Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Structure, behaviour and repetitive DNA of B-chromosomes in Cestrum nocturnum (Solanaceae)

Abstract The Cestrum genus is karyotypically exceptional in Solanaceae. It is characterised by a basic number x = 8, a large chromosomal and genomic size, complex heterochromatin patterns, B-chromosomes (Bs) with particular heterochromatin and distribution of 18–5.8–26S and 5S rDNA. Cestrum nocturnum L. has a diploid number of 2n = 16 plus a variable number of B-chromosomes. The aims of work was to analyse their numerical variation, structure and behaviour of C. nocturnum B-chromosomes by classical and molecular cytogenetics. The individuals analysed had 2n = 16 + 0−13 B-chromosomes. All B-chromosomes were metacentric and smaller than A-chromosomes. The number of B-chromosomes showed a great variability between and within individuals, thereby denoting the occurrence of events that promote mitotic and meiotic instability. Cytogenetic techniques made it possible to observe that B-chromosomes are rich in heterochromatin, probably with AT- and GC-rich regions. In addition, molecular techniques allowed to detect homologous sequences of transposable element conserved domains of Ty1-Copia and Ty3-Gypsy superfamilies. These sequences were located by FISH in all B-chromosomes and some A-chromosomes. Our results showed that repetitive DNA could play an important role in chromosomal evolution as well as in the stability of B-chromosomes in C. nocturnum.
Extending Campus Network Via Intranet and IP-Telephony For Better Performance and Service Delivery: Meeting Organizational Goals

The adoption of information and communication technology (ICT) tools and medium in today’s business, is geared to advance data processing tasks, timely exchange of data, easy access to the Internet at increased speed, extended memory to house large volumes of data, and better communications, etc. Businesses grow in lieu of advancing the services they offer; But, they require as a matter of urgency, a corresponding need for effective communication to grow exponentially. The Intranet provides an option to advance such via its many features (not limited to) collaborative communication channel, ease in business processes, etc. We posit that many businesses lack a clear strategy to implement an effective Intranet design. This often leads to investment profit loss, loss of time, unproductivity, and complete failure in achieving its set goals. Extending Ojugo and Eboka (2020) via a multi-service intranet, the study outcomes an infrastructure that allows the effective integration of data solutions via an open-source protocol, application, hardware, and software. Three common issues observed therein includes: packet loss, jitters, and latency. Jitters and packet loss can be resolved via increased bandwidth allocation; while, latency is minimized via upgrade in the infrastructure. Thus, our proposed solution seeks to provide users with mobility, resilience, economy, flexibility, and productivity with improved service delivery and performance. The study recommends that to harness the full benefits of Intranet and improve communication within businesses and organizations today, there is the need for a constant knowledge update is imperative, which will in turn improve effective communication in the implemented infrastructure.
A Comparative Study of Various Intelligent Controllers’ Performance for Systems Based on Bat Optimization Algorithm

The aim of this paper is to demonstrate the performance of two intelligent controllers; the proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller, and the proportional-integral-derivative-acceleration (PIDA) controller, based on optimization algorithm for higher order systems. In this work, bat control algorithm has been utilized to find and tune the optimal weight parameters of the controllers as simple and fast tuning technique to find the best unsaturated state and smooth control action for the systems based on the intelligent controllers. The simulation results using (Matlab Package) show that both controllers with the bat control algorithm can give excellent performance but the performance of the PIDA controller is better than that of the PID controller in terms of reducing the rising time (Tr), peak time (Tp), settling time (Ts), maximum overshoot (Mp), and steady-state error (Ess). Furthermore, the fitness evaluation value is reduced. Keywords: PID controller, PIDA controller, Bat Optimization Algorithm, Higher-Order Systems.
Determining attitudes of a group of nurses working in the northern region of
Turkey towards LGBT individuals

