Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
COMBINING ABILITY AND HETEROSIS ANALYSIS FOR SOME AGRONOMIC TRAITS IN RICE

This study was carried out at the experimental farm of Rice Research and Training Center (RRTC), Sakha, Kafr El-Sheikh, Egypt, to study combining ability and heterosis in a diallel mating design among six rice genotypes (excluding reciprocals), using six varieties namely Sakha 101, Sakha 103,Giza177,Giza176 and Giza159 and BL1. An experiment was conducted during 2014, 2015 growing seasons and designed in a randomize complete block with three replications. Data were recorded on eleven traits; heading date, chlorophyll content, flag leaf area, plant height, number of tillers/plant, panicle length, panicle weight, panicle fertility (%),1000-grain weight and grain yield /plant. The results revealed that, the genotypes were highly significant different in all studied characters. The crosses Sakha 103 × BL1 and Giza177 x BL1 showed positive and significant heterosis for mid and better parents for most studied traits. The parent Giza176 was good general combiner for most studied traits. The cross Sakha 101 × BL1 showed positive and highly significant of specific combining ability effects for grain yield and its components. INTRODUCTION Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is one of the most important crops that provide food for about half of the world population and will continue to occupy the pivotal place in global food and livelihood security systems. Genetic variability for agronomic traits is the key component of breeding programs for broadening the gene pool of rice and other crops. In Egypt, rice constitutes one of the main agricultural exports . During 2012 season, the area cultivated with rice was 1.42 million feddans with an average of 4.15 t /fed, and total production of 5.89 million tons (Rice Research Training Center Proceeding,2012 ). The phenomenon of heterosis has been a powerful force in the evolution of plants and it has been exploited extensively in crop production which is the greatest practical achievement of the science of genetics and plant breeding (Satheeshkumar and Saravanan, 2013 ). Heterosis in crops has contributed greatly to global crop production improvement in recent decades (Schnable and Springer, 2013 ). Heterosis describes improved performance of heterozygous F1 hybrids in terms of stature, biomass, size, yield, speed of development, fertility, resistance to diseases and insect pests, or to climatic rigors of any type compared to
Response of eastern chipmunks to single application spring prescribed fires on the Fernow Experimental Forest

We used radiotelemetry to examine the effects of spring prescribed fire for preharvest oak (Quercus spp.) shelterwood management on eastern chipmunk (Tamias striatus) home-range attributes and burrow use on the Fernow Experimental Forest in the central Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia. Results for 21 chipmunks showed that prescribed fire had little discernable effect on home-range or core-area size, extent of conspecific overlap, or burrow use. Fire tolerance of this common forest rodent provides additional evidence supporting the use of prescribed burning to achieve vegetation management objectives in the central Appalachians where appropriate.
Functional Genomics Via Metabolic Footprinting: Monitoring Metabolite Secretion by Escherichia Coli Tryptophan Metabolism Mutants Using FT–IR and Direct Injection Electrospray Mass Spectrometry

We sought to test the hypothesis that mutant bacterial strains could be discriminated from each other on the basis of the metabolites they secrete into the medium (their ‘metabolic footprint’), using two methods of ‘global’ metabolite analysis (FT–IR and direct injection electrospray mass spectrometry). The biological system used was based on a published study of Escherichia coli tryptophan mutants that had been analysed and discriminated by Yanofsky and colleagues using transcriptome analysis. Wild-type strains supplemented with tryptophan or analogues could be discriminated from controls using FT–IR of 24 h broths, as could each of the mutant strains in both minimal and supplemented media. Direct injection electrospray mass spectrometry with unit mass resolution could also be used to discriminate the strains from each other, and had the advantage that the discrimination required the use of just two or three masses in each case. These were determined via a genetic algorithm. Both methods are rapid, reagentless, reproducible and cheap, and might beneficially be extended to the analysis of gene knockout libraries.
Generalized Jackknife Estimators of Weighted Average Derivatives

