Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Feasibility study for the analysis of coconut water using fluorescence spectroscopy coupled with PARAFAC and SVM methods

Parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) coupled with support-vector machine (SVM) was carried out to identify and discriminate between the fluorescence spectroscopies of coconut water brands. ,PARAFAC was applied to reduce three-dimensional data of excitation emission matrix (EEM) to two-dimensional data. SVM was applied to discriminate between six commercial coconut water brands in this study. The three largest variation data from fluorescence spectroscopy were extracted using the PARAFAC method as the input data of SVM classifiers. ,The discrimination results of the six commercial coconut water brands were achieved by three SVM methods (Ga-SVM, PSO-SVM and Grid-SVM). The best classification accuracies were 100.00%, 96.43% and 94.64% for the training set, test set and CV accuracy. ,The above results indicate that fluorescence spectroscopy combined with PARAFAC and SVM methods proved to be a simple and rapid detection method for coconut water and perhaps other beverages.
Constitutional Principles Of Judiciary: Peculiarities Of Formalization In The Cis Countries

The modern principles of judiciary, being an integrative constitutional-theoretical category, are the object of scientific research from the point of view of a meaningful interpretation, as well as the specific nature of formalization, including its the comparative legal aspect. In this regard, the research subject of this article is represented by the norms of the constitutions of the member states of the Commonwealth of Independent States. The article presents the analysis results, which allowed us identifying the non-standard approaches to consolidate the constitutional principles of the judiciary in the focus group of acts. We associate these approaches with the compositional specific nature of principle reflection, as well as with the variably-substantive aspect, which quantitatively and qualitatively supplements the standard list of required fundamental ideas.
A Recent Advancement in Approaches used for Estimation of Drug Solubility: A Review

Background: Solubility assessment of a new chemical entity during preformulation is found to be the most essential and crucial stride during the drug origination that involves various drug physicochemical properties. More deliberation has been made towards the drug aqueous solubility. Since water is the unique solvent of the biological system and it is well known that drugs should be reached to its receptor site in the body through the aqueous and non-aqueous solvent. Therefore, measuring and assessing the solubility of new chemical entities in various solvents is one of the foremost elements of compound characterization during the drug development process. Objective: This review article tries to sum up the current experimental approaches and directed the recent advances in the experimental approaches to assess the quantitative estimation of solubility of a new drug entity during preformulation. A review includes the high throughput methods that are intended to determine the thermodynamic solubility of drug as well as also reporting some traditional methods that have been utilized for such studies. Advanced and modified methodology has been discovered by many researchers from the last five years and has been used to estimate the solubility of a new drug candidate. Conclusion: Thus, this review aims to represent various Preformulatory approaches that forecast by various researchers from last five years (2015-2019) for the quantitative estimation of solubility of new drug candidate which can replace the reported traditional methods and targeting as well as representing some new modified approaches which are exclusively reducing the time and providing appropriate results for such studies.
A Comparison of Two Methods Used for Measuring Antagonistic Activity of Lactic Acid Bacteria

In this research, we have aimed to determine antagonistic effects of various lactic acid bacteria against Gram (+) and Gram (-) bacteria with a comparison of disc diffusion and spot-on-lawn method. In spot-on-lawn method, P. aeruginosa ATCC 27853 was the most sensitive of the tested bacteria, followed by E. coli ATCC 25927 and P. aeruginosa ATCC 10145. On the other hand, in disc diffusion assay B. subtilis ATCC 6633, E. coli O157:H7 and P. aeruginosa ATCC 10145 were the most sensitive indicator microorganisms. The spot-on-lawn method was suitable for assessing the antagonistic effect of lactic acid bacteria. In general, inoculum density had little effect on inhibition.
Spring and summer predation on fish by the Antarctic fur seal, Arctocephalus gazella, at King George Island, South Shetland Islands

