoints for a team of robots while considering both the motion constraints and the perception objectives of the task at hand. This fundamental problem is central to many robotics applications, including environmental monitoring, search and rescue, planetary exploration, and precision agriculture. The core contribution of this thesis is a suite of planning algorithms for multi-robot active perception. These planning algorithms are designed to improve the systemlevel performance of multi-robot systems on many fronts. We aim to address various challenges of multi-robot active perception that have not been adequately addressed in existing work: online and anytime planning, optimising over a long time horizon, decentralised coordination, being robust to unreliable communication, predicting plans of other agents, and exploiting characteristics of specific perception models. We first propose the decentralised Monte Carlo tree search (Dec-MCTS) algorithm as a generally-applicable, decentralised algorithm for multi-robot active perception. Dec-MCTS is a novel, decentralised variant of the widely-used Monte Carlo tree search algorithm, and also leverages ideas from variational methods to plan over probability distributions of action sequences. Dec-MCTS is anytime, is robust to communication loss, balances the exploration-exploitation trade-off when expanding the decision tree, and converges towards a plan that minimises KL-divergence to the optimal joint plan.
12 Amino Acid Transport

All cells need a supply of amino acids, and membrane transporters for their uptake are fundamental membrane transport proteins. Unlike the sugars, nucleotides or other metabolically important nutrients, the twenty-three or so amino acids are more diverse in size, charge and structure, making it necessary to have several transporters with different substrate specificities. The pioneering work of Christensen (e.g. Christensen 1985; Christensen and Kilberg 1987) used tracer flux studies, with paradigm substrates and inhibitors to define the number and specificity of amino acid transporters in mammalian cells. Although very successful, this approach was limited by the low affinities and overlapping specificities of the systems it defined, and in particular the paucity of high-affinity specific inhibitors prevented successful biochemical characterisation by classical membrane protein isolation procedures. A limited number of paradigm substrates (MeAIB (Nmethylisobutyric acid); BCH (2-aminonorbomane 2-carboxylic acid)) proved useful in identifying specific systems. Molecular biological techniques, and in particular expression cloning, have revolutionised the identification of membrane proteins, and now the identity and properties of several large families of amino acid transporters are established (Palacin et a1. 1998; Bode 2001; Chillaron et al. 2001). Particular attention has been paid to neuronal transporters from the point of view of neurotransmitter uptake and synthesis, and epithelia in the context of renal and intestinal absorption, but the main systems for amino acid uptake into most types of mammalian cells are now well-characterised. Mammalian red blood cells (RBCs) represent a special problem for identifying transporters, since they lack a nucleus and protein synthetic machinery, and are therefore not amenable to RT -PCR and other molecular biological techniques for identifying amino acid transporter expression. Some studies (Lannigan et a1. 1986; Vadgama et al. 1991; Bading et a1. 1996; Boyd et a1. 2000) have used erythrogenic cell lines (K562 cells, Friend mouse erythroleukaemic cells), and it is possible that plasma-derived colony forming units (CFUs) (Suwanmanee et al. 2002) could playa role in the future. In addition avian and lower vertebrate RBCs are nucleated, and therefore can provide mRNA and DNA preparations. Antibodies raised
Down-regulation of sucrose synthase expression and activity in transgenic hairy roots of Lotus japonicus

Sucrose synthase is central to carbon metabolism in roots and nodules of legumes. In order to analyze its role we have used antisense RNA strategies to down-regulate its expression in the model legume Lotus japonicus. In contrast to other legumes the sucrose synthase gene from Lotus was expressed highly not only in nodules, but also in roots. This enabled us to use transgenic hairy roots to evaluate the potential of the antisense RNA strategy. The sucrose synthase sense message was drastically reduced in 4 out of 5 antisense sucrose synthase hairy root lines. Sucrose synthase protein levels were significantly reduced, and sucrose synthase enzyme activities declined to between 20% and 25% of the controls. By contrast, activities of UDPGlucose pyrophosphorylase, fructokinase, glucokinase and acid invertase remained unchanged, while unexpectedly, alkaline invertase activity declined in the antisense sucrose synthase lines. The significantly higher fresh weight of the control cultures compared to the antisense hairy roots observed after 14 days of growth, suggest that the changes in enzyme activities affected the growth rate. Overall, this work demonstrates that the antisense RNA strategy can be used successfully in L. japonicus to alter gene expression.
Biological discoveries with biomolecular sequence analysis. Case studies: posttranslational modifications of proteins and complexes for chromatin organization

Biomolecular sequence analysis in one of the very few areas of purely theoretical research that creatively and decisively enrich biological knowledge in a direct way. Two different but complementing approaches, linguistic analysis of genetic texts and comparative studies of families of evolutionary related sequences, are useful for prediction of molecular and cellular functions of genes. (1) For example, the SET domain methyltransferase, Ecolp acetyltransferase and the kleisin family, are among the recent discoveries that stimulate chromatin regulation and nuclear division research. (2) A statistical argument can be used to derive the sensitivity horizon of expression profiling with tag sequencing. (3) Score functions measuring inter-positional correlations in sequences can discriminate recognition motifs in non-globular protein segments responsible for posttranslational modifications and targeting signals.
Characteristics of vitamin E-loaded nanofibres from dextran

