Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Antiviral Medicinal Plants of Veterinary Importance: A Literature Review

Abstract Viruses have a high mutation rate, and, thus, there is a continual emergence of new antiviral-resistant strains. Therefore, it becomes imperative to explore and develop new antiviral compounds continually. The search for pharmacological substances of plant origin that are effective against animal viruses, which have a high mortality rate or cause large economic losses, has garnered interest in the last few decades. This systematic review compiles 130 plant species that exhibit antiviral activity on 37 different virus species causing serious diseases in animals. The kind of extract, fraction, or compound exhibiting the antiviral activity and the design of the trial were particularly considered for review. The literature revealed details regarding plant species exhibiting antiviral activities against pathogenic animal virus species of the following families–Herpesviridae, Orthomyxoviridae, Paramyxoviridae, Parvoviridae, Poxviridae, Nimaviridae, Coronaviridae, Reoviridae, and Rhabdoviridae–that cause infections, among others, in poultry, cattle, pigs, horses, shrimps, and fish. Overall, 30 plant species exhibited activity against various influenza viruses, most of them causing avian influenza. Furthermore, 30 plant species were noted to be active against Newcastle disease virus. In addition, regarding the pathogens most frequently investigated, this review provides a compilation of 20 plant species active against bovine herpesvirus, 16 against fowlpox virus, 12 against white spot syndrome virus in marine shrimps, and 10 against suide herpesvirus. Nevertheless, some plant extracts, particularly their compounds, are promising candidates for the development of new antiviral remedies, which are urgently required.
Ideology before party: Social dominance orientation and right-wing authoritarianism temporally precede political party support.

Although an extensive literature on political ideology and party support has developed, studies examining the temporal ordering of these variables remain lacking. We address this oversight and argue that because ideologies provide a framework for understanding the world, they should forecast changes in party support over time. Accordingly, a random intercepts cross-lagged panel model estimated the annual within-person associations between social dominance orientation (SDO), right-wing authoritarianism (RWA), and party support in nine waves of a New Zealand representative longitudinal panel sample from 2009 to 2017 (N = 31,537). As hypothesized, SDO and RWA predicted within-person increases in support for the centre-right National Party, but decreases in support for the centre-left Labour Party. Reciprocal associations from party support to ideology were approximately half the magnitude. These results provide some of the most robust evidence to date of the oft-assumed, but largely untested, premise that SDO and RWA predict change in party support.
Studies on DNA Helicity, Stability and alpha-Synuclein-DNA Interactions in relevance to Parkinson's Disease

Parkinson´s disease (PD) is a progressive,neurodegenerative disorder that is characterized by the severe motor symptoms, including uncontrollable tremor, postural imbalance,slowness of movement and rigidity. The main pathological hallmark of PD is a pronounced loss of dopamine-producing neurons in the substantia nigra (SN), which results in a drastic decrease in dopamine in the striatum, to which these neurons project. The etiology of PD has not been fully understood. Unproven hypotheses have included environmental toxins including metals, pesticides etc and genetic factors. It is proposed that a cross-talk of environmental and genetic factors may be playing a role in causing PD. A variety of mechanisms that are believed to cause accelerated cell death have also been suggested, including oxidative stress, excitotoxicity and mitochondrial dysfunction. Pathologically, PD is characterized by the loss of the pigmented dopaminergic neurons from the substantia nigra pars compacta, the presence of extracellular melanin (a dark pigment), released from degenerating neurons, reactive gliosis (increase in numbers of glial or support cells), and pink-staining cellular inclusions known as Lewy Bodies.The exact causes and molecular pathogenesis of PD is largely undefined. However, accumulating evidence suggest the involvement of protein conformational deficit (α-synuclein toxicity), metal toxicity,oxidative stress, DNA instability etc. We focused on the DNA topology and stability and α-synuclein-DNA interactions in the present investigation.
Identification of three new compounds that directly target human serine hydroxymethyltransferase 2

