Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum) on daily sperm production, epididymal transit and sperm morphology of pubertal Wistar rats

Os fitoterápicos são materiais vegetais ativos que têm desempenhado um papel importante na medicina popular, pois favorecem o tratamento de diversas doenças em diversas regiões do mundo. Diferentes sociedades relatam melhora na função sexual com diversos fitoterápicos afrodisíacos, mesmo sem comprovação científica. Os afrodisíacos são geralmente considerados substâncias que aumentam o desejo sexual e/ou o prazer sexual. Um fitoterápico popularmente usado como afrodisíaco é o feno-grego. O feno-grego (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) é uma erva anual que pertence à família Leguminosae. O potencial afrodisíaco do feno-grego ainda é contraditório e pouco estabelecido na literatura. Assim, o objetivo deste estudo foi avaliar os efeitos do feno-grego nos parâmetros reprodutivos masculinos de ratos Wistar. Treze ratos machos púberes foram divididos em dois grupos experimentais (7 tratados e 6 controles). O extrato seco de feno-grego foi adquirido comercialmente e administrado diariamente ao grupo tratado (3mg/animal-1, diluído em 500 µL de água), por um período de 40 dias. O grupo controle recebeu 500 µL de água destilada pelo mesmo período. Foram analisados ​​os seguintes parâmetros: produção diária de espermatozoides; tempo de trânsito dos espermatozoides pelo ducto epididimal; e morfologia espermática. Os resultados do grupo tratado e do grupo controle foram então comparados, utilizando-se o teste estatístico não paramétrico de Mann-Whitney. Em nosso estudo, não houve alteração nos pesos corporais absolutos e relativos dos órgãos reprodutores e glândulas acessórias, bem como na morfologia espermática. No entanto, os ratos púberes tratados com 3 mg/animal-1 por 40 dias apresentaram tendência de diminuição da produção diária de espermatozoides e aumento do tempo de trânsito epididimal, sugerindo um possível efeito negativo na produção e maturação dos gametas masculinos, o que pode levar à redução da fertilidade. Portanto, mais estudos com maior dosagem e/ou tempo de tratamento devem ser realizados para avaliar os efeitos do feno-grego em um ciclo espermatogênico completo.
Changes in the Neuronal Architecture of the Hippocampus in a 6-Hydroxydopamine-Lesioned Rat Model of Parkinson Disease

Purpose Parkinson disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder in which dopaminergic (DAergic) systems are destroyed (particularly in the nigrostriatal system), causing both motor and nonmotor symptoms. Hippocampal neuroplasticity is altered in PD animal models, resulting in nonmotor dysfunctions. However, little is known about the precise mechanism underlying the hippocampal dysfunctions in PD. Methods Striatal 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) infusions were performed unilaterally in adult Sprague Dawley rats. Both motor and nonmotor symptoms alongside the expression of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) in the substantia nigra and striatum were confirmed in 6-OHDA-lesioned rats. The neuronal architecture in the hippocampus was analyzed by Golgi staining. Results During the 7–8 weeks after infusion, the 6-OHDA-lesioned rats exhibited motor and nonmotor dysfunctions (especially anxiety/depression-like behaviors). Rats with unilateral 6-OHDA infusion displayed reduced TH+ immunoreactivity in the ipsilateral nigrostriatal pathway of the brain. Golgi staining revealed that striatal 6-OHDA infusion significantly decreased the dendritic complexity (i.e., number of crossing dendrites, total dendritic length, and branch points) in the ipsilateral hippocampal conus ammonis 1 (CA1) apical/basal and dentate gyrus (DG) subregions. Additionally, the dendritic spine density and morphology were significantly altered in the CA1 apical/basal and DG subregions following striatal 6-OHDA infusion. However, alteration of microglial and astrocytic distributions did not occur in the hippocampus following striatal 6-OHDA infusion. Conclusions The present study provides anatomical evidence that the structural plasticity in the hippocampus is altered in the late phase following striatal 6-OHDA infusion in rats, possibly as a result of the prolonged suppression of the DAergic system, and independent of neuroinflammation.
Reduced molybdenum oxide as an efficient electron injection layer in polymer light-emitting diodes

We report a significant improvement in the performance of single layer polymer light-emitting diodes (PLEDs), based on the green emitting copolymer poly[(9,9-dioctylfluorenyl-2,7-diyl)-co-(1,4-benzo-{2, 1′,3}-thiadiazole)], upon inserting a very thin layer of partially reduced molybdenum oxide (MoOx, where x=2.7) at the polymer/Al cathode interface. Both fully oxidized (x=3) and partially reduced (x=2.7) thin molybdenum oxide layers were investigated as electron injection layers and their influence on PLED device performance was examined. Improved current density, luminance, and efficiency was achieved only in the case of devices with a thin partially reduced MoO2.7 film as electron injection layer, as a result of improved electron injection and more facile transfer at the modified polymer/Al interface.
Morphometric parameters and photosynthetic performance of in vitro propagated pineapple