ABSTRACT In this research, dextran nanoﬁbres were produced as novel carriers for entrapment of vitamin E. Morphological studies indicated that developed fine fibres were in the nano range without spherical beads. Thermal behaviour, chemical structure, and crystalline structure of vitamin E-loaded nanofibres were analysed by differential scanning calorimetry, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction which showed that the vitamin was well incorporated within the amorphous structure of fibres without chemical interactions. Nanofibres were used for fortification of cheese. Sensory analysis of the fortified product was performed which showed better acceptability and texture of cheese containing nanofibres in comparison to blank and direct fortified samples. Nanofibres showed the capability of holding water and thus increasing cheese firmness. The release of vitamin E in gastrointestinal media showed that about 14% of vitamin could be released in gastric media and about 30% released in intestinal media. Finally, the results revealed that electrospinning can be used for production of dextran ultrathin fibres to entrap hydrophobic compounds with high potential for design of novel functional foods.
The complete mitochondrial genome of Panopea abrupta (Myoida: Hiatellidae)

Abstract The goeduck clam Panopea abrupta (Myoida: Hiatellidae) is one of the most important freshwater aquaculture species in China. In-spite of its economic importance, however, the genomic information of this species remains unavailable. In this study, we report the complete mitochondrial genome sequence of P. abrupta along with annotated and fully characterized mitochondrial genes. The genome was found to be 15,381 bp in length with a total of 38 genes (13 protein-coding, 22 transfer RNAs, and 2 ribosomal RNAs). The presence of a gene coding for ATPase subunit 8 was also noted. However, as expected in bivalves, the gene arrangements showed variations with that of the related species. This study adds to the repository of available mitogenomes of various Heterodonta and will greatly aid in future phylogenetic studies and species identification.
The panaustral lichen Pannaria sphinctrina (Mont.) Tuck. and the related new species p. lobulifera from New Caledonia

Pannaria sphinctrina (Mont.) Tuck. is redefined as an exclusively panaustral lichen species, characterized by thin thallus lobes, ellipsoid, verrucose perispores and with vicanicin as its major secondary metabolite. Pannaria lobulifera sp. nov. is described here as the only species known from the P. sphinctrina complex in New Caledonia. Instead of apothecia it produces vegetative propagules in the form of erect lobules. Its lobes are also thinner, rhizines are practically lacking and chlorobiont cells are much smaller than those of P. sphinctrina.
Towards the development of clonal lines in the European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax L) : application of uniparental reproduction techniques with an insight into sea bass eggs

Clonal lines are a powerful scientific tool for improved genetic characterization of organisms used in research. Inbred fish lines can be produced in only two generations using uniparental reproduction techniques. Androgenesis, achieved with variable success in several freshwater species, has been attempted in the European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax L), a marine fish of commercial and scientific interest. The low yields of progenies inheriting only the paternal genome after UV-irradiation of eggs led to considerations on the occurrence of UV screening compounds in pelagic eggs. Mycosporine-like amino acids and gadusol were found in many marine and freshwater organisms, but their occurrence in fish eggs was not clearly related to a behavioral pattern and while gadusol appeared in higher proportions in pelagic marine eggs compared to benthic species, this statement did not apply in freshwater, and moreover the kind of compounds was related to phylogeny. Further studies on DNA photorepair could enlighten hypotheses to understand the mechanisms underlying the disparate results obtained in inducing androgenesis in different fish species. Gynogenesis was reported successful to produce clonal founders in the sea bass, but high numbers of meiotic individuals contaminating fully homozygous progenies highlighted the need for efficient DNA markers to distinguish mitotic gynogenetic individuals. Furthermore, gonad development was highly delayed in gynogenetic progenies enhancing the difficulties to produce clonal lines. A high variability between individuals in the success of uniparental reproduction brought out gamete characterization and quality as a prerequisite.
Evaluation of effects of water-saving superabsorbent polymer on corn (Zea mays L.)yield and phosphorus fertilizer efficiency

There is growing interest in using a reduced rate of mineral fertilizer along with water-saving superabsorbent polymer (WSAP) for field crop production in arid and semiarid regions of the world. The overall objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of hydrogel applications on the phosphorus fertilizer efficiency parameter, yield, and selected physiological properties of corn (Zea mays L.) grown at different levels of water deficiency in greenhouse conditions. The experimental design consisted of 3 completely randomized blocks in a factorial arrangement, with 9 hydrogel doses (0%, 0.01%, 0.02%, 0.04%, 0.08%, 0.12%, 0.2%, 0.4%, and 0.6%), 4 phosphorus fertilizer doses (0, 80, 160, and 240 kg ha-1), and 4 water deficiency levels (50%, 65%, 80%, and 100%). Overall, 432 pots were used in this study. We found that the irrigation interval of 0.0% WSAP (control) application treatment at water deficient conditions (WDC 50%) was 6 days, although this value could be increased to 11 days with 0.4% WSAP application treatment. The highest yield was obtained from 0.40% WSAP with 240 kg ha-1 P application dose at 35% deficient irrigation conditions according to leaf relative water content, the chlorophyll reading value of corn plants, and P fertilizer efficiency parameters such as agronomic efficiency, physiological efficiency, use efficiency, and apparent recovery efficiency values. These findings suggest that the application of 0.40% WSAP with 240 kg ha-1 P and economic soil management practice could provide an efficient corn production operation in drought-affected regions such as eastern Turkey and other areas with similar ecologies.
Downregulation of fungal cytochrome c peroxidase expression by antifungal quinonemethide triterpenoids