The fish component of the diet of nonbreeding male Antarctic fur seals, Arctocephalus gazella, was analyzed from 70 scats collected at Stranger Point, King George Island, South Shetland Islands, during the austral spring (n = 36) and summer (n = 34) of 1993-1994. Fish occurred in approximately 70% of scats that contained food remains irrespective of season. In spring, the main fish prey were Electrona antarctica, Pleuragramma antarcticum, and Notolepis coatsi, which together gave two-thirds of the 110 otoliths recovered. In summer, 457 otoliths were retrieved; the most frequent and abundant species were Gymnoscopelus nicholsi, E. antarctica, and P. antarcticum, which represented over 80% of the otoliths recovered. A substantial increase in the amount of fish ingested by fur seals occurred from spring to summer concomitant with a change in the relative proportion of fish taxa. Most fish species identified are pelagic and feed on krill. During the study period, commercial fishing in the area was not based u.
How Thermochemical Piles Can (Periodically) Generate Plumes at Their Edges

Deep‐rooted mantle plumes are thought to originate from the margins of the Large Low Shear Velocity Provinces (LLSVPs) at the base of the mantle. Visible in seismic tomography, the LLSVPs are usually interpreted to be intrinsically dense thermochemical piles in numerical models. Although piles deflect lateral mantle flow upward at their edges, the mechanism for localized plume formation is still not well understood. In this study, we develop numerical models that show plumes rising from the margin of a dense thermochemical pile, temporarily increasing its local thickness until material at the pile top cools and the pile starts to collapse back toward the core‐mantle boundary (CMB). This causes dense pile material to spread laterally along the CMB, locally thickening the lower thermal boundary layer on the CMB next to the pile, and initiating a new plume. The resulting plume cycle is reflected in both the thickness and lateral motion of the local pile margin within a few hundred km of the pile edge, while the overall thickness of the pile is not affected. The period of plume generation is mainly controlled by the rate at which slab material is transported to the CMB, and thus depends on the plate velocity and the sinking rate of slabs in the lower mantle. A pile collapse, with plumes forming along the edges of the pile's radially extending corner, may, for example, explain the observed clustering of Large Igneous Provinces (LIPs) in the southeastern corner of the African LLSVP around 95–155 Ma.
QTL Mapping for Resistance to Early Blight in a Tetraploid Potato Population

Early blight of potato, caused by Alternaria solani, is an economically important foliar disease in most potato-growing regions. Growing cultivars with higher levels of resistance to early blight can reduce tuber yield losses and the need for fungicide applications. In this research, a bi-parental tetraploid potato population, segregating for resistance to early blight in leaves and tubers, was characterized to identify novel quantitative trait loci (QTL) associated with foliar and tuber early blight resistance. Assessment of the disease resistance in the foliage was performed by field evaluation and in tuber under controlled conditions. Results from this study revealed significant differences (P < 0.001) in resistance to A. solani among potato clones both in the leaves and in tubers. There was no statistically significant correlation (r = 0.06, P = 0.35) between the resistance scores from leaves and tubers. Several clones exhibited; however, high levels of resistance both in leaves and tubers and are; thus, promising candidates for breeding for early blight resistance. Linkage mapping revealed several QTL for early blight affecting both foliage and tubers. QTL associated with disease resistance in the tuber were found on chromosomes 1, 2, 3, 4, 8, 11 and 12. QTL associated with disease resistance in foliage were also examined for independence from defoliation, and independent QTL were; thus, found on chromosomes 5 and 11.
Enhancement of somatic embryogenesis from immature zygotic embryos of Pinus sylvestris

Abstract Somatic embryogenesis (SE) is considered the most promising vegetative propagation method for Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), and the aim of the present work was to study ways to improve the individual steps of the technique. According to the results, donor genotype has a significant effect on SE initiation in Scots pine. Relatively good initiation frequencies of 20–30% can be achieved, but there are also recalcitrant families. To obtain high-quality somatic embryos that also perform well as emblings in the greenhouse, the SE cultures should be proliferated and matured as a thin layer spread on filter paper, with a high (80–90 µM) abscisic acid concentration applied during maturation. Filter proliferation was found to result in a slightly smaller number of embryos, but of higher quality, than proliferation as tissue clumps. From maturation, the somatic embryos should be harvested for germination only during a limited period, and their germination performed in vitro on tissue culture media. Specific attention has to be paid to the quality of the somatic embryos; slim-type embryos have the best germination and greenhouse performance. With optimized culture conditions and tight quality control, over 90% of the embryos germinate and develop into vigorously growing emblings.
Activation of Transcription Factor NF-κB Is Suppressed by Curcumin (Diferuloylmethane) (*)