Pineapple (Ananas comosus) is a horticultural species of the Bromeliaceae family of high socioeconomic interest, widely cultivated around the world. The multiplication of pineapple seedlings in the field can be time-consuming, requiring a significant labor investment. The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance of continuous and temporary immersion systems in the micropropagation scale-up of the species. Shoots were obtained from explants subcultured in flasks with gelled culture medium and without gas exchange. The shoots were transferred to liquid MS medium supplemented with 2mM NAA, and 4mM BAP, and cultivated in four different devices: sealed flasks, flasks with semipermeable gas membranes, RITA®, and twin-flasks. After 45 days of cultivation, plant growth, fresh mass increment, the stomatal density of the abaxial surface of the leaves, the maximum quantum yield of the photosystem II, and contents of chlorophyll and carotenoids were analyzed. Significant differences were observed in plant growth, stomatal density, and contents of chlorophyll and carotenoids. The twin-flasks and RITA® devices revealed better results in morphological parameters, such as plant growth and stomatal density, while the treatments in sealed flasks and with membrane stood out in the chlorophyll content.
Detection of electrocardiogram characteristic points using lifting wavelet transform and Hilbert transform

Automatic extraction of time plane features is extremely important for the diagnosis of cardiac diseases. This paper introduces an effective technique based on a second-generation wavelet transform for the denoising of electrocardiogram (ECG) signals. An improved half-soft threshold based on the lifting wavelet is used to overcome the drawbacks of thresholds applied in the classic wavelet. As ECG signals are corrupted by non-stationary noises, after the threshold point of denoising, Hilbert transform and an improved approximate envelope are applied to the ECG signals to enhance the QRS complexes and suppress unwanted P/T waves and noises. A detection algorithm based on the slope threshold is then used for feature detection. The results of simulation demonstrated that the proposed method allows for the detection of the locations of the R peak, P peak, T peak, start and end of the QRS complex, and premature ventricular contraction. The performance of the algorithm was evaluated against the MIT-BIH Arrhythmia Database, and the numerical results indicated that it could function reliably even under poor signal quality and with long P and T peaks. The R peak detection error rate for tape 105 was only 0.27%.
Request Strategies in BELF Emails

: Email is one of the common means of communication in international business nowadays, and it plays an important role in information exchange, cooperation promotion and rapport management. Request through business email is pervasive, where the speaker uses words to make the hearer perform a certain behavior which is usually beneficial to the speaker. From the perspective of politeness theory, request is an impolite behavior that threatens the hearer’s negative face, so the speaker often adopts request strategies to help him/her mitigate the threat imposed on the other party’s face, trying to make the other party more receptive to the request. The study, taking the authentic English business emails written by BELF speakers as research data, analyzes the emails’ request strategy pattern and interprets BELF email writers’ choices on different request strategies from the perspectives of contextual, channel and communicator factors. Through quantitative analysis, it is found that mood derivable, one of the direct strategies, is the most commonly used request strategy in BELF emails, followed by query preparatory under the category of conventionally indirect request strategies, and mild hint under the category of non-conventionally indirect request strategy is hardly found. BELF email writers’ frequent choices on direct request strategies (71.1%) and conventionally indirect request strategies (26%) may result from social power, the nature of BELF language and email as well as communicators’ focus on information content, lack of English proficiency and their mother tongue’s impact. This study is helpful to enrich the research on request speech act and provides insights for business English teaching in that it researches naturally occurring language in business context and from the perspective of BELF instead of native English.
Mass transfer cycles in cataclysmic variables

It is well known that in cataclysmic variables the mass transfer rate must fluctuate about the evolutionary mean on timescales too long to be directly observable. We show that limit-cycle behavior can occur if the radius change of the secondary star is sensitive to the instantaneous mass transfer rate. The only reasonable way in which such a dependence can arise is through irradiation of this star by the accreting component. The system oscillates between high states, in which irradiation causes slow expansion of the secondary and drives an elevated transfer rate, and low states, in which this star contracts.
Laser parameters of a Fe: ZnSe crystal in the 85-255-K temperature range

The temperature dependence of the efficiency of a laser based on a Fe:ZnSe crystal grown from the vapour phase by the free-growth method is studied in the 85–255-K temperature range. As the temperature was increased, the slope efficiency of the laser with respect to absorbed energy decreased from 43% (at 85 K) down to 9% (at 255 K) and its emission spectrum shifted from 4.0 to 4.17 μm. Lasing was obtained in a Fe2+:ZnSe crystal cooled with a thermoelectric module down to ~220 K. In this case, the slope efficiency of the laser with respect to absorbed energy was 30%. The output energy of the thermoelectrically cooled laser was 142 mJ for the slope efficiency with respect to the incident pump energy equal to 21%.
Experimental study of the nonlocality of spatial optical solitons excited in nematic liquid crystal