With the aim of improving the quality of asymptotic distributional approximations for nonlinear functionals of nonparametric estimators, articlerevisitsthelarge-samplepropertiesofanimportantmemberofthatclass,namelyakernel-basedweightedaveragederivativeestimator.Asymptoticlinearityoftheestimatorisestablishedunderweakconditions. Indeed,weshowthatthebandwidthconditionsemployedarenecessaryinsomecases.Abias-correctedversionoftheestimatorisproposedandshowntobeasymptoticallylinearunderyetweakerbandwidthconditions.Implementationaldetailsoftheestimatorsarediscussed,includingbandwidthselectionprocedures.Consistencyofananalogestimatoroftheasymptoticvarianceisalsoestablished. Numericalresultsfromasimulationstudyandanempiricalillustrationarereported.Toestablishtheresults,anovelresultonuniformconvergenceratesforkernelestimatorsisobtained.Theonlinesupplementalmaterialtothisarticleincludesdetailsonthetheoreticalproofsandotheranalyticderivations,andfurtherresultsfromthesimulationstudy.
A family of growth models for representing the price process in online auctions

Bids during an online auction arrive at unequally-spaced discrete time points. Our goal is to capture the entire continuous price-evolution function by representing it as a functional object. Various nonparametric smoothing methods exist to recover the functional object from the observed discrete bid data. Previous studies use penalized polynomial and monotone smoothing splines; however, these require the determination and storage of a large number of coefficients and often lengthy computational time. We present a family of parametric growth curves that describe the price-evolution during online auctions. This approach is parsimonious and has an appealing interpretation in the online auction context. We also provide an automated fitting algorithm that is computationally fast. Methods are illustrated using eBay data.
Clusters in tourism

One way of improving efficiency and competitiveness of developing a network of business which relate to the formation of associati ons of undertakings, which is used for cluster designation. Clusters of tourism i nclude recreational facilities, accommodation, catering, cultural, transport and ad ditional character in various combinations according to local or regional conditi ons. The preparation and implementation of a cluster of tourism P řerov will be made in both of nationally applicable materials, and from the development plan s of P řerov, resp.v event include wider areas of similar materials from diffe rent towns and villages. The basic idea should be filled with ideas P řerov region as an important center of tourism. The choice of focus will be exploited to t he maximum extent unique situations, especially historical ones, which the r egion is famous in professional circles. VaLG task can be seen in the early stages of P řerovsko cluster formation, both in the elaboration of an appropriate theoretic al model, both in the choice of focus and filling activities.
Modelling lactation curves of Friesian cows in a subtropical climate

Monthly herd recording data from Friesian cows in south-east Queensland are used to evaluate 20 models of the lactation curve, 10 being drawn from the literature and 10 being original. The curve of Wood (1967) with equation y = a n b exp (–cn) ,and its modification y = a n fc /cosh (en) , generally gave the lowest values for the error mean square across all seasons of calving. However, the model which predicts a constant initial yield, followed by a linear decline, y = a for n =S c, y = a - b(n –c) for n > c , is as good as the previous two models for winter calving cows. Hence it is a useful representation of the lactation curve in south-eastern Queensland, where about 40% of cows are calved in winter. The inverse polynomial model y = nl(a + bn + en 2 ) is a useful model for lactations commencing in the summer months.
On German Verb Syntax under Age 2

Previous research on early child German suggests that verb placement is mastered early on, at least around the age of two; this finding has provided support for the idea that the full syntactic tree is present from the earliest stage of syntactic development. We show that two German children around a year and a half of age already exhibit a clear distinction between finite and non-finite utterances in terms of verb placement and the distribution of empty subjects. Although their verbal paradigms are impoverished, these children clearly already have an inflectional projection (IP) in finite clauses. However, we argue against the idea that a full syntactic tree is available at this point; rather, the data support a reduced representation without a complementizer projection (CP). Furthermore, non-finite matrix clauses, common at this early stage, lack even the inflectional projection. Comments University of Pennsylvania Institute for Research in Cognitive Science Technical Report No. IRCS-94-24. This technical report is available at ScholarlyCommons: http://repository.upenn. edu/ircs_reports/170
A Characterization of the Meteorological Environment Associated with the Tropical Transition of a Medicane in the Western Mediterranean Sea