Mitochondrial serine hydroxymethyltransferase 2 (SHMT2) is an important drug target in the one‐carbon metabolic pathway, since its activity is critical for purine and pyrimidine biosynthesis. Additionally, it plays a prominent role during metabolic reprogramming of cancer cells, and SHMT2 inhibitors have proven useful as anticancer drugs. Compared to drugs targeting one‐carbon metabolic enzymes (mainly dihydrofolate reductase and thymidylate synthase) that have been used for clinical treatment of cancer, efficient SHMT2‐specific inhibitors are lacking. Therefore, we established a direct system for virtual screening, protein expression, and identification of inhibitors targeting SHMT2. First, 27 compounds qualifying as potential SHMT2 inhibitors were selected for biological activity verification through virtual screening of the 210 thousand compounds registered in the Specs database. Second, these 27 hits were subjected to quick screening by an in vitro non‐competitive kinetic assay of SHMT2 single‐enzyme catalysis. This allowed us to identify three compounds featuring medium‐strength and non‐competitive inhibition of SHMT2: AM‐807/42004511 (IC50 = 14.52 ± 4.1665 μM), AM‐807/40675298 (IC50 = 12.74 ± 5.8991 μM), and AM‐807/42004633 (IC50 = 9.43 ± 0.5646 μM). We describe a quick screening method for the identification of inhibitors targeting SHMT2, providing a basis for subsequent identification and screening of new inhibitors.
Optimization of xylose and glucose yields from Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum) using hybrid pretreatment and assessment for fermentative hydrogen production using immobilized cells.

vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS . viii TABLE OF CONTENTS . ix LIST OF FIGURES . xiii LIST OF TABLES . xv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS . xvi CHAPTER 1 General introduction. 1 1.1Fossil fuels and their negative impacts . 1 1.2 Hydrogen as an alternative energy . 3 1.3 Potentials of lignocellulosic substrates for biohydrogen production . 4 1.4 Challenges associated with the use of lignocellulosic substrates . 5 1.5 5 Problem statement . 7 1.6 Aims . 8 1.7 References . 9 CHAPTER 2 Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum): a potential substrate for fermentative biohydrogen productionA review . 13 2.1 Abstract . 13 2.2 Introduction . 14 2.3 Composition and production of napier grass . 15 2.4 Factors limiting napier grass hydrolysis . 16 2.5 Pretreatment strategies to enhance microbial hydrolysis of napier grass . 17 x 2.5. 1 Chemical pretreatment . 19 2.5. 2 Physico-chemical pretreatment of napier grass . 21 2.5. 3 Biological pretreatment of napier grass . 22 2.5. 4 Pretreatment combinations on napier grass hydrolysis . 23 2.6 Biohydrogen production from napier and other lignocellulosic substrates . 26 2.6. 1 Influences of pretreatment methods on fermentative sugars and hydrogen yields . 26 2.7 Influences of process parameters on hydrogen fermentation . 27 2.7. 1 Temperature . 27 2.7. 2 pH . 27 2.7. 3 HRT . 28 2.7. 4 Inhibitory compounds . 28 2.7. 5 Biomass concentration . 29 2.8 Batch versus continuous fermentative hydrogen production from pretreated napier grass and other lignocellulosic substrates . 30 2.9 Influence of microbial communities producing hydrogen from napier grass and other lignocellulosic substrates . 31 2.9. 1 Hydrogen production using pure cultures . 31 2.9. 2 Hydrogen production using mixed cultures . 31 2.9. 3 Hydrogen production using immobilized microbial cultures . 32 2.10 Other biofuels and biomaterial from napier grass . 32 2.11 Conclusion . 33 2.12 References . 34 CHAPTER 3 Modeling and optimization of xylose and glucose production from napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum) using hybrid pretreatment techniques. 45 3.1 Abstract . 45 3.2 Introduction . 46 3.3 Materials and methods . 48 3.3.1 Lignocellulosic biomass . 48 3.3.2 Experimental designs . 48 3.3.3 Experimental set up . 50 3.3. 4 Analytical methods . 50
Zebrafish Models for Pathogenic Vibrios

Vibrio is a large and diverse genus of bacteria, of which most are nonpathogenic species found in the aquatic environment. However, a subset of the Vibrio genus includes several species that are highly pathogenic, either to humans or to aquatic animals. In recent years, Danio rerio, commonly known as the zebrafish, has emerged as a major animal model used for studying nearly every aspect of biology, including infectious diseases. Zebrafish are especially useful because the embryos are transparent, larvae are small and facilitate imaging studies, and numerous transgenic fish strains have been constructed. ABSTRACT Vibrio is a large and diverse genus of bacteria, of which most are nonpathogenic species found in the aquatic environment. However, a subset of the Vibrio genus includes several species that are highly pathogenic, either to humans or to aquatic animals. In recent years, Danio rerio, commonly known as the zebrafish, has emerged as a major animal model used for studying nearly every aspect of biology, including infectious diseases. Zebrafish are especially useful because the embryos are transparent, larvae are small and facilitate imaging studies, and numerous transgenic fish strains have been constructed. Zebrafish models for several pathogenic Vibrio species have been described, and indeed a fish model is highly relevant for the study of aquatic bacterial pathogens. Here, we summarize the zebrafish models that have been used to study pathogenic Vibrio species to date.
Effects of a microencapsulated formula of organic acids and essential oils on nutrient absorption, immunity, gut barrier function, and abundance of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli F4 (ETEC F4) in weaned piglets challenged with ETEC F4.