Purpose: The aim of this study was to determine the attitudes of a group of nurses towards lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals. Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out with 358 nurses working in a hospital in the northern region of Turkey between December 2016February 2017. The data were collected using the personal information form and the Hudson and Ricketts Homophobia Scale. Kruskal Wallis, Mann Whitney U test, Single Factor Variance Analysis, ttest and correlation were used in the analysis of the data. Ethical approval was obtained from the Clinical Research Ethics Committee of an university. Results: The mean score of the scale of the nurses was found as 111.5±20.7. Nurses who stated that they did not want to communicate with lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people were found to be more homophobic than the nurses who stated that they wanted to communicate with them. It was also found that the nurses who define themselves as ‘traditional’ were more homophobic than those who define themselves as ‘not traditional’ (p <0.05). The relationship between the nurses' knowledge towards lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual individuals and their attitudes towards these individuals was found to be significant similar to the previous international studies. Conclusions: The findings of this study indicate that the level of education, the level of acquaintance with LGBT individuals and the knowledge of LGBT individuals has an effect on the homophobic attitude.
Trauma and orthopaedic team members’ mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic

Aims Healthcare systems have been rapidly restructured to meet COVID-19 demand. Clinicians are working to novel clinical guidelines, treating new patient cohorts and working in unfamiliar environments. Trauma and orthopaedics (T&O) has experienced cancellation of routine clinics and operating, with redistribution of the workload and human resources. To date, no studies have evaluated the mental health impact of these changes on the T&O workforce. We report the results of a novel survey on the impact of the pandemic on the mental health of our orthopaedic workforce and the contributory factors. Methods A 20-question survey-based cross-sectional study of orthopaedic team members was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic. The primary objective was to identify the impact of the pandemic on mental health in the form of major depressive disorder (MDD) and general anxiety disorder (GAD). The survey incorporated the patient health questionnaire (PHQ-2), which is validated for screening of MDD, and the generalized anxiety disorder questionnaire (GAD-2), which is validated for screening of GAD. Results There were 62 respondents (18 females and 44 males). As compared to the general population, we noted a greater estimated prevalence of GAD (17.7% vs 5.9%, p = 0.0009297) and MDD (19.4% vs 3.3%, p = 0.0000007731). The prevalence of MDD symptoms was greatest among senior house officers (SHOs) (p = 0.02216). Female respondents scored higher for symptoms of MDD (p = 0.03583) and GAD (p = 0.0001086). Those identifying as ‘Black, African, Caribbean or Black British’ displayed a higher prevalence of GAD symptoms (p = 0.001575) and felt least supported at work (p = 0.001341). Conclusion Our study, in the first of its kind, shows a significant prevalence of GAD and MDD in the workforce. We found that SHOs, females and those of Black, African, Caribbean, or Black British origin were disproportionately affected. Action should be taken to help prevent adverse mental health outcomes for our colleagues during the pandemic. Cite this article: Bone Joint Open 2020;1-6:316–325.
Implementation of a New and Modified Scheme of Butler Matrix for C-Band Applications with Enhanced Characteristics

In this paper, the structure of a miniaturized broadband 4 × 4 Butler matrix is presented. All components of the proposed feeding network are designed in a way that they have the smallest electrical size and acceptable performance in the C band. Despite conventional Butler matrix consists of phase shifters, the proposed network benefits from dummy crossover, which leads to improving the phase difference bandwidth. Since in beam switching networks, 90° coupler has a vital role, the main focus is concentrated on the aforementioned component as mentioned above. The compactness of the proposed coupler is associated with embedding the S-shaped arms instead of ordinary elements. Due to overcoming the problem of a mismatch phase difference between phase shifter and crossover, the modified dummy crossover is used. In order to improve the overall performance of the depicted feeding network, S-shaped electromagnetic bandgap structures are used between elements. They reduce destructive mutual coupling effect hence leads to enhance total network efficiency. The extracted results determine that the bandwidth of the presented network is from 3.5~8.2 GHz that covers the C band totally.
Priority-Based Bandwidth Management in Virtualized Software-Defined Networks