When activated, NF-κB, a ubiquitous transcription factor, binds DNA as a heterodimeric complex composed of members of the Rel/NF-κB family of polypeptides. Because of its intimate involvement in host defense against disease, this transcription factor is an important target for therapeutic intervention. In the present report we demonstrate that curcumin (diferuloylmethane), a known anti-inflammatory and anticarcinogenic agent, is a potent inhibitor of NF-κB activation. Treatment of human myeloid ML-1a cells with tumor necrosis factor (TNF) rapidly activated NF-κB, which consists of p50 and p65 subunits, and this activation was inhibited by curcumin. AP-1 binding factors were also found to be down-modulated by curcumin, whereas the Sp1 binding factor was unaffected. Besides TNF, curcumin also blocked phorbol ester- and hydrogen peroxide-mediated activation of NF-κB. The TNF-dependent phosphorylation and degradation of IκBα was not observed in curcumin-treated cells; the translocation of p65 subunit to the nucleus was inhibited at the same time. The mechanism of action of curcumin was found to be different from that of protein tyrosine phosphatase inhibitors. Our results indicate that curcumin inhibits NF-κB activation pathway at a step before IκBα phosphorylation but after the convergence of various stimuli.
Carbon Thaw Rate Doubles When Accounting for Subsidence in a Permafrost Warming Experiment

Permafrost thaw is typically measured with active layer thickness, or the maximum seasonal thaw measured from the ground surface. However, previous work has shown that this measurement alone fails to account for ground subsidence and therefore underestimates permafrost thaw. To determine the impact of subsidence on observed permafrost thaw and thawed soil carbon stocks, we quantified subsidence using high‐accuracy GPS and identified its environmental drivers in a permafrost warming experiment near the southern limit of permafrost in Alaska. With permafrost temperatures near 0°C, 10.8 cm of subsidence was observed in control plots over 9 years. Experimental air and soil warming increased subsidence by five times and created inundated microsites. Across treatments, ice and soil loss drove 85–91% and 9–15% of subsidence, respectively. Accounting for subsidence, permafrost thawed between 19% (control) and 49% (warming) deeper than active layer thickness indicated, and the amount of newly thawed carbon within the active layer was between 37% (control) and 113% (warming) greater. As additional carbon thaws as the active layer deepens, carbon fluxes to the atmosphere and lateral transport of carbon in groundwater could increase. The magnitude of this impact is uncertain at the landscape scale, though, due to limited subsidence measurements. Therefore, to determine the full extent of permafrost thaw across the circumpolar region and its feedback on the carbon cycle, it is necessary to quantify subsidence more broadly across the circumpolar region.
Quantifying Amyloid β-Peptide (Aβ) Aggregation Using the Congo Red-Aβ (CR–Aβ) Spectrophotometric Assay

Abstract Congo red (CR) is a histologic dye that binds to many amyloid proteins because of their extensive β-sheet structure. The absorbance spectrum of the dye changes upon binding to amyloid. This spectral change has previously been exploited to develop a method to study the interaction of CR with fibrillar β-sheet insulin fibrils, a model amyloid protein. The amyloid β-peptide (Aβ) is an amyloid protein which is deposited in the brains of Alzheimer's disease victims. Aβ is toxic to neurons in vitro in a manner that is highly dependent on the assembly of this peptide into β-sheet fibrils. The CR–insulin assay has been applied as a means of studying the aggregation of Aβ, despite the fact that the CR–insulin procedure was never adequately developed for this purpose. In this study, we modify our original CR–insulin assay specifically for the purpose of quantifying Aβ aggregation and discuss the reasons why application of the CR–insulin method is not valid for this purpose. The CR–Aβ method is equally simple and retains the advantages of speed and lack of necessity for specialized instrumentation or expensive/radioactive reagents. Furthermore, this method can directly provide quantitation of aggregated Aβ in absolute terms (i.e., μg/ml).
Does it make economic sense to restore rivers for their ecosystem services