The objective was to study the effects of microencapsulated organic acids (OA) and essential oils (EO) on growth performance, immune system, gut barrier function, nutrient digestion and absorption, and abundance of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli F4 (ETEC F4) in the weaned piglets challenged with ETEC F4. Twenty-four ETEC F4 susceptible weaned piglets were randomly distributed to four treatments including (1) sham-challenged control (SSC; piglets fed a control diet and challenged with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS)); (2) challenged control (CC; piglets fed a control diet and challenged with ETEC F4); (3) antibiotic growth promoters (AGP; CC + 55 mg·kg-1 of Aureomycin); and (4) microencapsulated OA and EO [P(OA+EO); (CC + 2 g·kg-1 of microencapsulated OA and EO]. The ETEC F4 infection significantly induced diarrhea at 8, 28, 34, and 40 hours post-inoculation (hpi) (P < 0.05) in the CC piglets. At 28 days post-inoculation (dpi), piglets fed P(OA+EO) had a lower (P < 0.05) diarrhea score compared to those fed CC, but the P(OA+EO) piglets had a lower (P < 0.05) diarrhea score compared to those fed the AGP diets at 40 dpi. The ETEC F4 infection tended to increase in vivo gut permeability measured by the oral gavaging fluorescein isothiocyanate-dextran 70 kDa (FITC-D70) assay in the CC piglets compared to the SCC piglets (P = 0.09). The AGP piglets had higher FITC-D70 flux than P(OA+EO) piglets (P < 0.05). The ETEC F4 infection decreased mid-jejunal VH in the CC piglets compared to the SCC piglets (P < 0.05). The P(OA+EO) piglets had higher (P < 0.05) VH in the mid-jejunum than the CC piglets. The relative mRNA abundance of SGLT1 and B0AT1 was reduced (P < 0.05) by ETEC F4 inoculation when compared to the SCC piglets. The AGP piglets had a greater relative mRNA abundance of B0AT1 than the CC piglets (P < 0.05). The ETEC F4 inoculation increased the protein abundance of OCLN (P < 0.05), and the AGP piglets had the lowest relative protein abundance of OCLN among the challenged groups (P < 0.05). The supplementation of microencapsulated OA and EO enhanced intestinal morphology and showed anti-diarrhea effects at a one-time point in weaned piglets challenged with ETEC F4. Even if more future studies can be required for further validation, this study brings evidence that microencapsulated OA and EO combination can be useful within the tools to be implemented in strategies for alternatives to antibiotics in swine production.
Microautoradiography: recent advances within the studies of the ecophysiology of bacteria in biofilms

Microautoradiography (MAR) is a technique that allows the direct identification of active microorganisms and of their metabolic capabilities without prior enrichment or cultivation. Today, this technique is probably the only one that allows an in-depth investigation of the ecophysiology of uncultivated bacteria under their natural conditions, and it possesses, therefore, alone or in combination with other in situ techniques, a great potential to be used in comprehensive studies of biofilms and other ecosystems. Here, we present a brief description of the microautoradiographic technique, and recent examples of the type of information that can be obtained using MAR in combination with FISH or with other methods when investigating biofilm processes. Also, some limitations of the technique are discussed.
Altered cardiac repolarisation in highlanders with high‐altitude pulmonary hypertension during wakefulness and sleep