In Industrial Internet of Things (IoT) applications, when the network size increases and different types of flows share the bandwidth, the demand for flexible and efficient management of the communication network is compelling. In these scenarios, under varying workload and flow priorities, the combined use of Software-Defined Networking (SDN) and Network Virtualization (NV) is a promising solution, as such techniques allow to reduce the network management complexity. This work presents the PrioSDN Resource Manager (PrioSDN_RM), a resource management mechanism based on admission control for virtualized SDN-based networks. The proposed combination imposes bounds on the resource utilization for the virtual slices, which therefore share the network links, while maintaining isolation from each other. The presented approach exploits a priority-based runtime bandwidth distribution mechanism to dynamically react to load changes (e.g., due to alarms). The paper describes the design of the approach and provides experimental results obtained on a real testbed.
Comparative Characteristics of Percentage Edibility, Condition Index, Biochemical Constituents and Lipids Nutritional Quality Indices of Wild and Farmed Scallops (Flexopecten glaber)

The consumption of seafood has considerably increased over recent decades; however, as wild seafood stocks are limited, the cultured ones represent a possible valuable alternative. The purpose of this study was to compare wild and cultured scallops, Flexopecten glaber, on the basis of their marketability indices and biochemical characteristics. Wild and cultured specimens were harvested from the Ionian Sea (the Central Mediterranean Sea). Protein and lipid were significantly different between scallops, with the values of protein of 8.50 and 11.6 g/100 g and lipid of 1.45 and 1.70 g/100 g for wild and cultured scallops, respectively. Regarding fatty acids (FAs), statistical differences were also detected. The cultured species showed significantly (p < 0.05) higher polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) than its wild counterpart. Eicosapentaenoic (EPA, 20:5 n3) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6:3) were the major polyunsaturated fatty acids, although only DHA showed significant differences between wild and culture scallops (p < 0.05). The ratio of n3/n6 PUFA showed high values, with 2.7 and 3.1 for wild and cultured scallops, respectively. The atherogenic and thrombogenic indices and hypocholesterolemic/hypercholesterolemic fatty acid ratio indicated an import role in human diet. The appreciated nutritional properties of this species could support the interest to promote its cultivation, ensuring high food nutritive value for the purchasers.
Systèmes magnétiques à frustration géométrique : approches expérimentale et théorique

Ce manuscrit presente une etude des proprietes magnetiques de systemes geometriquement frustres, a partir d'approches a la fois experimentales et theoriques. Cette etude de reseaux de triangles a sommets partages se divise en trois parties distinctes. La premiere concerne le compose La3Cu2VO9, constitue d'une assemblee d'agregats planaires frustres de 9 spins 1/2. Dans ce systeme, differents regimes sont successivement stabilises lorsque la temperature decroit: le regime paramagnetique haute temperature de spins individuels est suivi d'un regime paramagnetique de pseudo-spins collectifs 1/2 associes a chacun des agregats, avant l'apparition sous 2 K de correlations a courte portee entre agregats, indiquant une mise en place hierarchique des correlations. Les parties suivantes sont dediees a l'etude des proprietes dynamiques du reseau kagome. Dans ce cadre, nous montrons tout d'abord que le compose langasite Nd3Ga5SiO14, materialisant un reseau kagome de moments magnetiques anisotropes, ne presente pas d'ordre magnetique ni de gel jusqu'a 2 K, malgre une temperature de Curie-Weiss comprise entre -15 et -45 K. De plus, nous avons pu observer un ralentissement des fluctuations magnetiques sous 300 K. Enfin, nous presentons une etude numerique de la dynamique de spins du modele de Heisenberg antiferromagnetique sur le reseau kagome. Nous montrons le developpement inattendu d'excitations collectives en dessous de T/J=0.01, bien que les correlations de spins dans ce systeme soient a tres courte portee. Par ailleurs, certaines excitations sont caracterisees par une distribution non-uniforme du poids spectral, etant interpretee comme un effet de la geometrie specifique de ce reseau.
Firm Size and Economic Concentration: An Analysis From Lognormal Expansion