Temperate forests managed to maximize sustainable yield of wood products can reduce the availability of dead wood on the forest floor and in adjacent streams, which in turn can impair ecological processes such as retention and transformation of organic matter. Lack of tools to link ecological processes with their effects on human well-being leads forest managers to ignore the cost on other services from terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. We examine how adding dead wood to restore stream channel complexity affects the provision and value of selected ecosystem services, mainly related to the retention and transformation of matter and cycling of nutrients, as well as to the effects on aquatic biota. Specifically, we evaluated the cost-effectiveness of stream restoration through a comparative analysis of four reach-scale projects in streams flowing through temperate forest and into a drinking water reservoir and two scenarios of active and passive restoration at the basin scale. Results indicate that the lack of dead wood in streams has an important economic cost because of the effects on fish provisioning, opportunities for recreation and tourism, water purification and erosion control. Active reach-scale restoration resulted in a 10- to 100-fold increase in the monetary benefits provided by streams, accounting as much as 1·8 € per metre of restored river length each year. Results of the reach-scale cost-benefit analyses estimated that the time required to recover the active restoration investment ranged from 15 to 20 years in low- to middle-order streams. Synthesis and applications. Our study showed that restoration of natural wood loading in streams greatly increases the ecosystem services they provide. The benefits in terms of the analysed services surpass the costs of active restoration over realistic timeframes, whereas this was not the case for passive restoration. Inclusion of other ecosystem services such as conservation of biodiversity might make restoration more economically profitable. Overall, our study provides a decision framework for managing temperate riparian forests in the context of ecological services. Our study showed that restoration of natural wood loading in streams greatly increases the ecosystem services they provide. The benefits in terms of the analysed services surpass the costs of active restoration over realistic timeframes, whereas this was not the case for passive restoration. Inclusion of other ecosystem services such as conservation of biodiversity might make restoration more economically profitable. Overall, our study provides a decision framework for managing temperate riparian forests in the context of ecological services
Monitoring expression of selected Plasmodiophora brassicae genes during clubroot development in Arabidopsis thaliana

The expression of 12 cDNAs from Plasmodiophora brassicae, among them two novel sequences, was determined during clubroot development on Arabidopsis thaliana. The aim was to find cDNAs expressed at distinct stages of pathogenesis. The relative amount of infection with active plasmodia could be estimated using PbActin cDNA as an internal standard. Two cDNAs, PbBrip9 and PbCC249, were strongly expressed at stages of disease development corresponding to the occurrence of sporulating plasmodia. Therefore, it should be possible in the future to find more cDNAs which could be used as markers for certain stages of clubroot development.
Seasonal variations in concentrations of macro- and micronutrients in three species of brown seaweed

Abstract We studied variations through 1 year in concentrations of several macronutrients (C, N, P, Na, K, Ca, Mg, S) and micronutrients (Fe, Mn, Cu, Zn) and water content in tissues of the brown seaweeds Ascophyllum nodosum, Fucus vesiculosus and Fucus spiralis at two sites in a coastal embayment in northwest Spain. The annual mean concentrations of the nutrients in A. nodosum were very similar at both sampling locations. There were no significant differences between sites in the concentrations of N, P, Na, K, Ca, S, Fe, Mn or Cu, the C:N or N:P ratios or in the water content, whereas the chemical composition of this species was notably different at the site where it coexisted with F. vesiculosus (the only parameters that were not significantly different were concentrations of Ca, Cu and the N:P ratio). The C:N:P ratios and the clear seasonal variability in N in all species, with minimum values in summer, suggest limitation by this element. Along with N, K was the only other element that varied throughout the seasons in all of the species, and this was most notable in F. vesiculosus. Minimum concentrations of K were also observed in summer, which might indicate limitation by this element. Seasonal variations in C were only observed in the Fucus species; they followed a reverse trend from those of N and K, as the highest levels occurred in summer. The highest concentrations of P and Zn in F. vesiculosus were also observed in spring. No obvious seasonal trends were observed in the remaining minerals.
In-vitro evaluation of aflatoxin-B1 and fumonisin-B1 cellular stress effects on SH-SY5Y cell line