In this paper we report on experiments performed to estimate the nonlocality of the reorientational nonlinearity in thick nematic liquid crystal samples. The aim of this work is to characterize the index distribution induced by a soliton-like optical beam. For this purpose, we have studied the attraction of two spatial optical solitons counter propagating parallel to each other and at different small distances. By pulsing one of them, we strongly reduce its influence on the medium and we analyse its trajectory to recover the index variation associated with its steady-state counterpart.
PAKISTAN AND THE CONFLICTS OF THE MUSLIM WORLD: A CASE STUDY OF OIC

The OIC (Organization of Islamic Cooperation) is an international organization comprised of 57 Muslim states. It is the second largest multinational organization after the United Nations. The OIC is basically the mouthpiece of the Muslim world and it highlights the interests of the Muslim community in line with global tranquility. Pakistan not only played an important role in the formation of this organization but, as a sole nuclear power and as a leader, has actively fought the case of the Muslim world from the platform of this organization since its inception. This research article mainly endeavors to unearth Pakistan’s efforts, particularly in the OIC, to resolve various issues plaguing the Muslim world like Kashmir, Palestine and Afghanistan. The desk research method was employed to assess whether Pakistan is successful in fulfilling one of its key foreign policy objective by playing an efficient role in solving the aforementioned conflicts prevailing in the Muslim world. Keywords: Pakistan, OIC, Muslim World, Conflicts, Foreign Policy.
Nonlinear model predictive control for path following problems

This paper presents a general nonlinear model predictive control scheme for path following problems. Path following problem of nonlinear systems is transformed into a parameter‐dependent regulation problem. Sufficient conditions for recursive feasibility and asymptotic convergence of the given scheme are presented. Furthermore, a polytopic linear differential inclusion‐based method of choosing a suitable terminal penalty and the corresponding terminal constraint are proposed. To illustrate the implementation of the nonlinear model predictive control scheme, the path following problem of a car‐like mobile robot is discussed, and the control performance is confirmed by simulation results. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Antioxidants in ripe peel and pulp of twelve mango (Mangifera indica) cultivars

Mangoes are nutritionally rich subtropical fruits with unique flavour, fragrance, taste and health promoting compounds, making it one among new functional foods. Both peel and pulp contain many bioactive phytochemicals like phenolics, carotenoids, flavonoids, etc., which are proven antioxidants. The present study was carried out to profile these bioactive nutraceuticals in peel and pulp of 12 mango cultivars along with total antioxidant activity and L, a, and b values to identify the most beneficial health promoting cultivars. Total phenolics were estimated using Folin-Ciocalteu reagent, total flavonoids and total carotenoids by spectrophotometric methods and total antioxidant activity by CUPRAC (cupric reducing antioxidant capacity) assay. Colorimetric (L, a, and b) values were taken in a colorimeter. The data indicated significant variations in the contents of all three major phytochemicals in both peel and pulp of mango cultivars, where peel contained more nutraceuticals than pulp. The variation in total antioxidant activity in peel and pulp was also significant among the cultivars. It was noticed that total phenolics and total flavonoids contributed more towards total antioxidant activity as compared to total carotenoids. On the basis of the contents of total phenolics and total flavonoids along with total antioxidant activity, Neelum was found nutritionally richest cultivar followed by Mallika and Amrapali. Being rich in antioxidant principles, ripe mango peel can also be utilised for phenolics extraction through waste management technique and in phyto-pharmaceutical industry.
Dominant role of deglaciation in Late Pleistocene–Early Holocene sediment aggradation in the Upper Chenab valley, NW Himalaya

Abstract Sediment transfer from the interiors of the Himalaya is complex because the archives are influenced by both glacial and monsoonal cycles. To deconvolve the coupling of glacial and monsoonal effects on sediment transfer processes, we investigate the Late Pleistocene–Holocene sediment archive in the Upper Chenab valley. Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) ages from the archive indicate major aggradation during ca. 20–10 ka. Isotopic fingerprinting using Sr-Nd isotopes in silt fractions together with clast counts in boulder-pebble fractions indicate a decreasing Higher Himalayan sediment flux in the archive with time. Decreasing clast size, increasing clast roundness, increasing matrix to clast ratio, and dominance of the Higher Himalayan sourcing unequivocally suggest strong glacial influence during the initial stages of the archive formation. This evidence also agrees with the existing retreat ages of glaciers in the Upper Chenab valley. Results of our study also show that the upper parts of the archive contain significant fluvial sediment contribution from the Lesser Himalaya, which suggests an active role of the stronger Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM) in the region during the Early Holocene. The apparent decrease in sediment supply from the Higher Himalayan sources could have been due to longer source-to-sink transport in the Early Holocene and/or increased hillslope flux from Lesser Himalayan sources.
The effects of season and ontogeny in the diet of Piabarchus stramineus (Eigenmann 1908) (Characidae: Stevardiinae) from southern Brazil