This paper studies the distribution of the firm size for the Colombian economy showing evidence against the Gibrat’s law, which assumes a stable lognormal distribution. On the contrary, we propose a lognormal expansion that captures deviations from the lognormal distribution with additional terms that allow a better fit at the upper distribution tail, which is overestimated according to the lognormal distribution. As a consequence, concentration indexes should be addressed consistently with the lognormal expansion. Through a dynamic panel data approach, we also show that firm growth is persistent and highly dependent on firm characteristics, including size, age, and leverage −these results neglect Gibrat’s law for the Colombian case.
Twelve Tips to Successfully Conducting Virtual Clinical Assessment Using Zoom™ Lessons Learned from COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic changed the world of medical education, moving it years ahead of time into the future. Many concepts needed to be changed, so did the methodologies. Nevertheless, clinical assessment remained tricky. This work highlights the outcome of the work of College of Medicine and Medical Sciences at the Arabian Gulf University in Bahrain in performing virtual clinical examination using Zoom™. Tips in this article are meant to help plan, implement and evaluate clinical assessments virtually.
Evaluating methods used to measure cavitation resistance in seven woody species with differing xylem anatomy: a comparison of visual and hydraulic techniques.

Hydraulic failure of the plant vascular system is a principal cause of forest die-off under drought. Accurate quantification of this process is essential to our understanding of the physiological mechanisms underpinning plant mortality. Imaging techniques are increasingly applied to estimate xylem cavitation resistance. These techniques allow for in situ measurement of embolism formation in real time, although the benefits and trade-offs associated with different techniques have not been evaluated in detail. Here we compare two imaging methods, micro-computed tomography (microCT) and optical vulnerability (OV), to standard hydraulic methods for measurement of cavitation resistance in seven woody species representing a diversity of major phylogenetic and xylem anatomical groups. Across the seven species, there was strong agreement between cavitation resistance values (P50 ) estimated from visualisation techniques (microCT and OV) and between visual techniques and hydraulic techniques. The results indicate that visual techniques provide accurate estimates of cavitation resistance and the degree to which xylem hydraulic function is impacted by embolism. Results are discussed in the context of trade-offs associated with each technique and possible causes of discrepancy between estimates of cavitation resistance provided by visual and hydraulic techniques.
Are plant community responses to wildfire contingent upon historical disturbance regimes?

Ecological disturbance is a major driver of ecosystem function, structure and composition, and the set of ecological disturbances that typifies an ecosystem also exerts powerful evolutionary pressures, often leading to characteristic adaptation syndromes in member species (Denslow, 1980; Grubb, 1977; Pickett & White, 2013; Sousa, 1979). Fire is the most important disturbance process in many global ecosystems, and it acts both as a powerful filter of the species pool and as a strong driver of evolutionary selection (Bond & van Wilgen, 1996; Bowman et al., 2009; Keeley, Bond, Bradstock, Pausas, & Rundel, 2011). The concept of the fire regime (i.e., the temporal and spatial patterns of burning that characterize an ecosystem, averaged over many fires over a long period of time) provides a useful framework for understanding the effects of fire on the ecosystem and how they can be modified by humans (Keeley & Safford, 2016; Sugihara, van Wagtendonk, Shaffer, Fites-Kaufman, & Thode, 2006). Many factors influence fire regimes on landscapes, Received: 5 May 2019 | Revised: 11 March 2020 | Accepted: 9 April 2020 DOI: 10.1111/geb.13115
New records of red brocket deer (Mazama temama) in cloud forests in northeastern Hidalgo, México