To handle the development of antifungal drug resistance, the development of new structural modules and new modes of action for antifungals have been highlighted recently. Here, the antifungal activity of quinonemethidal triterpenoids such as celastrol, dihydrocelastrol, iguestein, pristimerin, and tingenone isolated from Tripterygium regelii were identified (MIC 0.269-19.02 µ M). C. glabrata was the most susceptible to quinonemethide among the tested fungi. Furthermore, quinonemethide suppressed cyctochrome c peroxidase expression dramatically, decreasing fungal viability caused by the accumulation of hydrogen peroxide. Thus, cyctochrome c peroxidase downregulation of quinonemethide may be a key mode of action for antifungals.
Augmentation of Milk Production by Supplementing Bypass Fat in Dairy Animals

Pregnancy and lactation are the physiological states which modify metabolism in animals and induce stress. The period of transition between late pregnancy (-3 weeks) and early lactation (+3 weeks) presents huge metabolic challenges in terms of energy balance, plasma metabolites and hormonal changes. High rates of Body Condition Score (BCS) losses are associated with a severe negative energy balance conditions immediately after the calving. Energy deficiency due to decreased dry matter intake during the periparturient period results in increased lipolysis of body fat. The release of non-esterified fatty acids and higher β-hydroxybutyrate concentrations are indicative of lipid mobilization and fatty acid oxidation. Animals have to utilize their body reserves to support lactogenesis and milk production resulting in metabolic disorders and sub-optimal milk yield under these conditions. Most of the lactating animals are fed crop residues in the tropical countries, which are generally low in energy, protein and minerals. Increased amount of energy secreted into milk fat and lesser feed intake puts high yielder cows and buffaloes in negative energy balance (NEBAL), metabolic disorders and suboptimal milk production. Maximizing the energy intake by increasing the energy density of diet is a logical feeding strategy during transition period and in early lactating animals. Feeding large amounts of cereal grains decrease ruminal pH, ruminal fiber digestibility, acetate/propionate ratio, milk fat concentration and increase the risk of ruminal acidosis. Scientific interventions have been carried out from time to improve energy balance by supplementing bypass fat and proteins. Bypass fats are commonly referred to as ruminal inert fat, protected fat and escape fat and are more expensive per unit of energy provided compared to commodity fats. Calcium salts of fatty acids increase milk yield and fat contents but partially degrade in the abomassum. Prill fat, a bypass fat is available in different forms and augments productive performance of lactating animals by getting digested in the small intestine. However response varies depending upon the milk production levels and the body condition of animals. The present review discusses the role of bypass fat in enhancing the milk production performance and its effect on hormones, digestibility coefficients and energy balance.
In vitro Chondrogenic Hypertrophy Induction of Mesenchymal Stem Cells

[Abstract] To investigate underlying mechanism of chondrogenic hypertrophy, we need proper in vitro hypertrophic model of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). This protocol describes our defined method for induction of in vitro chondrogenic hypertrophy of human umbilical cord blood-derived MSCs (hUCBMSCs). By adding thyroid hormone (T3; triiodothyronine) and minimum osteogenic-inducing factors to culture medium, we could induce hypertrophy of hUCB-MSCs in vitro. Hypertrophic induction was validated using immunohistochemical analysis, Western blotting and reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction.
INFLUENCE OF CARBONIC ANHYDRASE INHIBITORS ON SHELL GROWTH OF A FRESH-WATER SNAIL, PHYSA HETEROSTROPHA

1. The rate of growth of Physa heterostropha may be controlled in the laboratory by using different modes of feeding.2. Under the conditions of the experiments, growth rates for each feeding method, with the possible exception of that giving slowest growth, are constant over the range 3.00 to 5.99 mm. median shell lengths during two-day growth periods but are slower at both higher and lower lengths.3. The drug 2-benzothiazolesulfonamide completely inhibits growth of the snail at concentrations about 1 mg. per liter. At 21° C. it is lethal at concentrations above this but appears to be somewhat less toxic at 26° C. Its effect is not due to the action of the drug as a carbonic anhydrase inhibitor but to an unknown side effect.4. Diamox, benzenesulfanilamide, p-toluenesulfonamide and sulfanilamide, at the concentrations exhibiting maximum effect on growth, exhibit comparable degrees of inhibition of shell growth in snails fed for rapid growth.5. Diamox at concentrations up to 1.5 mg. per liter does not decre.