Abstract Aim In the present work we describe and analyze the diet of a small characin species, Piabarchus stramineus, from the Ibicuí River, Uruguay River Basin, southern Brazil. Methods Samples were collected monthly from April 2001 to March 2002 with seine net. All fish were measured, weighed, and had its stomach extruded for gut content analysis. Months were grouped in seasons and fish were classified within three standard length classes (SLC). We tested for possible alimentary differences between the different seasons of the year and standard length classes. Results The analysis of the content in 301 stomachs identified 27 food items and low to intermediary niche breadth. The main food item/category was allochthonous insects, regardless of the seasons, and P. stramineus can be classified as an insectivorous species. We observed no food overlap between smaller and larger fish (SLC1 and SLC3). On the other hand, we observed food overlap between small and intermediary fish (SLC1 and SLC2) and between intermediary and large fish (SLC2 and SLC3), evidencing a transition in food consumption along size classes. A temporal variation in diet composition was also observed among size classes. Thus, different sized fish differed in their diets, with smaller fish feeding mainly on cladocerans (SLC1 and SLC2) and larger fish (SLC3) feeding mainly on allochthonous Diptera and Hymenoptera. Conclusions The species diet varies in time (seasons) and such variation is different in each size class. Allochthonous food items were important in the diet of the species in the different developmental phases, especially for larger fish, with autochthonous items also important, especially for smaller fish. The allochthonous food items are strongly related to the ciliary forest; thus, we emphasize the importance of the conservation of such environments.
A Comment on Diagnostic Tools for Counterfactual Inference

We evaluate two diagnostic tools used to determine if counterfactual analysis requires extrapolation. Counterfactuals based on extrapolation are model dependent and might not support empirically valid inferences. The diagnostics help researchers identify those counterfactual “what if” questions that are empirically plausible. We show, through simple Monte Carlo experiments, that these diagnostics will often detect extrapolation, suggesting that there is a risk of biased counterfactual inference when there is no such risk of extrapolation bias in the data. This is because the diagnostics are affected by what we call the n/k problem: as the number of data points relative to the number of explanatory variables decreases, the diagnostics are more likely to detect the risk of extrapolation bias even when such risk does not exist. We conclude that the diagnostics provide too severe a test for many data sets used in political science.
Preprocessing to improve the accuracy of recognition of radioelement components in automated assembly devices

The article presumes a data processing algorithm that improves the accuracy of recognition of radio-electronic components in devices for automated installation. The paper proposes the use of a multicriteria filtering method that allows you to automatically change the smoothing coefficient. Varying the coefficient allows both reducing the noise component and preserving the boundaries of the radio elements without blurring. In order to enhance the contours of objects, a data simplification method is applied using the technique of reducing the range of clusters of color gradient histograms while preserving the shapes of objects. At the stage of detecting the boundaries of the elements and forming the structure of the elements of the radio component base, a modified one-dimensional two-criteria method is used. The combined analytical approach allows detection of the boundaries of radioelements and increases the productivity of the process. As test data used to evaluate the effectiveness, pairs of test images obtained by sensors fixed at various magnifications with a resolution of 1024x768 (8 bit, color image, visible range) are used. Images of simple shapes are used as analyzed objects
Building Sustainability Business Industry Palm Oil 4.0 Through A Green Human Resources Management, Green Innovation and Approach Green Commitment

Indonesia is the leading producer and exporter of palm oil worldwide and the world's top supplier of palm oil-based biofuel. Oil palm plantations in the Industrial Era 4.0 are required to increase production and productivity in an environmentally friendly and sustainable manner in the face of global competition. Various environmental issues have become a concern on world economic growth. There is a close relationship between the environment with production and the economy. The issue of global warming has become a central issue that poses a threat to the country's economic activities, production, and economic growth. The application of “Good Agricultural Practices” in the palm oil industry is accompanied by environmental policies, both mandatory and voluntary, as an effort towards business sustainability. One of which involves managing human resources in the business process of oil palm plantations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Implementation of the company's environmental policy to preserve nature through employee involvement in innovation and commitment to the environment. This writing aims to understand the framework that explains the relationship between the variables of Green Human Resources Management (GHRM), Green Innovation, Green Commitment and Sustainability Business. This paper presents the theory of Green HRM, especially the behavior of Green Commitment and Green Innovation in an organization. This paper is obtained through library research by analyzing the relationship between variables. Focuses on the relationship between the variables of Green HRM, Green Innovation, Green Commitment and Sustainability Business which is expected to complement literacy of similar research in the future.