The red brocket deer (Mazama temama) is one of the least studied species of deer in Latin America. In Mexico, little information is available on this species in mountainous regions, particularly in mountain cloud forests (MCF) in the state of Hidalgo. Since red brocket deer and MCF are threatened, mainly by anthropogenic activities, it is essential to carry out monitoring to corroborate the presence of this species in the MCF of Hidalgo. Here we report new records of this species in MCF of northeastern Hidalgo, in a forest management unit. The study was carried out in the 1302 Zacualtipan-Molango Forest Management Unit (UMAFOR) as part of the Strengthening of Social Organizations in the Forestry Sector project of the 2016 National Forestry Program. Monthly walks were carried out in different locations (sites) within the area between January 2016 and February 2019. The presence of red brocket deer was inferred from evidence of scats, tracks, direct sightings, and photographic records. For the latter, trap cameras were placed at sites identified as likely wildlife passes. We obtained 20 records (1 track, 2 scats, 1 sighting,16 photographs) of red brocket deer. The sighting consisted of an adult individual being chased by seemingly feral dogs. These records provide up-to-date information on the distribution of red brocket deer in MCF in northeastern Hidalgo. To note, records were obtained in an area subjected to forest use under sustained anthropogenic impact. However, owners dedicate their premises to conservation, specifically those including MCF. Since red brocket deer thrives in conserved forests, the records reported here suggest positive effects of forest management on this UMAFOR. Biological monitoring in the area should be continued and extended, also covering areas subject to forest exploitation, as feral dogs may undermine red brocket deer populations. Finally, we recommend the development of research projects in the area, to contribute to management plans aiming to preserve red brocket deer populations.
Nitrification inhibitor 3,4‐dimethylpyrazole phosphate (DMPP) reduces N2O emissions by altering the soil microbial community in a wheat–maize rotation on the North China Plain

Nitrous oxide (N2O) is a potent greenhouse gas that is released from agricultural ecosystems where nitrogen fertilizers are poorly used and contributes to global climate warming. Large nitrogen fertilizer inputs in summer maize fields on the North China Plain (NCP) lead to large N2O emissions. N2O emissions can be mitigated using 3,4‐dimethylpyrazole phosphate (DMPP), but the efficiency and microbial mechanisms of this mitigation at different nitrogen rates remain poorly understood. To evaluate the efficiency of N2O emission mitigation by DMPP at different nitrogen rates and to explore its mechanisms at the microbial level, we monitored the dynamic changes in mineral and N2O fluxes and analysed the abundance and community structure of ammonia oxidizers. We found that DMPP significantly inhibited the oxidation of ammonium (NH4+) to nitrate (NO3−) and thus maintained NH4+ concentrations but decreased the peak value of NO3− concentrations. Total N2O emissions were increased by 6.5‐fold, 13.2‐fold and 26.7‐fold in fields with 112.5 kg N ha−1, 225 kg N ha−1 and 337.5 kg N ha−1, respectively, compared with fields with no nitrogen applied. Nitrogen increased the abundance of ammonia‐oxidizing bacteria (AOB) and decreased that of ammonia‐oxidizing archaea (AOA), whereas DMPP exhibited the opposite effects. Therefore, AOB could be the dominant N2O emission contributors in nitrogen‐treated soils. Sequencing results suggested that all AOB belong to the Nitrosospira and Nitrosomonas nitrosa groups, and all AOA fell within the Nitrososphaera group. In both AOB and AOA communities, changes in the second‐largest cluster after the application of nitrogen fertilizer and DMPP were more pronounced than those in the largest cluster. The potential functional clusters of AOB and AOA were Nitrosospira cluster 3b and Nitrososphaera cluster 4.1, respectively. This study showed that nitrogen and DMPP both affected the abundance and structure of ammonia‐oxidizer communities, which may contribute to the variations in N2O emissions from croplands.
Genetic mapping in polyploids

Many of our most important crop species are polyploid – an unusual phenomenon whereby each chromosome is present in multiple copies (more than the usual two copies). The most common such arrangement is tetraploidy, where each chromosome is present four times. Plant species can tolerate this condition quite well (the same cannot be said of animals or humans). In fact, polyploidy can confer certain advantages such as larger fruits and flowers, seedless fruits (useful for fruit growers) or improved tolerance to environmental stresses. However, carrying multiple copies of each chromosome complicates things, particularly when crop breeders would like to use DNA information to help inform selection decisions. This PhD project looked at how DNA information of polyploids should be best analysed, developing methods and new software tools to achieve this. We analysed DNA information from polyploid crops such as potato, rose and chrysanthemum, yielding many novel insights and important results.