High‐altitude pulmonary hypertension (HAPH) is an altitude‐related illness associated with hypoxaemia that may promote sympathetic excitation and prolongation of the QT interval. The present case‐control study tests whether QT intervals, markers of malignant cardiac arrhythmias, are prolonged in highlanders with HAPH (HAPH+) compared to healthy highlanders (HH) and healthy lowlanders (LL). The mean pulmonary artery pressure (mPAP) was measured by echocardiography in 18 HAPH+ (mPAP, 34 mmHg) and 18 HH (mPAP, 23 mmHg) at 3,250 m, and 18 LL (mPAP, 18 mmHg) at 760 m, Kyrgyzstan (p < .05 all mPAP comparisons). Groups were matched for age, sex and body mass index. Electrocardiography and pulse oximetry were continuously recorded during nocturnal polysomnography. The heart rate‐adjusted QT interval, QTc, was averaged over consecutive 1‐min periods. Overall, a total of 26,855 averaged 1‐min beat‐by‐beat periods were semi‐automatically analysed. In HAPH+, maximum nocturnal QTc was longer during sleep (median 456 ms) than wakefulness (432 ms, p < .05) and exceeded corresponding values in HH (437 and 419 ms) and LL (430 and 406 ms), p < . 05, respectively. The duration of night‐time QTc >440 ms was longer in HAPH+ (median 144 min) than HH and LL (46 and 14 min, p < .05, respectively). HAPH+ had higher night‐time heart rate (median 78 beats/min) than HH and LL (66 and 65 beats/min, p < .05, respectively), lower mean nocturnal oxygen saturation than LL (88% versus 95%, p < .05) and more cyclic oxygen desaturations (median 24/hr) than HH and LL (13 and 3/hr, p < .05, respectively). In conclusion, HAPH was associated with higher night‐time heart rate, hypoxaemia and longer QTc versus HH and LL, and may represent a substrate for increased risk of malignant cardiac arrhythmias.
Bone Mass and Density in Youth With Type 2 Diabetes, Obesity, and Healthy Weight

OBJECTIVE Youth-onset type 2 diabetes is an aggressive condition with increasing incidence. Adults with type 2 diabetes have increased fracture risk despite normal areal bone mineral density (aBMD), but the influence of diabetes on the growing skeleton is unknown. We compared bone health in youth with type 2 diabetes to control patients with obesity or healthy weight. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Cross-sectional study of youth (56% African American, 67% female) ages 10–23 years with type 2 diabetes (n = 180), obesity (BMI >95th; n = 226), or healthy weight (BMI <85th; n = 238). Whole-body (less head) aBMD and lean mass as well as abdominal visceral fat were assessed via DXA. Lean BMI (LBMI) and aBMD SD scores (z scores) were computed using published reference data. RESULTS We observed age-dependent differences in aBMD and LBMI z scores between the healthy weight, obese, and type 2 diabetes groups. In children, aBMD and LBMI z scores were greater in the type 2 diabetes group versus the obese group, but in adolescents and young adults, aBMD and LBMI z scores were lower in the type 2 diabetes group versus the obese group (age interactions P < 0.05). In the type 2 diabetes group and the obese group, aBMD was about 0.5 SDs lower for a given LBMI z score compared with healthy weight control patients (P < 0.05). Further, aBMD was lower in those with greater visceral fat (β = −0.121, P = 0.047). CONCLUSIONS These results suggest that type 2 diabetes may be detrimental to bone density around the age of peak bone mass. Given the increased fracture risk in adults with type 2 diabetes, there is a pressing need for longitudinal studies aimed at understanding the influence of diabetes on the growing skeleton.
Psychometric properties of the Italian Tinnitus Functional Index (TFI)

SUMMARY Various questionnaires are used to assess the impact of tinnitus on the quality of life. The Tinnitus Functional Index (TFI) has excellent properties for scaling the severity of tinnitus and treatment-related changes in both clinical and research settings. The aim of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Italian version of the TFI with particular emphasis on factor analysis, internal consistency, reliability and validity. The original English version of the TFI was translated into Italian using the translation/back - translation process; 137 participants who were recruited at the Tinnitus Clinic in Milan and had suffered from tinnitus for at least three months (39.4% females, age: 18-80 years, mean age: 48.26, SD: 14.08) completed the Italian version of the TFI, the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI), the Beck Depression Inventory - Primary Care Version (BDI-PC) and the Numeric Rating Scale of annoyance (NRS-A). Of these patients, 57 completed the TFI again at a second visit 7-14 days later, before undergoing any intervention, in order to provide data for reproducibility assessment. The psychometric properties were investigated using exploratory factor analysis and internal consistency and test-retest reliability instruments. The convergent validity of the TFI was evaluated using correlation coefficients obtained from the remaining measurements. The Italian TFI has a four-factor structure that was somewhat different from the original. The internal consistency proved to be good (0.92 ≤ α ≤ 0.96) as did the test-retest reliability (0.79 ≤ α ≤ 0.85). In terms of convergent validity, the TFI showed high correlations with the THI (r = 0.77) and the NRS-A (r = 0.70) scores, and moderate correlations with the BDI-PC scores (r = 0.46). The difficulties encountered when attempting to reproduce the original eight-factor structure were consistent with other studies in which the TFI was translated into European languages. In spite of this, the factorial structure of the Italian version of the TFI was characterised by high levels of reliability and validity. Overall, the Italian adaptation of the TFI was shown to be suitable to measure the impact of tinnitus on the daily lives of individuals.
Effect of Melatonin on Differentiation of Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells and a Study on C-Terminal Domains of MT1 and MT2 Melatonin Receptors