Mycotoxins, which are produced from fungi, have harmful effects on human and animals. It has been reported in several in vivo and in vitro studies that mycotoxins caused disorders on digestive, urinary, immune, reproduction and nervous systems, however detailed molecular mechanism of toxicity needed to clarify. Mycotoxins could have potential to inducing neurotoxicity. In this study we aimed to evaluate mycotoxin aflatoxin B1(AFB1) and Fumonisin B1’s (FB1) effects on cellular stress conditions and endoplasmic reticulum stress molecules gene expressions. Cell survival analysis was conducted by MTT assay. Total-ROS analysis was performed via DC-FDA analysis with fluorescent microplate reader. IRE1 alpha and Gadd 153 which are endoplasmic reticulum stress molecules gene expressions were evaluated by quantitative (re - al-time) polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). According to MTT results both AFB1 and FB1 were shown 90% cell survival at 12,5-100µM concentrations range for 24h in SH-SY5Y cell line. Both 100 and 50 µM concentrations of AFB1 and FB1 were significantly induced ROS formation in SH-SY5Y cells (p<0.05). Gadd153 and IRE1-α, gene expressions were not increased with AFB1 and FB1 exposure for 24h. Further detailed studies that include molecular pathways of cellular damage with longer ex posure time needed to clarify mycotoxins neurodegenerative effects.
The prospects for peroxidase-based biorefining of petroleum fuels

Peroxidases have many potential uses for biotechnological processes. In this review, peroxidase-catalyzed reactions potentially applicable to the petroleum industry are described. Although peroxidases are attractive catalysts for desulfurization, aromatic oxidation and asphaltene transformation, there are important issues that must be overcome before any industrial application can be considered. The opportunities and challenges of enzymatic petroleum biorefining are documented and discussed, with emphasis on the available tools to design a biocatalyst with appropriate performance for the oil and other industries.
Downregulation of microRNA-106a-5p alleviates ox-LDL-mediated endothelial cell injury by targeting STAT3

The apoptosis of endothelial cells (ECs) induced by oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL) is an important contributing factor in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. It has been reported that microRNA (miR)-106a-5p is overexpressed in atherosclerotic plaques and involved in angiogenesis. However, its role and underlying mechanisms in ox-LDL induced EC apoptosis remain to be fully understood. In the present study the expression of miR-106a-5p in human umbilical vein ECs (HUVECs) stimulated with ox-LDL was investigated using reverse transcription-quantitative PCR analysis. Cell viability and apoptosis were assessed by MTT assay and flow cytometry, respectively. Caspase-3 activity and reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels were determined by commercial kits. The interaction between miR-106a-5p and signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) mRNA was examined by luciferase reporter assay. It was found that ox-LDL treatment significantly increased the levels of miR-106a-5p in a dose-dependent manner in HUVECs. Moreover, these results demonstrated that ox-LDL treatment inhibited cell viability, promoted cell apoptosis, increased caspase-3 activity and ROS levels, whereas inhibition of miR-106a-5p reversed the effects of ox-LDL on HUVECs. In addition, it was shown that STAT3 is a direct target of miR-106a-5p in HUVECs, and silencing of STAT3 impaired the protective effects of miR-106a-5p inhibition on cell apoptosis and oxidative injury induced by ox-LDL. Collectively, these results indicated that miR-106a-5p participated in ox-LDL-stimulated apoptosis and oxidative injury in HUVECs by regulating STAT3. Thus, suggesting that miR-106a-5p/STAT3 may serve as a novel therapeutic target for atherosclerosis in the future.