In order to identify the distinctive characteristics of the meteorological environment supporting the tropical transition of the October 1996 medicane in the western Mediterranean, its spatial and temporal evolution is investigated on the basis of a 50-member ensemble of reanalyses-driven RCM atmospheric simulations. As the cyclones undergo a warm seclusion-like process, the initial thermal asymmetries and vertical tilt are reduced while a warm core builds upward from the lower troposphere. A comparison of the composite environments of transitioning and non-transitioning storms reveals that the former feature enhanced convection and higher mid-to-low tropospheric relative humidity, resulting in a stronger diabatic heat release aloft, along with increased upper-level wind divergence. At the time of transition, vertical wind shear is not significantly different, as it is reduced in both composites below the thresholds typically found for tropical cyclogeneses. Upper-level wind divergence and wind shear are positively correlated, hence the additional forcing on convection due to stronger divergence could partially counteract the detrimental effects of larger shear. In the transitioning cyclones, surface sensible and latent heat fluxes become significantly larger only in proximity of the transition. Finally, the upper-tropospheric warm core strength exhibits a strong, negative linear correlation with wind shear. Moderately positive correlation coefficients are instead found for latent and sensible heat fluxes while upperlevel divergence and mid-to-low tropospheric relative humidity show small and negative correlations. 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32
THE SILENT REVOLUTION : RNA Interference as Basic Biology , Research Tool , and Therapeutic

■ Abstract RNA interference (RNAi) is an evolutionarily conserved mechanism for silencing gene expression. In primitive organisms, RNAi protects the genome from viruses and other insertable genetic elements and regulates gene expression during development. The antisense (guide) strand of short double-stranded RNAs is incorporated into an RNA-induced silencing complex that can either suppress protein expression or direct degradation of messenger RNAs that contain homologous sequence(s). The discovery that RNAi works in mammalian cells has sparked intense investigation into its role in normal mammalian cell function, its use as a tool to understand or screen for genes functioning in cellular pathways in healthy and diseased cells and animals, and its potential for therapeutic gene silencing. RNAi may provide an important new therapeutic modality for treating infection, cancer, neurodegenerative disease, and other illnesses, although in vivo delivery of small interfering RNAs into cells remains a significant obstacle.
A Shot in the Dark: Finding Heavily Obscured Galaxies in Multi-Wavelength Surveys

Recent work revealed a significant population of ”hidden galaxies” in the early universe (redshift z > 3), which systematically escaped optical and near IR telescope imaging due to high dust content. These peculiar ”NIR-dropout galaxies” can now be identified in state-of-the-art infrared surveys, where the impact of dust is less strong. This project proposes a semi-automated method for the identication of the most reliable candidates of ”NIR-dropout galaxies”. The technique takes advantage of unsupervised and semi-supervised machine learning to classify galaxies. In particular, we use t-distributed Stochastic Neighbour Embedding (t-SNE) for dimensionality reduction on unlabeled data, consisting of cutouts of telescope images in various bands. With information from the COSMOS2020 catalogue we construct a combined model of the telescope image. Subtracting the model from the the scientific image we produce a residual map that is used for the detection of the objects constituting our sample. Through visual inspection of the residual image, a sample of respectively promising and unfit candidates is labelled to allow for semi-supervised classification of galaxies according to the vote of k neighbours. With this method we are able to classify 128 robust candidates from the entire sample of 2024 unlabelled galaxies, thus reducing the sample to be visually inspected by a factor of ∼ 15. This method will allow identification and classification of distant, optically faint galaxies among the millions of object that will be detected in next-generation surveys such as Euclid. Upon confirmation of the candidates, this might lead to a challenge of our understanding of galaxy evolution and/or provide insight into the physical features of intrinsically faint, distant galaxies. Link to the repository containing the code used in this project: https://github.com/KimiKreil/Bachelor Thesis Code
Diverse gene expression patterns in response to anticancer drugs between human and mouse cell lines revealed by a comparative transcriptomic analysis