1: Melatonin has been reported to enhance the differentiation of osteoblasts. The purpose of this study was to determine the melatonin treatment that would differentiate human mesenchymal stem cells (hAMSCs) into osteoblasts. A 21 d continuous melatonin treatment significantly increased the alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and the deposition of calcium in hAMSCs. These effects were inhibited by MT2 specific antagonist4P-PDOT. The time periods of melatonin treatment that increased the expression of osteogenic genes indicated both a sensitized and desensitized receptors with respect to cAMP signaling, signifying two distinct mechanisms of melatonin‟s action. Unlike the parathyroid hormone which is
Feature analysis and in silico prediction of lower solubility proteins in three eukaryotic model systems

Regulation of protein solubility, or the ability of proteins to remain soluble within the cell, is an important part of protein homeostasis. This is highlighted with the disruption of protein homeostasis and dysregulation of solubility being associated with various neurodegenerative diseases. Using quantitative mass spectrometry and computational analyses, we identify low solubility proteins under unstressed conditions in three eukaryotic model systems: yeast cells, human neuroblastoma cells, and mouse brain tissue. Using an internal reference, we account for protein abundance, and allow for the analysis of proteins based on their partitioning between the soluble and insoluble fractions, rather than purely on their abundance within the insoluble fraction. We identified several intrinsic traits such as length, disorder, abundance, molecular recognition features, and low complexity regions which are correlated with protein solubility. These features have been previously shown to be associated with protein-protein interactions. This suggests that, under unstressed conditions, lower solubility in proteins may be linked to functional aggregation, rather than aberrant aggregation. We then present two predictors which may be used to predict the in vivo solubility of proteins, built using the many traits examined in this work. The linear regression model is able to give estimates of protein solubility, although proteins near the threshold between low and normal solubility may be misclassified. The Support Vector Machine is able to reliably distinguish between low and high solubility proteins, but is unable to reliably distinguish low and normal solubility proteins. We have identified several traits that distinguish low solubility proteins from other proteins, as well as developed two models that are able to estimate the solubility of proteins.
Effects of feeding urea molasses treated straw based total mixed ration on growth performance in cross bred Calves

A growth trial for a period of 90 days was undertaken with main objectives to study the effects of feeding urea-molasses treated paddy straw based total mixed ration on nutrient utilization and growth performance. For this, a total of 15 no. of animals were selected and divided in to 3 groups (T0, T1, T2, n=5)) basing their body weight. The animals in control group (T0) were fed rations containing untreated paddy straw, green fodder and concentrate mixture. In T1 group, urea-molasses treated paddy straw was provide instead of untreated paddy straw of T0. Total Mixed Ration (TMR) prepared with same ratio and composition as in T1 group was fed to the calves in T2 group. Significantly (p≤0.001) higher DMI, CPI were observed in treatment groups as compared to control groups during the growth trial. The average daily body weight gain (g/d/animal) was significantly (p≤0.001) higher in the treatment groups (T2 and T1) than the control group (T0), values being 578.89, 545.56 and 378.89 for T2, T1 and T0, respectively. Highest feed conversion efficiency for growth (kg live weight gain/100 kg DMI) was observed in treatment groups (T1 and T2) over control group (T0). As digestibility is concerned, digestibility coefficient of most of the nutrients like dry matter, crude protein, ether extract, organic matter, NDF, ADF, calcium and phosphorus were higher in the treatment groups (T1 and T2) as compared to that of control group. Therefore, from the present study, it may be concluded that feeding of urea-molasses straw based TMR resulted in higher feed intake, weight gain.