The aim of the present study was to perform comparative genomics using gene expression profile datasets of mice and humans who had been treated with anticancer drugs, to determine the similarities and differences in the antitumor mechanisms in the two mammals. This involved data mining of antitumor gene expression regulation, and screening of genetic loci from experimental mouse models of antitumor targets, to provide a theoretical basis of drug design. Subsequently, 9 overlapping genes with opposite expression patterns were identified across mouse and human cell lines that were treated with a specific cyclin-dependent kinase 4/6 inhibitor, PD0332991. These genes included LIM homeobox 2, adenomedullin, bone marrow stromal cell antigen 1, caveolin 1, histone cluster 1 (HIST1) H2B family member C, HIST1 H3 family member F, low density lipoprotein-receptor related protein 11, prolyl 4-hydroxylase subunit α1 and torsin family 3 member A. In addition, the janus kinase-signal transducer and activator of transcription signaling pathway, Toll-like receptor signaling pathway, T cell receptor signaling pathway and the nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-like receptor signaling pathway were identified as candidate pathways for explaining antitumor mechanisms.
FGF-2 stimulates migration of Kaposi ’ s sarcoma-like vascular cells by HGF-dependent relocalization of the urokinase receptor

The spindle-shaped cell line TTB was recently isolated from highly vascularized skin lesions of BKV/HIV-1 tat transgenic mice and shown to possess an autocrine loop for hepatocyte growth factor (HGF). We show that fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF2) stimulates TTB cell migration and promotes polarization of uPAR at the leading edge of migrating cells. FGF-stimulated TTB cells presented the typical migratory phenotype, with a triangular cell shape and concomitant breakdown of actin stress fibers and smooth muscle-specific actin isoform. FGF-2-stimulated migration was blocked by antibodies against urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) or uPA receptor (uPAR) and by neutralizing anti-HGF antibodies. The latter also inhibited uPAR relocalization at the cell surface of FGF-2-treated TTB cells. This points to a crosstalk between FGF-2 and HGF that might mediate TTB cell migration by modulating the localization of cell surface uPAR. —Cavallaro, U. , Wu, Z. , Di Palo, A. , Montesano, R. , Pepper, M. S. , Maier, J. A. M. , Soria, M. R. FGF-2 stimulates migration of Kaposi’s sarcoma-like vascular cells by HGFdependent relocalization of the urokinase receptor. FASEB J. 12, 1027–1034 (1998)
RR Lyrae Variables in M33. I. Evidence for a Field Halo Population

We present observations of RR Lyrae variables in the Local Group late-type spiral galaxy M33. Using the Advanced Camera for Surveys on the Hubble Space Telescope, we have identified 64 ab-type RR Lyrae stars in M33. We have estimated reddenings for these stars based on their minimum light V - I colors and metallicities based on their periods. From the distributions of these properties, we conclude that the RR Lyrae stars belong to two populations: one associated with the halo of M33 and the other associated with its disk. Given that RR Lyrae stars are produced by populations older than ∼10 Gyr, this suggests that not only does the field halo of M33 contain an old component, but so does its disk. This is one of the best pieces of evidence for the existence of a halo field component in M33. Using a relation between RR Lyrae absolute magnitude and metallicity (MV(RR) = 0.23[Fe/H] + 0.93), we estimate a mean distance modulus of ⟨(m - M)0⟩ = 24.67 ± 0.08 for M33. This places M33 approximately 70 kpc beyond M31 in line-of-sight distance.
Reproducibility and content validity of the Slovenian version of the STarT Back Screening Tool for chronicity risk assessment in patients with low back pain

Chronic pain is the most common cause of impaired work ability and thus represents a significant social and economic burden. STarT Back Screening Tool (SBT) is the most often used screening tool for rapid identification and classification of patients for their risk of development of chronic low back pain, which is valid and reliable in the original English version and translation into other languages. The aim of the present study was to translate the SBT into Slovenian and to evaluate its content validity and reliability. We translated the SBT from English into Slovenian and back according to the standard protocol. We tested its metric properties on a group of patients with low back pain aged 18 to 65 years. The reliability of the reassessment was calculated using the ICC and specific agreement, while the content validity of the questionnaire was determined using the ceiling and floor effect. Of the 42 patients who participated in the study, 42.9% were at low risk, 33.3% were at moderate risk, and 23.8% were at high risk of developing chronic pain, according to the SBT. The ICC for the entire sample was 0.96 (95% CI 0.92–0.98). The Slovenian translation of the SBT showed excellent specific agreement between the initial and repeat assessments: 91.4% for the low-risk group, 85.7% for the moderate-risk group, and 95.2% for the high-risk group. In addition, it showed good content validity, as no ceiling or floor effects were detected. The Slovenian translation of the questionnaire is suitable for clinical use.
FXR agonists INT‐787 and OCA increase RECK and inhibit liver steatosis and inflammation in diet‐induced ob/ob mouse model of NASH

We have previously shown in a model of hepatic ischaemia/reperfusion injury that the farnesoid X receptor (FXR) agonist obeticholic acid (OCA) restores reversion‐inducing‐cysteine‐rich protein with Kazal motifs (RECK), an inverse modulator of metalloproteases (MMPs) and inhibitor of the sheddases ADAM10 and ADAM17 involved in inflammation and fibrogenesis. Here, the effects of FXR agonists OCA and INT‐787 on hepatic levels of RECK, MMPs, ADAM10 and ADAM17 were compared in a diet‐induced ob/ob mouse model of non‐alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).
Genetic Diversity of Nigerian Date Palm (Phoenix dactylifera) Germplasm based on Microsatellite Markers

Characterization of date palm cultivars is a complex task using morphological traits alone since morphological markers are dependent on plant developmental stage and influenced by the environment. However, DNA fingerprinting can complement and enhance the discriminatory power of morphological traits. The study was conducted to investigate genetic diversity amongst fourteen cultivars of date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) from Nigeria and Saudi Arabia using microsatellite markers. The aim was to determine the genetic and geographical patterns of Nigeria and Saudi Arabia date palms. Molecular study conducted using six microsatellite markers employed on fourteen cultivars, ten from Nigeria and four from Saudi Arabia, revealed 83.3% polymorphism which indicated high genetic diversity among the cultivars studied. The amplified products ranged in size from 127 to 304 bp. A total of 42 alleles with an average of seven alleles per locus were scored. Two of the markers, MpdCIR025 and MpdCIR050, distinctively characterized six cultivars. This study indicated that variation observed among the cultivars followed a geographical pattern. However, this study was not able to show any alleles that might be linked to gender in date cultivars. Inclusion of more molecular markers in such a study might provide more accurate differentiation and possibly gender discrimination in date palm.
IMPACT OF WEB TECHNOLOGIES ON STUDENT-LECTURER REFERENT POWER RELATIONSHIP

Referent power is “based on B's desire to be identified or associated with A” (Dunne et al., 2010). In the history of the development of higher education, the relationship between the lecturer and the students has changed because of many different factors. Before the internet and web revolution, the lecturer used to be the main information source for his/her students. The web, as a modern source of knowledge, is now used universally and the spread of its usage might affect the relationship between the lecturer and his/her students. Understanding the impact of this change appears to be important as it would be employed in improving teaching techniques. In this area, many studies have focused on the impact of using the internet and web applications on students and lecturers. These studies have widely investigated the impact of the internet on student’s achievements, attitude and also have shown how the role and performance of the faculty have changed. This paper aims to investigate the impact of using web resources as a source of knowledge on the student-lecturer referent relationship from students’ perspectives. The investigation focuses on how students’ knowledge gained from using websites has impacted on the relationship with their lecturer as a reference person which theoretically means referent power. 1661 students from 30 universities/ educational institutions participated in this research.
Inhibition of N‐myristoyltransferase activity promotes androgen receptor degradation in prostate cancer

Even though prostate cancer (PCa) patients initially respond to androgen deprivation therapy, some will eventually develop castration resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). Androgen receptor (AR) mediated cell signaling is a major driver in the progression of CRPC while only a fraction of PCa becomes AR negative. This study aimed to understand the regulation of AR levels by N‐myristoyltransferase in PCa cells.